2 weeks in Turkey and Greece...boy did I mess up this itinerary!
Aug 1st, 2008, 06:47 PM
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2 weeks in Turkey and Greece...boy did I mess up this itinerary!
Please help! On August 19th I will be leaving for Turkey and Greece for 14 days. I booked this trip in January, and at the time wasn't even sure where exactly Turkey was. Since then I have been doing a lot of research, but made the initial plans before everything was thought out.
My adult daughter and her boyfriend will be meeting me there.
I have spent the last 6 summers traveling through Italy and France, and I guess I got a little over confident in my traveling skills.
I assumed that traveling through Turkey would be just as easy as getting from point A to point B in Italy. Got that wrong! Now I have the most screwed up itinery and have no idea how to fix it. Here it is.
August 20th - arrive in Istanbul,Empress Zoe for 3 nights.
August 23rd - fly to Kayseri, staying 2 nights at either Elif Star or Goreme House.
August 25th - fly to Izmir 1 night Hotel Bella?
Then.......?????
August 28, 29, 30 - We have reservations at Strogili House in Santorini. (have already paid for one non-refundable night 220 Euro, ouch, can't afford to throw that away)
September 1 - fly to Athens
September 2 - leave for home
All plane tickets have been purchased and I am not sure if they are refundable. If I had to do it again, I would not be going to Santorini because it is a nightmare getting there from Turkey, but not sure what to do for the 26 & 27th, or if I should look into changing flights etc. I really wanted to visit 2 islands, but we are depleting our budget by traveling so much, and I am afraid that there will be no down time to just enjoy the country and relax. I found the ferry schedule from Izmir to Samos, but then there is no direct ferry from Samos to Santorini. Also can't find a flight there.
I am still so exited to go, but am worried about the itinerary. I am into exploring and adventure, but my daughter loves beaches and nightlife.
I would really, really appreciate any help I can get. Thanks in advance.
My adult daughter and her boyfriend will be meeting me there.
I have spent the last 6 summers traveling through Italy and France, and I guess I got a little over confident in my traveling skills.
I assumed that traveling through Turkey would be just as easy as getting from point A to point B in Italy. Got that wrong! Now I have the most screwed up itinery and have no idea how to fix it. Here it is.
August 20th - arrive in Istanbul,Empress Zoe for 3 nights.
August 23rd - fly to Kayseri, staying 2 nights at either Elif Star or Goreme House.
August 25th - fly to Izmir 1 night Hotel Bella?
Then.......?????
August 28, 29, 30 - We have reservations at Strogili House in Santorini. (have already paid for one non-refundable night 220 Euro, ouch, can't afford to throw that away)
September 1 - fly to Athens
September 2 - leave for home
All plane tickets have been purchased and I am not sure if they are refundable. If I had to do it again, I would not be going to Santorini because it is a nightmare getting there from Turkey, but not sure what to do for the 26 & 27th, or if I should look into changing flights etc. I really wanted to visit 2 islands, but we are depleting our budget by traveling so much, and I am afraid that there will be no down time to just enjoy the country and relax. I found the ferry schedule from Izmir to Samos, but then there is no direct ferry from Samos to Santorini. Also can't find a flight there.
I am still so exited to go, but am worried about the itinerary. I am into exploring and adventure, but my daughter loves beaches and nightlife.
I would really, really appreciate any help I can get. Thanks in advance.
Aug 1st, 2008, 08:43 PM
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Hi ML15,
We did almost your EXACT itinerary about 6 weeks ago.
This is what we did: when we arrived in Izmir from Kayseri we rented a car and drove down to Ephesus for the afternoon. Back to Izmir for a free night on points at the Crowne Plaza. It was actually very nice and we got a decent upgrade to a water view.
Next morning we headed down the peninsula to Cesme and made some stops here and there, plenty to keep you busy for a day. If you wanted to get straight to Cesme from the airport there are some very nice spa hotels down thataway.
We dropped the car in Cesme at the port and hopped a 45 min ferry to Chios at about 5 pm. Stayed in Chios for two nights. Chios island was an EXCELLENT counterpoint to Santorini. The walled villages were worth the trip alone. I would not recommend Chios town however.
After two nights on Chios we hopped over to Santorini via Athens on Aegean Air. 9 am departure on Aegean, we were on Santorini by 1 pm which was perfect for hotel check in time. We stayed at Andronis Suites.
Now, I made my arrangements way ahead of time and all my flights were fairly inexpensive. We paid less than US 100 per person for Chios to Santorini. The one way car rental was pricey but it was worth it to us as we had limited time and did not want to waste it. I do remember reading there are busses that go from Izmir to Cesme.
You are also going in August and as far as I know that is high high season on Greek Islands so flights may be more expensive.
Anyway, that is how we solved the same dilemma.
Good Luck and have fun!
We did almost your EXACT itinerary about 6 weeks ago.
This is what we did: when we arrived in Izmir from Kayseri we rented a car and drove down to Ephesus for the afternoon. Back to Izmir for a free night on points at the Crowne Plaza. It was actually very nice and we got a decent upgrade to a water view.
Next morning we headed down the peninsula to Cesme and made some stops here and there, plenty to keep you busy for a day. If you wanted to get straight to Cesme from the airport there are some very nice spa hotels down thataway.
We dropped the car in Cesme at the port and hopped a 45 min ferry to Chios at about 5 pm. Stayed in Chios for two nights. Chios island was an EXCELLENT counterpoint to Santorini. The walled villages were worth the trip alone. I would not recommend Chios town however.
After two nights on Chios we hopped over to Santorini via Athens on Aegean Air. 9 am departure on Aegean, we were on Santorini by 1 pm which was perfect for hotel check in time. We stayed at Andronis Suites.
Now, I made my arrangements way ahead of time and all my flights were fairly inexpensive. We paid less than US 100 per person for Chios to Santorini. The one way car rental was pricey but it was worth it to us as we had limited time and did not want to waste it. I do remember reading there are busses that go from Izmir to Cesme.
You are also going in August and as far as I know that is high high season on Greek Islands so flights may be more expensive.
Anyway, that is how we solved the same dilemma.
Good Luck and have fun!
Aug 2nd, 2008, 04:34 AM
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OMG. That is exactly what I was looking for! I will check flights from Chios-Santorini now. I know that they are going to be expensive, but I don't think that we have many other choices. Thank you so much for solving that last piece of the puzzle for me.
Aug 2nd, 2008, 05:38 AM
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Glad I could make a helpful suggestion! BTW, the one way car rental from Izmir to Cesme was none to easy to find. They actually had to send a guy from Izmir to pick up the car in Cesme so that is why it was a bit more expensive. I used Anker Travel for it, and they also arranged the ferry tix. If you bus it you will save cash.
If it works out for you I think you will find Chios very interesting. Not much is written about it on this board but we liked it a lot.
Matt Barrett writes a bit about it on his website too -
http://www.greektravel.com/greekislands/chios/
If it works out for you I think you will find Chios very interesting. Not much is written about it on this board but we liked it a lot.
Matt Barrett writes a bit about it on his website too -
http://www.greektravel.com/greekislands/chios/
Aug 2nd, 2008, 07:28 AM
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That's good to know. I will look into the car rental situation. Airfare from Chios-Santorini is now $264 per person.
I am not sure if I will be able to afford it. Problem is, that I am just a dance teacher, who saves all year for my travel addiction, and I have a feeling that I may be covering some costs for my travel companions. I guess I have two weeks to recruit a few new students!
Thanks again for your help.
I am not sure if I will be able to afford it. Problem is, that I am just a dance teacher, who saves all year for my travel addiction, and I have a feeling that I may be covering some costs for my travel companions. I guess I have two weeks to recruit a few new students!
Thanks again for your help.
Aug 2nd, 2008, 07:51 AM
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Okay, ml15, here is 'Plan B':
Take a ferry from Samos to Mykonos: http://tinyurl.com/6leang. From there you can get a ferry to Santorini, but you will have to spend a night on Mykonos enroute. Alternately you could take the same ferry to Syros, but connections from there to Santorini are less good. Mykonos is busy in August, but things will be a bit quieter by the end of the month.
Take a ferry from Samos to Mykonos: http://tinyurl.com/6leang. From there you can get a ferry to Santorini, but you will have to spend a night on Mykonos enroute. Alternately you could take the same ferry to Syros, but connections from there to Santorini are less good. Mykonos is busy in August, but things will be a bit quieter by the end of the month.
Aug 2nd, 2008, 08:15 AM
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Good luck ml15!!
Through your unhappy dilemma, you have inadverently provided yet another "teaching moment" for people planning their first trip to Greece -- ALWAYS SET UP YOUR TRANSPORT FIRST!!
If Fodorites had a drachma for every frantic post by persons who have made nonrefundable hotel bookings (usually in Santorini) which they cannot get to -- in time or ever -- it would finance trips for all of us.
It often happens to those who are experienced travelers on the Continent, who've driven or taken trains/busses from one place to another-- in which you can go quickly and directly from Point A to Point B.
Alas,Greek isles are pointy tops of mountains in the Mediterranean, and the last person in the area able to move at will upon the waves was a Man who Could Walk on Water. The rest of us must check ferry timetables before we put money down for hotel rooms.
Through your unhappy dilemma, you have inadverently provided yet another "teaching moment" for people planning their first trip to Greece -- ALWAYS SET UP YOUR TRANSPORT FIRST!!
If Fodorites had a drachma for every frantic post by persons who have made nonrefundable hotel bookings (usually in Santorini) which they cannot get to -- in time or ever -- it would finance trips for all of us.
It often happens to those who are experienced travelers on the Continent, who've driven or taken trains/busses from one place to another-- in which you can go quickly and directly from Point A to Point B.
Alas,Greek isles are pointy tops of mountains in the Mediterranean, and the last person in the area able to move at will upon the waves was a Man who Could Walk on Water. The rest of us must check ferry timetables before we put money down for hotel rooms.
Aug 2nd, 2008, 08:24 AM
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travelerjan, you are not kidding! We are leaving for Egypt in a couple of weeks, and our entire itinerary was dictated by the days the flights and ferries go where we want to go. Want to go from Luxor to Sharm on Monday, sorry, no flight that day. Want to ferry from Hurghada to Sharm on Tuesday, sorry no ferry that day. It was a pain, but we ultimately managed it!
Aug 2nd, 2008, 08:46 AM
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traveler jan, you put a smile on my face. I am not really unhappy, but look at all of this as a challenge. I think that I will check out the Mykonos route, since by daughter and her boyfriend are a bit of partiers...from what I have heard, they might enjoy Mykonos. Great advice, thank you all.
