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Help plan our trip - Greece for 21 days

Help plan our trip - Greece for 21 days

Old Apr 14, 2014, 1:25 am
  #1  
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Help plan our trip - Greece for 21 days

We are planning to go to Greece for up to three weeks in late May / early June or early July depending on my work schedule. We will be flying to ATH from SFO. Neither of us have been there so we are open to suggestions on where to go and where to stay. The places she has suggested that we go are Athens, Zakynthos, Mykonos, Santorini and Rhodes. Athens (since we are flying into there) and Santorini are high on the list. We are open to other islands as well - we just need suggestions. The plan is to spend about 4 days in each place. In terms of what we are looking for - 1) beaches / resorts, 2) history / sightseeing, 3) food, 4) shopping / towns, 5) nightlife. Should we rent a car? Is it fairly easy to get around with a car? What order should we see the places with consideration as to how we would get to each island (ferry or by air)? Should we book ferries / flights in advance? Anything else?

If it gets us anything in terms of perks, I'm UA Platinum (so we will be taking a Star Alliance flight), SPG Gold, Hilton Gold and Hyatt Platinum. I don't see many hotel options with the major hotels except SPG. Thanks.
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Old Apr 14, 2014, 4:45 am
  #2  
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www.greecetravel.com

This is my favourite online Greek travel source .Well-researched and far more honest than some of the more traditional guides such as Fodors etc.It also has an up-to-date information on the ferry system ( which also has its own website. ) A Rough Guide to Greece is a good book to take with you as is this.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used

Funnily enough Matt recommends a travel itinerary not dissimilar to the one you are planning.

http://www.fantasytravelofgreece.com...-pleasure.html

My first advice is to book nothing in advance except your hotel in Athens, do the sights as quickly as you can and then leave as Athens is not the greatest city in the world to be a tourist.Keep a close eye on bags and wallets as petty theft is rife.
A hard and fast schedule with all hotels booked in advance is not necessary at the time of year you're travelling ( one of the best.) July and particularly August are the really busy months.
Abandon the idea of a traditional holiday where you move from one recognisable chain hotel to another.
There are plenty of very good quality hotels especially on the bigger islands you're thinking of going to.
But the charm of the Greek islands lies in their simplicity.
Be flexible and find an island you like,stay as long or as short as you like and then simply move on to the next when you fancy a change. You can book a hotel at the next island from the one you are leaving of whatever level of quality and comfort you require.You might even consider local guest-houses and B+Bs of which there are thousands.
All ferries and fast hydrofoils tend to leave from Piraeus every morning.
Pick a group of islands such as the Cyclades or the Dodecanese which are served by inumerable ferries and fast hydrofoils daily.It's much more unusual to get ferries travelling from one group of islands to another.
The four islands you have chosen are a huge distance apart and without checking on airports,flights etc you may well have to double back to Athens to reach all four which means you're going to be spending a lot of time travelling.
Rhodes is a holiday destination all by itself and much favoured by European 18-30s, Santorini is a tourist trap,Mykonos is party central and Zakinthos is nowhere near any of these.
Do your research carefully as all the islands are different. Some,such as Naxos,are green and fertile others are barren and windswept.Some have great sandy beaches,others are rocky.
Travel really light - the Greeks are very informal.You don't have to dress up.You'll need nothing heavier than a light top in case the evenings get windy.Coats ? Never.
And get into a Greek time-frame as soon as you can.
They siesta at lunchtime and eat late in the evening because of the heat. It's not uncommon to see a family sit down to dinner at 9pm or 10pm.
Food is much improved from the old days - lots of fish,grills,salads as well as the usual intermational menu.
Forget about hiring a car. Everyone travels by bus on the Greek islands. They're noisy,busy and great fun but don't expect anyone to wait in a queue. Those little old ladies scuttling towards the door all at once take no prisoners.
Travelling the Greek islands is like no other trip and it's hard to explain the allure and fun of doing it until you've done them.If you take only piece of this advice it would be to be flexible. ( And try to reach Koufonissia ! )

Last edited by Showbizguru; Apr 14, 2014 at 6:14 am
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Old Apr 14, 2014, 3:33 pm
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Some places we enjoyed

Crete- if you want a mountain get away with a lot of character and exceptional service and food try this place:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...ros_Crete.html

It's the most charming place I have been in the world.

Mykonos

If you want to have your own private beach- well technically anyone at the resort can go, but they all sleep in late because they are hung over- try this place. very quite at night

http://www.saintjohn.gr/


Santorini

Any of these places are going to be great view, perfect for relaxation.

https://www.airbnb.com/s/Oia--Greece
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Old Apr 18, 2014, 3:33 am
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Join Date: Apr 2014
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city trip

I am a student in third year. This year I want to make a big city trip with my friends. When I was young I travelled a lot with my family. We have already travelled by car, by train, by plane and by mobile home. That was perfect because we moved every day and we discoverd amasing landscapes. I think we visit better when we move because we don't stay at the same place every time. I love moving and this year I want to try city trips by train. I don't want specially travel far but just discover beautiful places. I love staying at the beach but not more than two days because it is boring. So I think city trip is a good compromise with my friends because we can move and discover a lot of pleasant places and also stay at the beach to have a sunbath. Do you have any ideas of beautiful cities?
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Old Apr 20, 2014, 10:21 pm
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Thanks for the suggestions and links. It looks like we are going at the beginning of July instead of late May. I've been reading up quite a bit and I think we are going to cut out Zakynthos as it just isn't near any of the other places we want to go to. So the plan would be to fly into Athens and spend a couple days there. From there take a ferry to Mykonos and from Mykonos ferry over to Santorini and from Santorini ferry over to Rhodes before catching a flight from Rhodes back to Athens and heading home. We like the idea of not having a set schedule and being flexible with our time so staying at each island for 5 or so days with each island being the hub for short excursions to some of the smaller islands. Any recommendations on the smaller islands to visit for one day + night trips? Also since we are going at the beginning of the tourist season should we be concerned that the nicer resorts will not have any rooms available if we plan on not making reservations in advance?
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Old Apr 21, 2014, 10:07 am
  #6  
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Originally Posted by alluu
Thanks for the suggestions and links. It looks like we are going at the beginning of July instead of late May. I've been reading up quite a bit and I think we are going to cut out Zakynthos as it just isn't near any of the other places we want to go to. So the plan would be to fly into Athens and spend a couple days there. From there take a ferry to Mykonos and from Mykonos ferry over to Santorini and from Santorini ferry over to Rhodes before catching a flight from Rhodes back to Athens and heading home. We like the idea of not having a set schedule and being flexible with our time so staying at each island for 5 or so days with each island being the hub for short excursions to some of the smaller islands. Any recommendations on the smaller islands to visit for one day + night trips? Also since we are going at the beginning of the tourist season should we be concerned that the nicer resorts will not have any rooms available if we plan on not making reservations in advance?
I doubt you'll have any problems at the beginning of July.Tourism is beginning to pick up after the economic crash but the islands don't get really busy until Athenians ( those who have money ) and the rest of Europe take their holidays in August.

My only suggestion viewing your latest itinerary is that you have chosen three big and very popular islands for five day stays - I would seriously consider shortening those and staying on smaller islands for a much more authentic flavour of the Greek islands.Most are not isolated or undeveloped- all have charming villages and harbours with fabulous restaurants and bars.
Unless,of course, you positively like being in a crowd.
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