kosman

Hi All,

We are planning a trip to Santorini for the first week of June 2012. I am looking for direct flights to Santorini from London (we would like to avoid a layover in Athens). I have found a direct flight on EasyJet, but I am having trouble finding additional carriers to compare. We are a bit flexible on the dates we fly, but will need to keep it sometime in that first week of June.

I would greatly appreciate any info on airlines that fly this route direct! Thanks, so much!

joannay

To compare the budget airlines go to:

http://www.whichbudget.com/

joannay

To compare budget airlines:

http://www.whichbudget.com/

joannay

Oops.

doug_stallings

Why do you want to avoid Athens airport? It's a very easy airport to navigate. I much prefer it over Gatwick or Heathrow, and the taxes are usually about the same. But definitely pick the route with the best fare.

brotherleelove2004

EasyJet will give you the best price for a direct, non-stop flight from the UK to Santorini and you won't have to deal with any problems that might arise due to demonstrations and/or strikes. Their price are lowest the further out from your travel dates you commit, so I'm guessing that now is the best time to buy them.

kosman

Thanks, so much, for the responses.

I have decided that we will buy the EasyJet tickets tomorrow (thanks, brotherleelove!).

Doug - we are starting our honeymoon in London and then would like to spend a week in Santorini (before returning back to the states). We would like to minimize flights, travel times, delays, etc., so we are avoiding Athens in an effort to streamline our itinerary

flanneruk

whichbudget isn't always exhaustive.

The UNIVERSAL answer to the question "which airlines fly direct to xxx airport?" is the airport's own website. In this case: www.santorini-airport.com/airlines, which shows that, on current plans, Easyjet is the only airline with direct, nonstop, London-Santorini flights

Using it doesn't "minimize flights, travel times, delays, etc., " for a US-Santorini-US journey. Relatively few transatlantic flights use Gatwick, and the likelihood is low that you'll get an Easyjet flight back to Gatwick in time to get across to Heathrow in time to fly home that day.

It's very likely, if you want to start in London, that the least inconvenient (and possibly overall cheapest) route would be US-London-Santorini-Athens-US, or if you've some reason for needing to return to London, US-London-Santorini-Athens-Heathrow-US

KayF

We flew with Easyjet direct from Gatwick to Santorini and it was a quick and easy trip. One thing worth mentioning is the time difference between the UK and Greece, we nearly missed our onward ferry connection.

I think we caught the 6am flight which meant we were in Santorini by lunchtime and stayed at one of the hotels right at Gatwick Airport, the Premier Inn from memory. Check which terminal your flight will leave from if you plan on booking a hotel.

Kay

Heimdall

Good point from flanneruk. Another drawback with easyJet is frequency of flights between London Gatwick and Santorini. Next year, it seems, there are only four flights per week, so you will have to adjust your itinerary to take that into account, and will almost certainly require an overnight layover in London. Unless you have a need to return to London, it would be better to go from Athens back to the US.

kosman

Thanks everyone! KayF - did you have a good experience with EasyJet? I flew with them once, but back in 2008.

I should have mentioned - we are returning back to London for a few nights at the end. I appreciate all of the input! Our itinerary is as follows:

June: 3: London
June: 4: London
June 5 - 12: Santorini
June 13: London
June 14: London
June 15: Fly back to the states

We have decided on these two destinations because my fiance has never been to London (and it is first on his list!) and neither of us have been to Santorini, but have always wanted to go. We are flying out of Boston and there are no direct flights to Athens - so this order seemed to make the most sense (Direct flight Boston to London, Direct RT flight London to Santorini, and direct flight London to Boston).

Thanks, again!

doug_stallings

Given your itinerary, flying direct seems the best option if you can get a flight on the day you need to travel.

Just an aside: a week is a very long time on Santorini. I love the island, but I would probably get bored after a full week. I'd consider a short side-trip for a couple of days to another island (perhaps Crete since you're so far south).

brotherleelove2004

I go to Santorini for 4 weeks at a time. That's perfect for me. Not everyone gets bored after just a few days.

Crete is huge. It takes a minimum of a week with a rental car just to barely scratch the surface.

joannay

"... Not everyone gets bored after just a few days."

Brotherleelove, thanks for that. I'm not sure what the dynamic is but there's an historic divide between those who travel and those who tour. I don't think it's necessarily good or bad except when one side doles out advice as if there's only 1 way to do a thing. I'm guilty, I confess, of believing slow travel is the only worthwhile kind. My own theory is it just takes practice to slow down and not need movement as a cure for boredom. Or maybe it's a chronic and incurable condition having nothing to do with going places.

kosman

Thanks for the feedback!

We are hoping that London will be a nice combination with a relaxing week on Santorini (we are staying in Oia at the Mystique). We may be up for a day trip, although Santorini's location seems a bit remote for that.

We plan on returning to Greece to see more of the country!

KayF

Hi, we used to live in the UK and flew with Easyjet quite a bit. We never had any issues, they are cheap and you get what you pay for. There are usually quite a few add-ons to the initial flight cost, which can substantially increase your total fare price. Also luggage allowance is lower than a traditional longhaul carrier so you may want to think about leaving some luggage in London. This would work well if you are staying at the same London hotel either side of Santorini.

Having lived in London and been to Greece quite a few times, I think you will notice the contrast between vivid blue skies and whitewashed buildings and grey, grey, grey. London has its good points but they are very different. Oia is beautiful by the way, we stayed there last year at Filotera Villas. By the way, there is a cheap and cheerful gyros place by the bus stop in Oia, you can get take away or eat at the little tables across the square.

Just a thought, it might be more relaxing to have the London bit of your trip, followed by Santorini, then fly all the way home. You could fly Santorini to Gatwick, then to Boston but I'm not sure which airlines use Gatwick (Virgin Atlantic do for some US flights). If you had to transfer from Gatwick to Heathrow that would take hours.

Have a great time
Kay