Torn on where to vacation in the Mediterranean?

We’re here to help you out by narrowing down your options to two of the Med’s most popular draws: Greece and Croatia. But which is right for you?  We’ll let two passionate and expert travel writers help you decide.

Greece is the word

Based in upbeat Athens since 1996, our Greece expert Helen Iatrou has co-authored Lonely Planet’s Greece and Experience Greece guides. If given the choice, she’ll always choose a sailing yacht to go island-hopping. 

Six weeks of gallivanting across Greece’s mountainous mainland and glorious islands three decades ago was all it took to convince me that I needed to relocate there and connect with my ancestral roots. 

Sample fish and seafood meze in Santorini © Gavin Hellier/Stocksy United

When I took the leap, everyone – from taxi drivers to island hotel owners – would say to me, with a big, warm smile: “So, you’ve returned home.” Major points for hospitality, Greece. Philoxenia, which roughly translates to “friend to a stranger,” is an ancient Greek concept that’s all but ingrained in our DNA.

I discovered dozens of Greek-somethings were already here, savoring a slower-paced, less stressful lifestyle. Greek time is actually a thing. If you’ve arranged a coffee date with your Greek friend, don’t stress about running late; they probably are, too. I consider this a healthy relationship with time – and one of many reasons Greece wins in any debate involving its Mediterranean cousin Croatia.

Odeon of Herodes Atticus, theater below the Acropolis in Athens © Getty Images

A country with countless options

Your only dilemma is the same one I’ve faced for over 25 years. How do you choose where to go in Greece and when?…

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