Travel to Crete, Mykonos and certain other Greek Islands if you are looking for five star luxury.

If however you want to discover the ‘real’ Greece. To step back in time. Visit villages that have hardly changed in years. Eat in tavernas owned and run by the same families for many years. Then you can still do this. For me the Ionian Islands are just the places to go.

Little islands such as Meganisi do not have sizeable towns, just villages and little harbours where you can relax in the sun and enjoy the friendly welcome of the Greeks. Even the larger ones like Kefalonia, which have larger towns like Argostoli and Fiscardo, still have small villages with a couple of tavernas and not much else.

On our visit we were treated to an evening on nearby Ithaca in a village where the villagers cooked a meal for us after taking us on a tour of their historic village. A truly memorable evening. As was the one in a taverna on the edge of a small village.

Located on a west facing hill, the delicious home cooked meal was accompanied by very drinkable local wine against the backdrop of a magnificent sunset over the sea.

Where else so close to home can you enjoy these simple pleasures, unwind and come back rejuvenated?