Tully22

Hi folks,
I hope to be traveling from Santorini to Iraklion Crete in mid September on a Sunday. I was looking at ferry schedules at www.gtp.gr and saw two listed. One is run by Sea Jets Consortium, and the other is run by Hellenic Seaways. Any advice on taking one or the other?

Thanks

Heimdall

While Sea Jets Consortium is a less reliable company, in September it is scheduling the large car-carrying catamaran Megajet for Santorini - Heraklion. Hellenic Seaways has the reliable but small passenger-only FlyingCat 4. In windy conditions the larger catamaran will give you a smoother ride.

Tully22

Thank you. By less reliable, do you mean they don't always sail? Also, I'd been told it's not necessary to book ahead. True?

Heimdall

Sea Jets Consortium does have a record of breakdowns and schedule changes, but those are mostly with their smaller catamarans, Superjet and SeaJet 2. Megajet seems to be keeping to it's schedule this summer.

It's not always necessary to prebook a ferry from Santorini to Heraklion, and mid September is outside high season. If you have a fixed date of travel it wouldn't hurt to prebook, but you can do that when you get to Santorini.

Tully22

Thanks, that is yery helpful. I have two other ferry choices to make, all mid September. Any thoughts about them?

Patmos to Rhodes
1) Blue Star Ferries car ferry leaving 3:35 AM and arriving 10:10 AM or
2) Dodekanisos Seaways passenger only catamaran leaving 13:30 arriving 18:30.

Rhodes to Santorini
1) Aegeon Pelgos Sea Lines car ferry leave 9 AM and arrive Santorini at 23:50
2) Aegeon Pelagos Sea Lines car ferry leaving Rhodes 1400 and arriving Santorini 4 AM -- although I’m not sure this latter one is running now.

Heimdall

I'm not very familiar with Dodecanese ferries, but Blue Star is an ultra-reliable company. Blue Star 2 is 176 meters in length, while Dodekanisos Pride is only 40 meters. Compare the two ferries here http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shi...mmsi=239737000 and here http://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/shi...MMSI=240383000.

The way I see it you have a choice of a middle of the night departure on a very comfortable ferry, or an afternoon departure on a ferry that may pitch and roll if the seas are rough. The Dodekanisos Pride makes several more stops than Blue Star 2, so takes nearly as long to get to Rhodes. The choice is yours.

The Aegeon Pelgos ferry is called Prevellis, and leaves twice per week from Rhodes: 9:00 am on Thursdays and 2:30 am on Sundays. This is a reliable old ferry, but the Sunday ferry makes multiple stops, including two ports in Crete, on its way to Santorini, and takes nearly a full day to get there. If you can, time your trip for Mon, Wed, or Fri when the much quicker Blue Star sails that route. Otherwise, take Prevellis on Thursday when it leaves at 9:00 am and takes 15 hours.

Tully22

Also very helpful. I can see the two are very different. I think I can alter my plans to take the Wednesday ferry from Rhodes to Santorini. If I'm reading the schedule right, it looks like it leaves at 4 PM and is 9 hours instead of 15, arriving at 1:10 AM the next morning.