andrewb

Wondering how much of a timesaver it is to book ferry tickets ahead of time for a September trip. We will be going from Mykonos to Naxos (via Paros) and from Naxos to Santorini. It looks like the ferries are all Blue Star and the booking is through Danae. Has anyone done this before? Both trips will be during the week mid Sept so I doubt they would be sold out, just thinking of booking ahead for peace of mind.
Also, are you expected to get the the port a long time before departure generally? Anything else I should know?

Thanks!

brotherleelove2004

If peace of mind is an issue, do it. It's really not necessary, however. Be sure to check before departure for any schedule changes.

brotherleelove2004

Forgot: If you have your ticket just be there 15 minutes before departure.

Heimdall

What do you mean by "Mykonos to Naxos (via Paros)? Will you be staying in Paros and then moving on to Naxos, or just going to Paros for a ferry connection to Naxos?

Frankly I don't see the point in booking a ferry ticket on the internet. As you said, they are very unlikely to sell out. More likely the schedule will be changed by weather or other unforseen circumstances, and your peace of mind tickets will have to be changed anyway. Also, booking in advance will take away any flexibility you would otherwise have. Mid-September is a time when hotel rooms and ferry tickets are easy to come by. You may fall in love with one island, and wish to stay a day or two longer (or as when I visited Mykonos, want to get away ASAP once I did the day trip to Delos).

There are more than just Blue Star ferries going the route you contemplate. Two highspeeds connect Mykonos and Paros. The Seajet2 is an IJ ship, and the Flying Cat IV is run by Hellenic Seaways. There are also direct connections between Mykonos and Naxos.

Hania

In addition to the above, it is my understanding that the ferry tickets are not transferable so why tie yourself down. There are numerous ticket offices on the street that runs in front of the port and there are kiosks selling tickets right near the ferries. The ferries start loading the cars ahead of time to be ready for the on time departure. Walk ons can go on any time.

sunny16

So the same would be true of ferry travel between Naxos and Santorini in October? We could just wait until we get to Naxos and buy our tickets then? (We want to travel on a Saturday.)

Heimdall

Sunny16, the same applies in October. The Naxos to Santorini route has good service year-round. Most of the tourists are gone by then, so passenger-only catamarans wind down their operations for the winter, but the large ferries continue to operate. Islanders depend on them for supplies from the mainland, so even though there are fewer passengers, they still run.

Note for anyone planning ferry travel off season: the ferries operate on set routes, eg Piraeus-Naxos-Paros-Santorini, or Rafina-Andros-Tinos-Mykonos, for example. Since Mykonos and Santorini are on different routes, getting from one to the other off season may involve going back to the mainland. During the tourist season these islands are connected by passenger-only ferries, that don't run during the winter.

sunny16

Thanks, Heimdall!

panoulis

You should also check this site for online tickets reservations: www.hellenicseaways.gr This company has created a fantastic website which makes greek island travelling as easy as never before! It has both conventional and high-teck express ships (the latter are known as Highspeeds). Since you plan to travel in September, it gives you 15% discount as an early booking offer.

In general, you must be at the port 1 hour before departure time, but this is not compulsory (I got at the port once five minutes before departure time, and had no problem - it was low season though).

GBC

We took the ferry Santorini to Naxos and Naxos to the mainland. We DID book ahead on the internet because it was Easter weekend. It was good that we did because the ferry was jammed with people on holiday. Your hotel or B&B should be able to advise you of any special event that might increase traffic.

In Santorini the port area is very congested so you need a little spare time just in case of traffic back ups. I don't recall any type of security check or delay. You just walk on.

Heimdall

It's easy enough to pinpoint Greek holidays with a simple Google, which will turn up websites such as this: http://www.symivisitor.com/greek_name_days.htm.

Panoulis provides a good website reference, but be aware that it will show only the Hellenic Seaways ferries, and not those of Blue Star or any other company. I'm not sure the 15% online discount would be worth the loss of flexibility, especially if you later find that another ferry would have been more compatible with your itinerary.

skittles_2203

I would definitely book the tickets ahead of time. We visited in June and did not reserve, only to get to the port to find out it was the "holy Spirit" holiday and that there were NO more tickets to Santorini. We visited a travel agent who booked and printed all the tickets for the rest of the trip, that way we were able to plan how long and what we would do on each island. I definitely recommend it for peace of mind!

Heimdall

The Holy Spirit (Whit Monday) holiday was Mon 12 Jun this year. Ferries are busy leaving the mainland on the Friday before, and going back on Monday (a bit like road traffic on Memorial Day weekend in the US, or Spring Bank Holiday in the UK).

Certainly if you are travelling to the islands on that one weekend it would be a good idea to reserve ferry tickets in advance. Any other weekend is a completely different matter, with the exceptions of Greek Easter and the weekends before and after Aug 15th.

Anyone planning independent travel in a foreign country can easily find out when its holidays are by doing a Google search. That's just part of good trip planning.

Heimdall

BTW, Holy Spirit Day in 2007 is on May 28th.