Help with Greece Trip

Greece is a little broad.

Are you looking to do mainland or Islands?

How long of a trip?

Im in the early stages as well. Looking at going late May of 2023.

From early research it looks like we will fly straight to Santorini for 3-4 nights. Take a ferry to Naxos or Mykonos, then to Athens for a couple nights and fly out from there.

You need to spend at least 3 nights on an island in my opinion. I would break it up with touristy islands split with local islands. Sure, do your Mykonos or Santorini, but also check out a Milos or Crete kind of island.

Book ferries early. They have a set schedule and it’s not always easy to get a direct ride from one island to the next, many aren’t offered or are only offered on certain days of the week.

LINK

This guy does a pretty good job giving you an idea on which islands are known for what. For some reason I can’t leak from mobile right now.

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Looking for 7 to 10 days.

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Probably can't do a "mix" of mainland and islands except Athens for a couple of days.

Everyone says to do 1-2 days in Athens, max, as it is kind of...seedy. Even Rick Steves says it.

I'd do 1-2 days on Athens, and then do some of the Cyclades. it is very cliche, but it is cliche for a reason. Its easy to do and pretty.

Maybe take ferry to Mykonos or Naxos or Paros or Milos, spend a few days in two of those, then 2-3 days in Santorini. If you can fly home out of Santorini or Mykonos (or Crete), all the better.

Mykonos and Santorini will be MUCH more expensive than the other Islands.

Also June is the beginning of peak season.

Santorini and Mykonos will be packed to the absolute gills at that time.

Meteora monasteries in northern Greece. It is an absolutely spectacular and visually unique experience. We rented a car from Sixt in Athens and drove about 4-5 hours, but a train is available as well. Words can't describe sunset on a cliff overlooking the monasteries. Having 7-10 days, I'd make this an priority to mix in. We stayed one night and got some sunset pics and a hiking tour of the following day.

Edited to add some information I posted from another thread:
Greece thread

I only went to Athens, so can’t really help. But….If you’re willing, Istanbul is an amazing city built by Greeks, and dominated by Greeks until the Genocide and expulsions of the early 1900s. And Turkey is an amazing country and incredibly safe. Excellent food, dirt cheap, and crazy historical (Ephesus, Gobekli Tepe, Cappadocien Mountain). Reminds me I still need to do an in-depth review of Istanbul and Turkey for the board

Just got back last month. Santorini was as beautiful as advertised. We Stayed at Canaves Oia Suites for four nights, rented a car to explore Fira, other little cities, Santos winery, etc. Went private sailing out of Amoudi Bay (Vaios owns the boat and was great). Overall a magical Greece trip and we loved it!

As for Athens, we stayed two nights and it was not a dump as I thought it would be after reading all the comments here. In fact, the city center was much cleaner and we felt much safer than most European cities (never thought once about pick pocketers either). Maybe b/c we stayed in the heart of tourist area but I actually enjoyed it more than most major European cities. Athens itself is not a single destination but pair it with at least one of the Greek Island makes it a perfect combo. Could have used one more night as walking the streets and interacting with the locals were great. Folks in Athens was the nicest that I've met and we travel internationally at least 5 times per year. Probably gets a lot more crowded and less personable during summer months though.


eta: Flew Emirates first class which made the flight seemed heck of a lot much shorter. ANA first class to Tokyo is still my favorite (their service is outstanding!).

If you go to Acropolis when the gates open you can pretty well be done with it by lunch. I’d try to spend a bit more time in Santorini. Rent a car there and check out the different areas of the island. A lot to see and do for such a small place.