Girls trip to Halkidiki

I recently got back from a girls trip to Halkidiki, Greece. We stayed at the Anna Maria Paradise hotel in Pefkohori and we were there for three nights at the beginning of June 2023.

Here's a round up of what we got up to on our short vacation...

Day 1

We flew out early hours Monday morning and touched down in Greece around 11am. We were worried that the weather wasn't going to be great as it had been raining there for the last few days, but we had nothing to worry about! When we arrived it was nice and hot and the sun was starting to appear.

The transfer to the hotel took A LOT longer than anticipated (it took us double the amount of time we were told), which meant we didn't arrive at our hotel until around 2:30pm.

Once we got to the hotel and checked in we were taken straight up to our rooms where we quickly changed so we could go and explore the surroundings a bit. First impressions of the hotel were good! The decor was fresh and modern and the hotel itself was spotless. The staff were all extremely friendly and our room had a nice view of the grounds and a partial sea view.

It took us about 20 minutes to walk to beach where there was a stretch of shingle beach and bright blue clear sea. The beach itself wasn't overcrowded and there was plenty of room for sunbathing. We took a stroll along the beach where there was a variety of restaurants, cafes, and shops lined up. We stopped off for some ice cream and we looked around some of the shops.

After a few hour of looking around, we headed back to the hotel where we had a cocktail by the pool, before heading back to the room to get ready for the evening. As it was our first night we headed back towards the beach and had dinner next to the sea as the sun was setting. Afterwards we went into some of the shops to pick up a couple souvenirs and walked through the little side streets of the town before heading back to the hotel for the night.

Sunset view for dinner on the beach

Day 2

We headed down to breakfast which was included with our hotel and then went to pick up our things to spend the day at the beach. Today we decided to walk the opposite direction which took us to the nearby town that had lots of little boutiques and trinket shops to look in. We stopped in a couple of the shops then went down to the beach for a few hours of sunbathing and reading.

We managed to get two sun loungers right by the sea and spent the day, talking, reading, and when we got too hot, going for a dip in the sea.

Late afternoon we decided to have a last look in a couple of the boutiques and cooled of with more ice cream before the long walk back to the hotel. Once back at the hotel we had another cocktail by the pool before getting ready for the night.

Tonight we decided to head to Mamalouka as I had seen recommended on Instagram and it did not disappoint! The location was hidden down a little walkway that was covered in flowers and inside the decor was modern and very boho chic. The food was amazing and the views were 10/10.

After dinner we headed to Ocra, a cocktail bar we had seen on the first night, for a few drinks. The atmosphere here was really good, even for a weekday and the cocktails were really nice and the choice was endless!

Once we got back to the hotel everything was closed down for the night, including the doors which is when we then started to think we were locked out for night. After about 10 minutes of trying to figure out how to get in, we just decided to walk around and see if we could get in through the side of the building someway, which thankfully we could.

The next morning we saw a sign explaining how to get in after hours right by the door and we just burst out laughing. I don't know whether it was the cocktails or just the stupidness of us two being together, but it really didn't seem that easy at the time, haha (p.s. it was definitely the cocktails).

Getting those golden hour shots

Day 3

After breakfast we headed down to the beach to get in our last day of sunbathing before heading home tomorrow. We spent a few hours on the beach and then picked up and last souvenirs before heading back to the hotel for the afternoon.

We spent a couple of hours by the pool, with a cocktail of course and then headed up to the room to get ready earlier as we were heading out of town for the evening.

We decided to get a taxi to Afytos, which was about a 30 minute drive away and we passed through some of the nearby areas that we hadn't been able to explore.

Afytos itself is stunning! The cobbled streets are lined with restaurants and little boutique shops and the whole town is just what you would picture Greece to look like. It felt like I had stepped onto the set of Mamma Mia and I loved it!

We stopped of to pick up some more ice cream and wandered around looking at all the pretty houses and taking in the scenery. The place itself does get really busy at night and the square has such a nice atmosphere around it, full of people having a good time.

We walked to where a cluster of restaurants have tables set up over the edge of a cliff and went for a quick cocktail before heading for dinner. We had a cocktail in a little place that is not far from the cliffs edge and the views were STUNNING!

For dinner we headed to Oceanides, where we were lucky enough to get a table right on the edge of the cliff. This meant we could watch the sunset over the water and see the beach and everything around us whilst we ate and it was the perfect thing to do for our last night. We even had one of the dogs come and join us for a bit, although I think he was much more interested in our Greek salad than he was in us!

After dinner we took a taxi back to the area we were staying and headed to another cocktail bar by the beach for the last night. We then headed back to the hotel for a final drink there before heading back to the room as our transfer was picking us up early the next morning.

Exploring the town of Afytos

Day 4

Our transfer picked us up from the hotel at around 7:45 am and we made our long journey back to the airport before boarding our flight back home early afternoon.

Our view of the sea on the last night

Overall the vacation was great! It was nice to spend time with my best friend as we don't get to see each other as often as we used to and it was great to be able to explore a different area of Greece. The weather was great, the food was amazing in every restaurant we visited and the cocktails were good too.

The hotel was lovely, it was a small family run hotel which made it feel quiet homely. The staff were great and the rooms are spacious with a nice little balcony area. With it being a smaller hotel, the pool is smaller, but it never felt crowded around it and there was always plenty of space for you to sit and relax.

If your looking to go to an area that's less touristy to experience more of Greek culture then I definitely recommend checking out Halkidiki. It was a nice change of pace and I think it was just what we both needed!