Balkans Explorer Trips

Maria was the greatest. I had so much fun! A great mix or relaxation and partying. Not as full on as a Contiki tour, which was great. Also Maria was literally so helpful and went out of her way to be helpful and kind and enjoyable. It was really nice to have someone do the planning for you, so I kind of felt like I was on vacation with a parent who just told me where to go or what to do, so I didn’t have to think about it.

Had an absolute blast, our Topdeck rep Kostas was amazing and really made the trip!

Maria was an absolute lifesaver! She was insanely helpful, knowledgeable, and helped us with the locals speaking greek where needed and negotiating such as taxi prices so we weren't charged extra 'tourist tax'! The activities and places we went were fantastic. I got lucky with a fantastic group of people. As a solo female traveller, having a great group and a great leader was paramount. I fortunately was blessed with both! Only negative would be the very long a chaotic ferry ride from Santorini to Athens on the final day. It was booked for later in the day so we didn't arrive back to the hotel in Athens until after midnight, making us exhausted for our travels the following day. The ferry was also overbooked which meant we had to fight for a seat, some travellers having to sit on dining chairs placed against a wall or in the middle of a room (none of this any fault of Marias - she handled it amazingly!) Could be ideal for Top Deck to perhaps book an earlier ferry for this day or a flight instead.

I love every moment of this trip and Maria, our trip director, was amazing and accommodating to everybody!

I loved this sail. The swim stops each day were a highlight. I think maybe Methana could have been skipped for an extra day in Hydra. Hydra was definitely my favourite, but it was a good choice of islands overall. Niko and the crew were all fabulous. Breakfast and lunch were delicious and I really appreciated getting a vego option when the meal had meat.

The Greece Topdeck tour was incredible! Everything was perfectly organized — ferries, transfers, accommodation — so I could just relax and enjoy. The itinerary hit all the must-sees (Athens, Mykonos, Paros, and Santorini) with the right balance of history, free time, nightlife, and downtime. Our trip leader Maria was amazing and made sure we got the best food, beaches, and hidden gems. Of course the people on the trip made it the best too. The only thing I was wish was different was an extra day on each island.