More than 200 steps wind their way up a steep, rocky outcrop to a chapel perched above the glistening Mediterranean Sea.
Even if the stunning site hadn't been featured in some of the most iconic scenes in the movie "Mamma Mia," I would consider my visit there among the highlights of my cruise through the Greek Sporades archipelago.
But that spot will likely be tied forever to the film; in fact, my visit was part of a "Mamma Mia"-themed sightseeing tour of the island of Skopelos that I and two busloads of my fellow Star Clipper passengers booked during a visit in October.
Skopelos was the filming site for much of the film, which starred Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried and was one of the highest-grossing films of 2008. The $52 million project raked in more than $700 million at the box office and picked up countless devoted fans along the way.
From a tourism standpoint, the film and island are now synonymous.
"People will be like, 'OK, hello, where is the 'Mamma Mia' church?'" our guide said. "Nobody asks, 'Where is a nice place to go?' or 'Where's a nice place to eat?' [It's] 'Where's the Mamma Mia church? How do we go there?'"
The excursion lasted four hours and included two stops at iconic filming locations and a narrated tour of the island between stops. Each stop was long enough to take in the sites, take photos (or film movie re-enactments, as some passengers did) and enjoy insight from our guide, a resident who was an extra on the film.
Rewatching "Mamma Mia" in preparation from my trip, I felt giddy with anticipation for my first visit to Greece. Vibrant flowers over scenic vistas, turquoise waters, whitewashed buildings -- the beauty of Greece in the film would make anyone crave a ticket to visit, but I felt an extra degree of excitement knowing I'd be visiting some of the exact shooting locations.
We started with what I considered the showstopper of both the tour and the film.
The church on the outcropping is from the wedding scene at the end of the movie, though it was the exterior, not the interior, that was filmed there.
A metal railing was all that stood between me and the steep cliff during certain sections of the climb up and down, and the views were outstanding.
The climb down the narrow stairway from the church featured in the hit 2008 movie. Photo Credit: Teri West
Our second stop was at Kastani Beach, where the cast filmed an array of key scenes and musical numbers, including the arrival of Donna's (Streep) three ex-lovers, Sophie's (Seyfried) reading of her mother's diary and musical numbers including "Does Your Mother Know?" and "Lay All Your Love on Me."
Some guests on our tour took a dip in the clear water despite it being an overcast October day.
While probably a priceless experience for the film's biggest fans, the tour would be enjoyable for anyone who has seen the film, has an interest in film production and appreciates a behind-the-scenes experience.
Our guide shared a wealth of information about the island itself and the film's impact on it, during the production and after the release.
Though the film crew was on Skopelos for just five weeks, she told us that many residents left their jobs during that time to take a temporary gig with the production since the pay was double what their usual jobs offered.
Our guide's firsthand experience on set made for fun stories, including how only her legs were needed in the shot when she worked as an extra. She walked up and down the stairs to the chapel during three days of filming. She called it the experience of a lifetime, but it didn't come without its risks.
"Hard job, I'm telling you," she said. "I ended up with really, really big blisters on my toes because they gave me some really bad shoes to wear."
During moments on the bus when she took a break from sharing insights and anecdotes, the movie soundtrack played over the intercom instead. The sound quality? Not great. Was I still overjoyed to hear it? Absolutely.