Greece

Casa Del Mar Hotel in Mykonos

Athens & Mykonos

May/June 2022

Where We Stayed

In Athens, we stayed at the Periscope Hotel - a smaller hotel in a great location. In Mykonos, we stayed at the Casa Del Mar Resort - a boutique resort right on the southern coast of the island. 

The Periscope Hotel was simple, but lovely. They had a nice selection of drinks and snacks in the lobby at all times and the staff was very friendly. The location was wonderful - walking distance to all of the major sites and surrounded by cafes and shops.

Casa Del Mar was unbelievable. It’s a stunning property and a secluded little innlet of crystal clear water. It’s made up of individual little white villas of different sizes scattered on the hillside heading down to the water. The restaurant is open ar and overlooking the innlet and beautuufl Medidertrain. The service was above and beyond, a delicious breakfast was included each morning, and I would go back in a heartbeat. 

What Transportation We Used

We flew American First Class ORD - EWR and then Emirates Business Class EWR- ATH.

We LOVED the entire Emirates experience. To be fair, it was our first ever international business class flight, so the excitement was high, but even now after getting to tryp multiple other business class products, we have very fond feeling about Emiarates. We first booked the main flight (EWR - ATH) once we found award availability. I then booked the positioning flight (CDG - EWR) from my home airport. 

Once arriving at EWR on our positioning flight, we had to transfer to the international terminal, check-in for our flight at the counter, and go through security again. After security, we were given access to the Virign Atlantic lounge while we waited for boarding. This was included in our business class ticket or in my Porpority Pass membership which in included with the AMEX Platinum card. The Virigin Atlantic lounge had a bar, small snack buffet, and a full menu you could order food from (all free). We enjoyed a couple hours of lounging, eating, and drinking before heading right down the hall to board our midnight flight to Athens. 

Once onboard, we were directed to our seats and greeted by a crew member. Champagne was passed out along with menus for the flight’s meals. The business class cabin on this flight was set up in a 2-3-2 layout. We chose two of the middle three seats and loved the open feel of the middle grouping and had plenty of privacy with the dividers. Everything from the entertainment system, service, meals, and layflat seats was wonderful. 

Hoe We Booked It

I booked our positioning flight (ORD-EWR) with 22,000 Chase points transferred during a bonus to British Airways. This equated to 33,000 BA Avios for two first class seats. [Cash value = $428]

I booked EWR-ATH with 145,000 Capital One miles transferred to Emirates for two Business class seats. [Cash value = $6,200]

I booked one night at The Periscope Hotel with 50,000 Marriot points earned from my husband’s Bonvoy. [$1742]

I booked two nights at Casa Del Mar with 90,000 Chase points transferred to Hyatt. 

Finally,  I booked Air France economy CDG-ORD for 44,000 points + $314 transferred from Citi.

Itinerary

Athens  (5/29-5/30)

• 5/28 4:12 - 7:19: Flight AA2276 ORD - EWR 

  • Lounge: Admirals Club (H/K in Term 3)

  5/28 23:55 - 5/29 16:05: Flight EK210 EWR - ATH 

  • Lounge Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse (B2)

  • Hotel transfer from airport (50E)

• 5/29 - 5/30: Periscope Hotel 

  • Dinner: 8:00 Tudor Hall

  5/30 Blue Star Paros Ferry Piraeus → Mykonos

Mykonos (5/30 - 6/1)

• 5/30 Arrival, Hotel Transfer to Casa Del Mar

• 5/30-6/1 Casa Del Mar Hotel

  • Dinner: Apaggio for Sunset 8:00

  5/31

  • Dinner: M-Eating post sunset 9:30

  6/1 Ferry to Santorini

From here, we went to Santorini and paid cash for an Airbnb with a group of friends. We then took a cheap cash flight to Paris and flew home on Air France economy CDG-ORD for 44,000 points + $314 transferred from Citi. 

Dinner at Tudor Hall overlooking the Parthenon in Athens