Our Kids Love Greece Story

How it all started:

Kids Love Greece is already 7 years old and is the beloved “child” of three moms, Katerina, Maria T and Maria G, who all love traveling and are passionate about their country, Greece.

The idea started when over the years the two Marias and Katerina were approached by other parents – friends, colleagues, and relatives who live abroad – asking them questions like:

In 2014, the Kids Love Greece website was launched as a family travel portal, offering independent advice on where to go and what to do in Greece with kids.

In 2016, Kids Love Greece became the first US based travel agency focusing exclusively on family vacation to Greece and have helped 1,000+ families to create amazing family memories in Greece.

The Kids Love Greece Mission:

Our mission is very simple, but powerful: “To inspire families to explore Greece and create amazing family memories together”. Read here what each co-founder has to say about the importance of family travel to Greece:

“Creating family memories through travel is one of the best ways you can bring your family together. There is something magical about those travel memories; they last much longer than the trip… they are memories which last forever. – Katerina Makatouni

“There’s nothing more precious than spending quality time with the kids. Creating family memories is more powerful than any gift one could ever get them.” Maria Tsigoni

“We keep reading about the importance of spending on experiences rather than on things. I definitely think that a trip to Greece is more powerful than any material gift. Maria Giannouli

What we do:

Kids Love Greece is very different than other travel companies which offer travel to Greece. Why?

Each itinerary is unique because each family is unique. 

Maria Giannouli, Co-Founder

Maria Giannouli, Co-Founder

Maria Giannouli is glued to Crete in body and in mind and believes that Crete is the best place on earth (secretly, the majority of the team agrees)! She has only spent a year away from Crete, for her MSc studies in Tourism Management at Surrey University. She is the tourism queen of the team as she has gained invaluable experience in the hotel and tourism industry for almost twenty years. Maria G is the head of the operations team and is passionate about helping our clients make amazing family memories while in Greece! Read our client reviews and you will immediate understand why our clients love her!

Katerina Makatouni, Co-Founder

Katerina Makatouni, Co-Founder

Katerina Makatouni was born and raised in Crete. She studied Political Science and European Studies in Athens and then went to the UK for her Masters and Doctorate degrees. She stayed in England for 15 years, where she worked for market research and consulting companies. During the last 13 years, she has been living on the other side of the pond… Chicago at first and now Boston. She is the co-founder of Kairos Consumers, a consumer research agency. She has two girls (11 and 13 years old) who proudly say that they are Greeks and spend their summer holidays always in Crete.

Maria Tsigoni, Co-Founder

Maria Tsigoni, Co-Founder

Maria Tsigoni is the smiliest member of the team! She has a nine year old boy and a seven year old adorable girl so she keeps reminding all of us how it feels to go on holiday with younger kids. Maria studied Business Administration at Athens University of Economics followed by a Masters in the UK. She then returned to her hometown of Heraklion, where she worked at Coca Cola HBC in the field of Trade Marketing. For several years she worked with Euromonitor International and Kairos Consumers as a consulting analyst for Greece. Maria loves designing new tours for younger kids (7 and 10) and the biggest reward of her hard work is to see kids and parents spending quality time together.

Maria Hnaraki, Educational Consultant

Maria Hnaraki, Educational Consultant

Maria Chnaraki is a professor and an accomplished scholar in the fields of Anthropology, Folklore and Ethnomusicology. Maria’s passion is… Crete, its cultural identity expressions, traditions and customs. She strongly believes that Cretans are “unique”! It's no wonder why she decided to move to Crete after an extended period of living abroad for work and study purposes. Maria C founded a study abroad program in Crete, that's her ideal classroom .. with no walls! Maria is mom to an adorable, 7 year old boy born in the US, who loves anything Greek!