Suggested Itinerary for exchange

Ideas suggested by Maddy our organising host;

As I said, we can arrange breakfast for all your colleagues as part of the accommodation price, but the acccommodation is self-catering, so you will need to budget for meals. There is a mini market just around the corner at Gerakas which is fully stocked with just about anything you could ever want, and there are also 3 tavernas within very easy walking distance for lunch and dinner. They are very reasonably priced and offer tasty traditional Greek food.

We will ensure that the Info Centre is open and functioning for when you arrive, and we will use the large office area as a conference room for presentations. We have a slide projector and the facility to play DVDs/videos.

We have some guests arriving on the same flight (assuming the UK team agree this date) as you from Doncaster on 1st May, and also another couple coming on 2nd May, but that is in the evening so won't be a problem. We then don't have any further arrivals until 7th May, so we are all yours.

Having thought about it, your flight home will probably be on Monday 8th, as you are coming for a week.

Below is a rough itineray for the week, please let me know what you think.

**We would probably start at about 10am-10.30am most mornings, as we are in Greece, after all!
**Afternoons in Greece mean after 5pm.

Day 1: We will meet you all at the airport and bring you down to Gerakas in taxis. Chilling out and finding feet post-flight sounds good, as does dinner that evening. We could eat at one of the local tavernas. Time of dinner, probably around 8pm. It's chilly in the evenings in May so bring a fleece or light jacket.

Day 2 morning: 10am start? We will give presentations in the office about what ESS does, its history - why it was formed, its aims at the time, achievements, and current/future projects. Also challenges that are being faced, attitudes of people in Zakynthos etc. We can also talk about Ionian Eco Villagers and Nature World Travel (eco-tourism excursions). We will also tell you about the other organisations that we have links with, such as Archelon, the Marine Park, Medasset, WWF and their roles in Zakynthos.

Day 2 afternoon: After lunch and siesta, 5pm, we could have a quick tour of the village, show you around our properties and show you what we are trying to achieve with the property owners in terms of being more environmentally friendly. Then you could just enjoy the area, relax, take the self-guided walk around Gerakas and explore a bit.

Day 3 morning: 10am, We could hire a minibus and take you to see Argassi, Kalamaki and Laganas. Bring your cameras and prepare for a shock to see the worst of tourism on the island, and also some illustrations of pollution, such as the rubbish dump and sewage treatment works above the main nesting beach. There is no official tourism agency in Zakynthos, so we would be your guides.

Day 3 afternoon: Cumbrian team to meet and discuss issues and tasks.

Day 4: 10.30am, We thought that if the weather permits, we could take either our eco-tourist catamaran trip or sailing cruise in the National Marine Park, so you can see the habitat of the turtles and seals and other wildlife, and maybe even spot some turtles. We need to confirm the price, but it should be around 40 Euros pp for the day. Bring your lunch. If the weather is bad we would have to rearrange the days, as this is a great trip and not to be missed!

Day 5 morning: 10.30am, We would try and organise a meeting with people from the NMPZ Archelon, WWF and Medasset. We would probably hold this at the centre.

Day 5 afternoon: Cumbrian team to meet and discuss.

Day 6 morning: 10am - 10.30, We will get some local business people to meet with you, such as local hotel owners, small scale property owners, general excursion companies (sailing, turtle spotting etc), as well as the specific people that we work with for our eco-excursions.

Day 6 afternoon: preparation for journey home and report writing. Farewell dinner.

Day 7 morning: taxi transfer to the airport around 11am from Gerakas.