Have searched the board and tried to find ferry schedules on OpenSeas as someone suggested, but I'm having trouble as I'm not familiar with the port names.
Looking for info on ferries from Crete to Santorini and then Santorinio to Athens in early October. We will fly Athens/Crete (probably to Chaina). After 5 days on Crete we would like to spend 2 nights on Santorini on our way back to Athens and then home to Maine!
Crete - Santorini Ferry
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Hi
In Crete look for the ports of Chania and Heraklion. Santorini is listed (also known as Thira). Piraeus is the port of Athens. It may be a bit early for summer schedules. Try late April.
The Crete-Santorini FlyingCat 4 timetable is out, and can be found at http://www.ferries.gr/hfd/default.htm. Note that it doesn't sail on any Wednesdays in October. Other ferries may show up on the timetables at a later date.
The Blue Star Santorini-Piraeus timetable for October is also out, and can be found at http://www.bluestarferries.com/ENGLISH/defaultmain.htm. Click on Domestic Lines > Cyclades > Itineraries. There will be other ferries, including a Hellenic Seaways highspeed.
Now is way too early to prebook ferries for October, so check again in late August or September, or just wait and buy your tickets when you get to Greece.
To add to Heimdall's information, there is no ferry between Santorini and Chania. You will have to go from Chania to Heraklion to catch the FlyingCat #4. I doubt that advance purchase will be necessary at all in October. Just wait until you're on Crete and find a travel agency authorized to sell Hellenic Seaways tickets. That, or while you're at the Athens Airport, find the Amphitrion Holidays travel office in the Main Hall and buy them then and there.
Thank you for this great info! I know its early to book, but was just planning ahead a bit. More questions coming before our trip, I'm sure!
Sorry, just looked at the schedules and wonder if I'm reading them correctly. For Santorini to Piraeus, it looks like ferries only run on Fri and Sun after Sept 15 at 7:00 a.m.? And that they do not arrive in Piraeus, after 2 stops, until 3:00 p.m.? That's an 8 hour ferry excursion?
I know that this is a wonderful way to travel, but with limited time in Greece I would rather be exploring on land. How cost effective is it to fly in comparison? We are already planning to fly from Athens to Crete, can we ferry to Santorini from Crete and then fly back to Athens? I suppose they wouldn't consider that "round trip"?
There are two Blue Stars that run from Santorini to Piraeus, and you are correct that they take about 8 hrs. One, Blue Star Paros, is a daily ferry departing at 3:30pm, arriving at Pireaus around midnight.
The Hellenic Seaways highspeed is faster, about 4-5 hours, but their October sailings haven't started appearing on the timetables yet.
Flying is certainly quicker than the ferries. As far as I know, two one-way tickets will cost the same as if you had booked them round trip. So, yes, you can book a ticket for Athens to Crete, and another for Santorini back to Athens, at no disadvantage.
BTW, if you decide to fly back to Athens, unlike the ferries, you will need to book ahead. Start checking now, and if you are lucky, may even get one of the Aegean saver fares.
cindyj
When we researched this same thing this past year the connections from Crete to Santorini were mostly through Heraklion. (We went in May when the ferry schedules are more limited - like October). We did what you are planning. Flights from Crete to Santorini were not "doable" for us and considering the multitude of ferry options it was not worth it.
We spent four days in Chania, three in Loutro and then caught a bus to Heraklion. (KTEL bus system is great for getting around in Crete) We overnighted at the Lato Boutique hotel (very convenient to the ferry terminal and a great breakfast)and caught the high speed Cat to Santorini. The high speed Cat is a great ferry trip (assuming seas cooperate).
Tip to file away: Catch a cab to the Ferry Terminal because the driver may bring you directly to the ferry instead of the Passenger Terminal (which may be waaaay down the port from your ferry).
From Santorini we also flew to Athens. The flight connections are excellent, well-priced and convenient, especially if you are spending a few days in Santorini.
We had pre-booked the ferry tickets through our travel agent and I agree - you should definitely pre-book your flight tickets. We preferred the Aegean Air flights to the Olympic flights.
Good luck with the trip planning.
Dave
Thanks "Frozen North Dave". Sounds like you did a similar trip and I'd love to hear about your highs and lows. We are staying with Belgian friends on Crete, near Rathymnon, so luckily we will have guides and on-island transportation. It is our first trip to Greece so we have many questions.
Where in the Frozen North are you from? We're still pretty white and frozen here in Maine on this April Fools Day. I'm at rtalbot1@maine.rr.com if you wouldn't mind corresponding directly.