Greek Island hopping

[hibbeln]

Maybe maybe MAYBE considering taking one day off Naxos and putting it onto Santorini? I know....with your daughter.....it's a problem!
I'm not familiar with Naxos at all, so I don't know if there is so much to do there that it will be non-stop activity.

You will want to spend half a day seeing Oia on Santorini (which is mostly wandering, exploring, even if you're staying there....)
And then you can fill a whole day (easily) by going to the winery museum, some art galleries, to archeological ruins, other villages and the beaches around the island (we had a group of 9 and rented a big mini-van type thing that we all traveled in).
Plus boat tours of the caldera are very popular (though maybe not worth the time and money if you come in by ferry). That's a half day.

 

[hibbeln]

Maybe maybe MAYBE considering taking one day off Naxos and putting it onto Santorini? I know....with your daughter.....it's a problem!
I'm not familiar with Naxos at all, so I don't know if there is so much to do there that it will be non-stop activity.

You will want to spend half a day seeing Oia on Santorini (which is mostly wandering, exploring, even if you're staying there....)
And then you can fill a whole day (easily) by going to the winery museum, some art galleries, to archeological ruins, other villages and the beaches around the island (we had a group of 9 and rented a big mini-van type thing that we all traveled in).
Plus boat tours of the caldera are very popular (though maybe not worth the time and money if you come in by ferry). That's a half day.

 

[hibbeln]

Maybe maybe MAYBE considering taking one day off Naxos and putting it onto Santorini? I know....with your daughter.....it's a problem!
I'm not familiar with Naxos at all, so I don't know if there is so much to do there that it will be non-stop activity.

You will want to spend half a day seeing Oia on Santorini (which is mostly wandering, exploring, even if you're staying there....)
And then you can fill a whole day (easily) by going to the winery museum, some art galleries, to archeological ruins, other villages and the beaches around the island (we had a group of 9 and rented a big mini-van type thing that we all traveled in).
Plus boat tours of the caldera are very popular (though maybe not worth the time and money if you come in by ferry). That's a half day.

 

[Zac495]

Thing is - Naxos has day trips to Delos and Mykonos. So we could land in Naxos the 8th and settle in. The 9th explore Naxos. The 10th take a day trip to Delos/Mykonos, the 11th head to Santorini.

I've heard Santorini is WOW but not much for the kids..........

 

[Zac495]

Update - all booked!
Athens 2 nights - Athens Gate - breakfast overlooking Parthenon. AHHH
Naxos - 4 nights - Liana Studios on the beach
Santorini 2 1/2 nights- Anteiz Villas (we leave at midnight on the overnight ferry to Rhodes)
Rhodes 3 nights in Camelot medieval city!


Thinking of renting a car 2 days in Naxos and 2 in Rhodes. thoughts? Ideas? SO EXCITED!

 

[pianodinosaur]

Outstanding!!!

I am sure you will all have the trip of a lifetime. The car rental sounds like a great idea as well.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

 

[cmh]

I did a Greek islands trip a few years ago with my sister-in-law, and let me give you an invaluable web site to use. I learned so much from this site. From this site, we also found & used a local Greek travel agency in Athens, although most of our arrangements I made ourselves. The website is done by Matt Barrett who is quite the Greek travel guru. Even if you've booked everything, you will still learn much from this site.

http://www.greektravel.com/

I would recommend Santorini. Yes, it's touristy but it has those views you won't see anywhere else. We also went to Mykonos & I would not recommend that, nor would I go back. We spent a few days in Athens but our focus was on the islands. The other island we did was a complete contrast to Santorini and Mykonos - Lesvos. Not touristy as the others, very different vegetation & terrain, large island with more diversity, close to Turkey. In fact, you can see Turkey from it.

We did an overnight ferry once from Lesvos back to Athens. That was an experience! And we did a day ferry from Mykonos to Santorini, an awesome view arriving via ferry. On our last day, we flew from Santorini to Athens and then on home. We rented cars in Santorini and Lesvos.

Have fun - sounds like a fabulous trip!

 

[Zac495]

I did a Greek islands trip a few years ago with my sister-in-law, and let me give you an invaluable web site to use. I learned so much from this site. From this site, we also found & used a local Greek travel agency in Athens, although most of our arrangements I made ourselves. The website is done by Matt Barrett who is quite the Greek travel guru. Even if you've booked everything, you will still learn much from this site.

http://www.greektravel.com/

I would recommend Santorini. Yes, it's touristy but it has those views you won't see anywhere else. We also went to Mykonos & I would not recommend that, nor would I go back. We spent a few days in Athens but our focus was on the islands. The other island we did was a complete contrast to Santorini and Mykonos - Lesvos. Not touristy as the others, very different vegetation & terrain, large island with more diversity, close to Turkey. In fact, you can see Turkey from it.

We did an overnight ferry once from Lesvos back to Athens. That was an experience! And we did a day ferry from Mykonos to Santorini, an awesome view arriving via ferry. On our last day, we flew from Santorini to Athens and then on home. We rented cars in Santorini and Lesvos.

Have fun - sounds like a fabulous trip!

Thanks!! We do plan a day trip from Naxos to Delos/Mykonos. I'll have to look into Lesvos.
Now we're considering a day trip to Cape Sounion on our last day ... not sure.

 

[myhottoddy]

Why Santorrini ?

We visited the Island in mid May via a cruise ship (5 were in port) and was impressed with the view from th caldera rim but very dissapointed with the crowds and prices. The Euro is about 1.45 US $. Did not price hotels? Your budget of $5,000 seems very low. As someone said Athens was very hot and pick pockets are said to be at the tourist hot spots. I used a money belt and safety pins for my pockets. We took the Metro to city center with 2 carry-on bags (our large checked bags were delayed by Luthansa and were delivered to hotel later). Fare was 7 Euro each from the airport and the Metro was very crowded, we would have had difficulty with 2 bags each. Other city metro fare is 1.4 Euro. Credit cards were not accepted at most restrauants. I have also read that prices are discounted; however, we dod not find any bargains. Good luck.

 

[Zac495]

We visited the Island in mid May via a cruise ship (5 were in port) and was impressed with the view from th caldera rim but very dissapointed with the crowds and prices. The Euro is about 1.45 US $. Did not price hotels? Your budget of $5,000 seems very low. As someone said Athens was very hot and pick pockets are said to be at the tourist hot spots. I used a money belt and safety pins for my pockets. We took the Metro to city center with 2 carry-on bags (our large checked bags were delayed by Luthansa and were delivered to hotel later). Fare was 7 Euro each from the airport and the Metro was very crowded, we would have had difficulty with 2 bags each. Other city metro fare is 1.4 Euro. Credit cards were not accepted at most restrauants. I have also read that prices are discounted; however, we dod not find any bargains. Good luck.

Visiting on a cruise ship wouldn't be near as wonderful I'm sure. I agree about crowds which is why we chose small boutique hotels(above average places - but not luxury top of the line - all highly recommended by tripadvisor) - We were about to do:
2 nights Athens
4 nights Naxos
3 nights Santorini
3 nights Rhodes
(2 hotel rooms per night for the 5 of us)
ferries to Naxos
Ferries to Santorini
Flight to Rhodes
Flight back to Athens
Car in Naxos
Car in Rhodes
All transfers
Price: 6000 euro - so yeah, it was more than 5000 dollars.
That said, no one can rain on my parade -we are going to have a fabulous time with our kids and make wonderful memories.

 

[pianodinosaur]

Visiting on a cruise ship wouldn't be near as wonderful I'm sure. I agree about crowds which is why we chose small boutique hotels(above average places - but not luxury top of the line - all highly recommended by tripadvisor) - We were about to do:
2 nights Athens
4 nights Naxos
3 nights Santorini
3 nights Rhodes
(2 hotel rooms per night for the 5 of us)
ferries to Naxos
Ferries to Santorini
Flight to Rhodes
Flight back to Athens
Car in Naxos
Car in Rhodes
All transfers
Price: 6000 euro - so yeah, it was more than 5000 dollars.
That said, no one can rain on my parade -we are going to have a fabulous time with our kids and make wonderful memories.

It is a great deal cheaper than purchasing a timeshare direct from Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, or Wyndham. The money you saved by no longer paying MFs diffrays much of the cost. I love time sharing. However, there also many ways to have a great vacation that do not involve time sharing. I am sure you will have a fantastic adventure.

 

[Ginny]

We did the Tradewinds Cruise to Greece last August. You'll love Athen's Gate hotel -- we stayed there too. It's walking distance to a good number of historical sites and a breathtaking view of the Acropolis from the rooftop restaurant. You'll be knocked out on your first breakfast up there!

The Big Red Bus (double decker sightseeing bus) will take you around the city to the major archaeological sites, as well as museums, the University, and so forth. Much easier and cheaper than taxis, and it includes a headphone audio tour. The complete circuit takes 90 minutes, but you can hop off and hop on all day. You get a bracelet that is good for 24 hrs -- for 18 E. The stop is just down the street from the Athen's Gate.

http://www.city-sightseeing.com/

We toured the Ionian islands, which is where a lot of the yachting is done since the sea is calm there. What a great experience!

-Ginny

 

[hibbeln]

Ellen, I just saw this pop up on the boards again! Your trip sounds FANTASTIC and your times sound just right for each place!

When are you going?
When on Santorini, are you staying in Fira or Oia? (I hope it's Oia!)
Way back when, you were considering going to Nafplio as a daytrip from Athens. I think you've crossed that off your list now, and I think that is a really good idea. While we loved Nafplio, we used it as one of our two bases for exploration of the Peloponesse Peninsula (the other was Olympia). Just to go there as a daytrip from Athens when you're short on time......nah, skip it!

Do you have all of your hotels set now?

 

[Zac495]

Ellen, I just saw this pop up on the boards again! Your trip sounds FANTASTIC and your times sound just right for each place!

When are you going?
When on Santorini, are you staying in Fira or Oia? (I hope it's Oia!)
Way back when, you were considering going to Nafplio as a daytrip from Athens. I think you've crossed that off your list now, and I think that is a really good idea. While we loved Nafplio, we used it as one of our two bases for exploration of the Peloponesse Peninsula (the other was Olympia). Just to go there as a daytrip from Athens when you're short on time......nah, skip it!

Do you have all of your hotels set now?

We're staying in Firostefeni (sp??) - it seemed the best fit for our family. We are skipping Nafplio.

So it's Athens 2 nights (Athens Gate - Ginny - thanks for the tip about the bus!), Naxos 4 nights, Santorini 3 , and Rhodes 3. Last night back in Athens. We leave Tuesday. CAN'T WAIT!!!!!
Thanks for asking!!!