Has anyone traveled to Greece? Recommendations on the islands you visited and why?

Yes, many years ago though. I went to Thira (Santorini). Beautiful location. Some of the oldest ruins in the world on the island.

Spent two weeks actually in Athens working for a hostel. Didn't like Athens at all.

What I liked back then: Food. Prices. Friendly people. Ancient ruins.

What I didn't like: Athens (grimy/crowds). Many of the drinks (Retsina (wine), Ouzo).

So much to see and do if you went there these days.

Good summary!

Good article!

Wolter's "Don'ts of Visiting Greece"!

Always wanted to visit Meteora. Not sure I ever will these days, but maybe could combine a trip on up to Albania.

Honeymooned on Santorini for 10 days. Best 10 days of my life. Stayed in Oia and traveled around the island on a 4-wheeler that was street legal. This was a little over 10y years ago, so not sure how much has changed. If I was going to do it all over again, I think I would have made it an even 2 weeks. Spend 4-5 days on 3 different islands. I heard from the other people vacationing at the time that Mikonos was very much worth the stop.

I agree with much of what Nole Man said. We did 3 days in Mykonos, 4 in Santorini, and 2 in Athens.

Mykonos was great. We spent hours just wandering the streets. The town is absolutely gorgeous. We did go to one of their famous beach clubs, but it happened to be a little cold and rainy that day, so there were only a few people there. We aren't too big into the late night party atmosphere, so we missed out on a lot of what makes Mykonos famous.

Santorini was our favorite. There is so much to do and so many things to see. We explored wineries one day, went on a long hike around the caldera another, and just hung out at the hotel pool and enjoyed the amazing views the next day. Santorini isn't for the very old/out of shape. You will climb lots of stairs wherever you go. If we had another couple days, we would have rented a moped and explored the countryside more because it is gorgeous. I will say that driving on Mykonos and Santorini is not for the feint of heart though as things can get very congested.

Athens was by far our least favorite, and I don't anticipate ever going back. The Acropolis is kind of a bucket list place, but, other than that, I can't recommend anything else. My ideal trip to Athens would be an early morning flight into Athens, head immediately to the Acropolis and Acropolis museum to beat the crowds (which are crazy by 10AM), and then catch an afternoon flight out.

Time of year is very important as well. We went in mid/late May in order to beat the crowds. The weather was a bit cooler than I would have liked, but, overall, I think it was a great time to go. Once it gets into mid-June, the cruise ships start picking up, and it can overwhelm the islands. I'm not sure how COVID will change things in that respect. It might actually make things even more pleasant without the cruise crowds.

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We got many of our recommendations from Santorini Dave. He is pretty spot on (from our experience), so I would definitely check out his website if you are planning a trip.

Spent three weeks on Rhodes for summer abroad classes in 2009.

Got hammered 20/22 days or so there.

Attended 50% of the classes.

Would recommend.

Thanks all. I am most impressed with Santorini for food and town, Crete for the beaches, Mikonos for the beach/ nightlife and Athens for historical sites (not looking forward to the crowds).

I have heard its cheap compared to the U.S. but once the ferries and taxi/ buses is factored in is it cheap?

I'd recommend flying to Santorini from Athens over riding the ferry. You can fly for like $50 and the ferry looked rather miserable.

I went in mid-September and the crowds weren't too bad and the weather was perfect!

It pained me to hear people say "you only need one day in Athens" before I went. How could that be, it was the seat of Ancient Greece, surely you would need days if not weeks to untangle all the stories and get a feel for the city.

That said, you only need one day in Athens

Islands: I got a tip to check out Andros. It leaves out of the other dock and is about 2 hours away. Spent 5 nights there. Wish I would have stayed longer. Beautiful, low crowds, great food, etc... exactly what I wanted in a Greek Island escape.

Did Santorini, but it is just too damn crowded. Worth a visit, sure, but for my money and time I would go back to Andros in a heartbeat for a week or more.

Corfu, because it's awesome.

If given the choice I would actually spend more time exploring the interior of the country and the beaches on the mainland. I am more partial to the Peloponnese. And especially the Mani Peninsula.

I don't think you can really go wrong anywhere because each island is unique, but as a rule of thumb the larger the island the more there is to do. And Crete, Euboea and Lesbos top that list.