Amorgos is a 126 km2 Greek island smack in the middle of the Aegean Sea. It became widely known from the movie “The Big Blue” which was filmed on location.
A young Greek couple arrived at the hotel at Katapola, one of the two ports of Amorgos Island after a 10-hour long journey by boat from Athens. Before leaving Athens, the couple had their hotel bookings confirmed well in advance. The front desk manager informed them that the hotel was overbooked and there was no available room for them. Under normal circumstances, the couple could and should have pressed charges against the reckless hotel management, but they didn’t.
By chance alone, there was a local woman, wearing her traditional island garment, standing by the hotel front desk, who offered to show the young couple a room that she had available in her house. She had another 1-2 rooms but they were rented.
Having no other choice, the couple decided to visit the house to check it out. The house was located at the top of a hill within walking distance from the hotel with a beautiful view of the bay. The room, however, was the typical rural family living room. The traditional furniture and other family belongings were moved to the center of the room, to make space for two light weight portable army folding beds side by side. The door window was covered with a towel for privacy and to keep the morning light out. A shared restroom and shower was located about twenty meters outside the house, which was unacceptable by Greek standards. Pressed by the non-availability of other options, the young couple decided to take the room, despite their concerns about cleanliness, privacy, breakfast, changing of sheets, the outhouse, etc.
It turned out to be a pleasant, once-in-a-lifetime experience. The local woman, kyria Irini (Mrs. Irene), her fisherman husband, and their daughter turned out to be the most wonderful and loving people on Earth. Every morning the hosts would bring fresh fruit, milk and eggs from their chicken, prepare and drink coffee with the guests, discuss with the young couple and suggest places to visit, what to eat and where, and cleaned the room.
One day, the husband arranged to take the young man on a fishing trip. The two of them together with the rest of the fishing boat crew sailed at 4:30 AM with the stars still high in the sky, and did not return before 1 PM. The young dude struggled for 30 nightmare minutes with seasickness on the boat, but came out unscathed.
The young couple visited the iconic Hozoviotissa monastery of the island, where it was welcomed by the monks, and toured the treasures of the monastery. The conversation with the hegoumenos (the head monk) turned pretty soon to an interesting discussion about faith and other spiritual subjects. Before leaving, the head monk gave the young couple his blessing for their future wedding.
The couple also had the chance to socialize and become good friends with another young couple from the nearby Syros island, living in a property next door. The friendship between the couples lasted ever since and they still call each other frequently with fond memories of the time on Amorgos island.
Kyria Irini and her husband continued with the alternative/sustainable tourism and their daughter took over the business after they retired. Their hospitality, honest, sincere and friendly personality, and fishing boat experience became examples followed by many others on the Amorgos Island and elsewhere.
In conclusion:
- a) No need to go to a 5-star hotel to have a good time. Good company, nice people, warm and friendly atmosphere is what it takes to create experiences, friendships and memories that last a lifetime;
- b) Guests are willing to forget faults such as double bookings or limited amenities, if they are treated cordially and honestly; and
- c) A message to ambitious agritourism entrepreneurs: It is not necessary to invest heavily in infrastructure for your product. All it takes is to be at the right time at the right place, and show your good nature.
It is the experience offered that matters. If the experience is good, guests will want to come back for more. And send you more people.
