There’s a lot of EF Ultimate Break reviews out there, so why not add one more to decide on the question: is EF Ultimate Break worth it? I’ve been on two very different tours with EF Ultimate Break and today we’ll break down EF Ultimate Break’s Greek Islands tour, which was the first one I ever went on. Keep reading to hear about what is an EF Ultimate Break trip like and also get a promo code for EF Ultimate Break to save money on your first trip!
The Greek Islands Tour with EF Ultimate Break
Without a doubt, EF Ultimate Break’s Greek Islands Tour is one of their most popular tours. Currently, it has a 5 star rating on EF’s website out of over 800 reviews. It’s an 11 day tour and you’ll go to four places in Greece: Athens, Santorini, Paros, and Mykonos. What’s included in the price of the tour?
- Roundtrip flights and airport transfers (make sure to hit the include flights button if you want EF To book them for you- otherwise, you’ll have to book them yourself!)
- 4 ferry rides from island to island
- 9 nights in a hotel or hostel
- All breakfasts
- 2 dinners (Welcome and Farewell dinner)
- A designated tour director
- 24/7 travel support from EF Ultimate Break
- An exclusive Acropolis tour with a local guide
Optional Additions to your Tour:
- Travel protection ($179)
- Farm visit, BBQ feast and wine ($50)
- Athens food tour and lunch ($70)
- Cliffside wine tasting and village tour ($90)
Now that we’ve covered what’s included, let’s talk about the cost of EF Ultimate Break’s Greek Islands Tour. Without flights and any extra excursions added, you can expect prices to start at around $2,069 minimum (plus whatever you’d be spending while on the tour).
In my opinion, you’ll be spending a bit more on travel when you book with EF Ultimate Break than you would if you traveled on your own. However, I do think for certain trips the extra cost is made up for in terms of ease and time saved from planning. Booking with EF Ultimate Break also protects you from potential scams, dangerous or scary situations, and even losses from certain situations (stolen luggage, hospital or doctor visits abroad, etc). This is because their optional travel protection covers it all. So, I think EF Ultimate Break is worth the price. You can check out the specific details of the tour yourself here. Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s continue on EF Ultimate Break Reviews and talk about my experience with EF Ultimate Break’s Greek Islands Tour!
Day 1: Overnight Flight to Athens
The first day of the tour: an overnight flight to Athens, Greece! Exciting, I know. Basically, all you’ll do is head to the airport as usual, hop on the plane, and fly to Athens. I recommend bringing a book, neck pillow, compression socks, and a giant hoodie for the ride. Day 1, check!
Day 2: Arrive in Athens and Welcome Dinner
Once you arrive in Athens, you’ll head to the designated meeting point given by your tour director prior to your arrival. On my tour, I met my tour director (shout out to Andreas!) at the meeting point. From there, we hopped in our bus to the hotel. We stayed at Wyndham Grand Athens (we LUCKED out with this one!). It’s a 5 star hotel in the city center with beautiful rooms and even better views. We did have some time before check in, but the hotel allowed us to store our bags and head up to the rooftop bar and pool. It was an exciting way to start the trip as several of us had already arrived and got to know each other over drinks and taking in the views and getting pictures on the rooftop. It was absolutely stunning and we all had so much fun!
We met in the lobby after a few hours to get our roommate assignments and officially check in. We also had a meeting to go over general rules and how the trip will work. I was anxious about rooming with strangers, because unless you pay extra for an individual room, you’ll be rooming with 2-3 people of the same gender. However, my fears were quickly dispelled once we settled in and got to know each other. If you think about it, everyone is paying a lot of money to be there. Chances are you won’t be with someone that would risk ruining their trip (because yes, you can get sent home from tour for poor behavior).
Additionally, you can request to room with someone you are going on tour with upon booking or prior to your trip departure. Or, if you make a good connection on tour and your tour director is okay with it, they may allow you to request your roomies for the trip. No promises though!
The Welcome Dinner
You’ll have a few hours between check in and your first designated activity on tour: The welcome dinner! We met our tour director in the lobby of the hotel and began with a walk through Athens. This was great because:
- We were able to get oriented in the city and figure out where everything is and things to do
- Our tour director was able to give us lots of information on the history of the city as we passed through and also safety tips and activity recommendations.
If you’ve read other EF Ultimate Break reviews, you’ll know that the Welcome Dinner is a part of every EF Ultimate Break trip. You’ll arrive to a nice restaurant (usually with a menu consisting of the traditional food for wherever you are) and generally get to know everyone on tour over dinner. For my Greek Islands Tour, the Welcome Dinner was such an unreal moment! We were seated in a rooftop restaurant overlooking the Acropolis- with a clear view of the Parthenon. If you know me, you’ll know the #1 thing on my bucketlist was to see the Parthenon. So I was freaking out and completely in awe during this dinner. We were served traditional Greek Souvlaki and wine as dinner and I thought it was delicious (besides the lamb- I was not a fan!).
I began feeling so comfortable with my new tour friends and excited! After we finished dinner, our tour director was heading back to the hotel (it was probably 8 pm at this point). He offered to everyone that they could walk back with him, or we could go off into the city and explore. I initially was going to stay with the tour director because I was afraid of going anywhere without him, but some of my new friends decided to head out. After I thought about it, I decided to follow them!
I was scared of being out in a new, foreign city by myself but my new friends quickly made me feel better. We talked, explored, and saw so much of Athens that nigh. At the end of it I was so happy I ventured out with them. We headed back to the hotel and then had drinks on the rooftop bar with everyone. The Acropolis was in view and absolutely stunning! Not to mention the bartender, Stavros, gave us all a free shot (he even took one with us!). Day 2 (and our first day in Athens) was done and it set an incredible tone for the rest of our trip.
Day 3: Sightseeing Tour of Athens + Optional Athens Food Tour & Lunch
The third day was one of my favorites! We woke up and headed to breakfast (included in the price of the tour). It was a delicious buffet with fresh fruits, bread, eggs, meats + cheeses, and even fresh honey comb. Plus drinks like coffee and juices, it was perfect to get us ready for a long day!
We started off with a walking tour of Athens. These are always one of my favorite things on EF Ultimate Break Tours- you learn so much and get to see a lot! It usually lasts from an hour to two hours and really helps you feel capable of navigating the city on your own. Afterwards, we were heading straight up to the Acropolis to see the Parthenon! This was the moment I had been waiting for for over a decade and I was so excited. It was an incredible experience, however that day Athens was experiencing excessive heat (108 degrees F), and our Athens tour guide only gave us 15 minutes to explore. I was severely disappointed and felt super rushed, and I hoped that the rest of the tour wouldn’t be that way.
After we came down from the Acropolis, we stopped into a shop and had the option to get custom jewelry- I ended up getting the prettiest silver ring with my name spelled in Greek (Xana) on it. It’s one of my favorite souvenirs ever!
Afterwards we had some free time until we left from the hotel to walk to dinner later on. Currently, EF Ultimate Break has an optional Athens Food Tour and Lunch excursion you can book for this day. I didn’t experience it, but it’s now an option! We had a beautiful dinner at a traditional Greek restaurant before heading back to our hotel to pack up for a travel day the next morning!
Day 4: Travel to Santorini
For Day 4 of the Greek Islands Tour, we hopped on a ferry to head to the beautiful and picturesque island of Santorini. Other EF Ultimate Break reviews may possibly mention this, but they really make traveling around destinations easy when it otherwise may be confusing. This was certainly the case when boarding the ferry at 6 am to head to Santorini. We stored our luggage and spent a few hours onboard, and all was fine. Getting off the ferry though? So chaotic! Everyone was crowding together with their luggage and all trying to get off the boat first. Ferry workers were shouting at each other and people in Greek, and so I was very thankful for our tour director Andreas to translate and speak to everyone for us. It made us all fee much better. Once off the ferry, we boarded a bus to go to our hotel. I was so surprised at the steep cliffs the bus had to navigate to get to the main parts of Santorini, but once we made it to the hotel it was stunning!
After getting settled, we all headed as a group to the Perissa Black Sand Beach! We had cabanas reserved for us and could order food and drinks from them while we lounged by the beach. We all got to swim in the Mediterranean for the first time and had a blast! After a few hours at the beach, we got ready for dinner and headed out for the night as a group.
We walked to Rastoni Concept (absolutely STUNNING views) and enjoyed dinner and cocktails overlooking the sea. This is the most beautiful dinner I’ve ever experienced in my life- and one of the best cocktails! Afterwards, we walked around Beautiful Thira and enjoyed our night before heading to bed- but not before all of the power on the island went out! We were told this is pretty normal for Santorini so we weren’t completely panicking, but what a night!
Day 5: Explore Santorini + Optional Cliffside wine tasting & village tour
This day was an exciting one! We had an optional excursion coordinated by our tour director. We hopped on a little boat and hiked an active volcano! Afterwards, we swam in the sulfur spring next to it. Definitely a memorable experience! We had some free time before that night’s tour and so many of us decided to hang out at the hotel pool and grab some lunch.
Then we got ready and headed to our next excursion: an Oia village tour and then a cliffside wine tasting! The wine and cheese spread was absolutely delicious- and the views were even better! We had more free time after this and we explored more of Oia, took pictures with the famous blue domes, had dinner with a gorgeous view, and watched the sunset. That was it for Day 5!
Day 6: Sail to Paros
It’s time to hit the next island on day 6 of EF Ultimate Break’s Greek Islands tour. And that’s Paros! I hope other EF Ultimate Break Reviews mention this- but Paros is seriously underrated. We got on another ferry and headed to our hotel, which was absolutely stunning! We immediately got ready for the pool and had drinks and lunch while we hung out. I remember really feeling connected to my fellow group members during this time, and soon we got ready to head out into the city! We did our usual walking tour and got dinner. I had an amazing lemon butter pasta and one of the best Mai Tai’s of my life!
Day 7: Free Day on Paros
Paros may not be one of the most popular islands, but it is certainly underrated! This day was one of my absolute favorites. It’s technically a free day, but we had the option to have a boat day! Once we had breakfast at the hotel, we headed to the port and boarded our boat. We did have to share with another tour group of people the same age (they were actually German!), but there was plenty of space for everyone up on the open-air top deck of the boat. The boat ride itself was super stunning, however that wasn’t even close to the best part. We got to jump off and go swimming 4-5 times in different areas around the island! They’ll provide life vests and noodles for you. Our second stop? We got to climb and jump off a cliff! I was terrified but everyone cheered each other on.
Day 8: Travel to Mykonos
On day 8, you’ll hop on yet another ferry to get to the final island you’ll be seeing on tour: Mykonos. Famous for its nightlife and parties, you’ll definitely find some fun here. We stayed at Paradise Beach Club and it was the perfect accommodation for a stay in Mykonos. We got settled and headed out to town to get a tour and some dinner. The main towns of Mykonos are gorgeous- but the rest of the island is mostly farms. Mostly, Mykonos is known for its party and clubbing scene. We enjoyed our dinner and headed back to the hotel to turn in for the night.
Day 9: Free Day in Mykonos + Optional Farm Visit, BBQ Feast & Wine
For day 9, you’ll have a free day in Mykonos. It currently says on the website that the optional excursion is a farm visit with a BBQ Feast and Wine. It sounds incredible but it’s not something that was an option on the tour when we went. Instead, we went on another boat tour around Mykonos! This time it was a much smaller boat and just the group of us who signed up who went. This was so much fun- the captain even let us steer the boat! We rode around the island, jumped off and swam, sunned ourselves on the deck, and enjoyed a delicious pasta and Greek salad.
Afterwards, we headed back to our hotel and got ready to party at the Paradise Beach Club- which is at the hotel we were staying at. It was stunning because one side was completely open and facing the beach. EF also arranged a private area for us which was an added plus. We had a wonderful time dancing and drinking the night away!
Day 10: Head back to Athens + Farewell Dinner
You’ll spend one more day in Athens for the final day of the tour. After arriving from Mykonos, we checked into a different hotel this time and headed our final walk around the city for one of my favorite and most bittersweet parts of the tour. Each one of the EF Ultimate Break reviews out there should mention the Farewell Dinner! For ours, we went to a stunning open-air restaurant not too far from the Acropolis. There was live Greek music and the food was fantastic. You’ll take pictures with everyone, talk all about the fun memories you’ve made, and have the opportunity to tip your Tour Director if they did an amazing job. We then headed back to the hotel and started packing!
Day 11: Fly home
Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and I remember being so sad on the drive back to Athens airport. EF Ultimate Break will arrange your transport back to the airport, so it’s a pretty seamless process. All you have to do is simply be ready and in the hotel lobby by the designated time they give you- and you’re all set! They’ll pick you up and make sure you get to the airport safely. I was extremely lucky I was scheduled on the same flight with several of my group mates, so we got to go through departures together. It was a great end to an even better trip.
Is EF Ultimate Break’s Greek Islands Tour worth it?
As far as EF Ultimate Break reviews go, we’ve covered a lot! As far as EF Ultimate Break Reviews go, this one is certainly extensive. So- Is EF Ultimate Break worth it? In my opinion, it is! While it may be a more expensive option than booking everything on your own, I think it’s made up for by how easy EF makes it to travel. They book everything for you and ensure that you are safe and provided for while on the trip. I also think that going on a group trip offers an experience that you’re simply unable to get on your own- the ease of making new friends, which can be difficult when solo traveling. This was my first international trip and I absolutely loved it. I highly recommend giving it a try at least once.
$100 off Promo Code for EF Ultimate Break
If you’ve made it this far in this EF Ultimate Break review, congratulations! You’ve earned an EF Ultimate Break promo code. Simply use this link to activate my code UAHannahW100 to save $100 off your first trip!
Remember, you have to book through this link to get the $100 code! Let me know in the comments which trip you’re booking- I want to go on the Sicily and Malta tour next! I hope you found this version of EF Ultimate Break Reviews helpful- happy travelling!
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