Aegean Islands
 

Looking for any and all information on the Aegean Islands. Which are a must see, which can be skipped, What to see and do on any given island. Lodging, dining, getting to and about them. This is for my nephew who will be honeymooning in Greece in July 2012, taking 3 weeks. They will be flying into Athens and out of Istanbul.

Get a copy of T. Cook's "Greek Island Hopping". All shall be revealed. Check hotel reviews on www.tripadvisor.com

There are way too many styles and choices to start listing our personal favorites.
You need to narrow the field first. Get thee to a book store and browse!

A site that I use to find very good information about the different islands is http://www.greeka.com/
It gives a very nice description of each island, things to see and do, map of the island, and so on.
Also, tripadvisor, which brotherleelove has indicated, is a must to find good hotels and reviews.

Lulu, What a nice wedding gift by you, to do some homework for a busy bridegroom-to-be!I

While online research is terrific (I couldn't do without it!) I think it is worthwhile for you or your nephew to ALSO look at some guides -- My constantly repeated example is that uising only the internet for info is like tring to get a drink from a fire hose -- you end up drenched and flattened, but still thirsty!!

"Greek Island Hopping" is a very good start for an active young couple interesting in seeing a lot, finding the where the action and doing it mainly by ferry. It tells what conditions will be during High Season (since they are going at the Height of High season!!) and It shows the connections very visually & understandably. Without a guide such as this, people tend to make unrealistic "wish lists", including islands that are nowhere near each other, and not connectible ... lilke someone on a US visit who says, I want to see Boston- NY - Washington and oh yes, the grand canyon and Glacier national Park.

Since there is plenty of time, I suggest that he (or you, as the helpful researcher) go to your area's biggie bookstore like Barnes & NOble and browse. You'll quickly see which are most helpful and attuned to their age/budget/interests; some are for the more affluent older travelers, who want to sit around more. Then raid your local library and borrow some -- the library will do interlibrary loan of Guides they don't have. You/he can photocopy relevant pages from many... and choose the most appealing one(s) to purchase. NOTE: not a problem if a guide is 2-3 years old -- you can always get the lateest hotel/restaurant prices online, after doing basic research. A great "overview" guide is HK'S Eyewitness: the Greek Islands, very pictorial not just photos, but color graphics. "Let's Go Greece" is classic backpacker -- Lonely Planet is all about logistics now, not much background alas. My favorite all-in-one is Rough Guide to Greece, has it all -- logistics AND background and detail, plus CANDOR about plusses & minuses of destinations (for example, it tells you which islands alas have been virtually taken over by package-holiday companies from Europe & UK). This is especially vital for High season, since many guides/websites talk only about the beauties and don't reveal that in July-August that particular destination is a swarming, jam-packed Zoo.

Aside from guides, my favorite introductory website for ALL islands is one by a youngish Greek schoolmaster-- so it's very well-organized, easy to navigate, tons of photos! He loves history, ruins AND beaches, food and nightlife. http://www.greek-islands.us/

Finally --try to impress on him that in making plans, transport feasibility (via ferry or domestic air) is vital to figure out FIRST, before booking hotels. I cannot tell you how many piteous postings there are by honeymooners who have plunked down nonrefundable deposits (ALWAYS a bad idea) for luxury hotels they cannot reach.

Now -- go do your generous work!

PS: If Rough Guide becomes a choice for purchase, it looks hefty & heavy. However it has a lovely feature. It's divided so that one can (with care) pull out a section like "Cyclades Islands" or "Athens" and bind its spine with duct tape and Voila! a little pocket-size mini-guide! That way one can take along 3-4 useful sections and leave the rest at home.

If you decide to purchase travel guides after viewing at your library or book store, use amazon.com to purchase for reduced prices and free shipping.

On the other hand, if you value having book stores in which to browse, buy your books from a bricks-and-mortar store. I like to support the local booksellers as opposed to the national chains, but Barnes & Noble needs help too.

Great advice from travelerjan. Even with three weeks there is no way your nephew and bride can visit (and enjoy) more than a few of the islands.

And if they are flying out of Istanbul, they will have to end at an island which has easy ferry connections to Turkey, or they will have to back-track to Athens and fly to Istanbul. Whichever, it all takes time which eats into island visits.

I'm with you, Mimar. I buy from all outlets. Especially patronize the small local used bookstores we're lucky enough to have in Phila, but also the B & N.

Bookmarking. Thanks for the info.

Thank you all so much for your great help, especially those with specific books. travelerjan couldn't agree more with the firehose analogy. I love the research almost as much as the trip so it will be fun to learn about the islands. I will most definitely be looking for the books, we have a great little bookstore in Olympia that is very willing to order for me.

I want to recommend to you Mike Barrett's site on Greece at www.greecetravel.com. It was posted here by another traveler, is VERY detailed on both mainland and each individual island, with a wealth of tips. I'm using it now to weed in and weed out ideas we have for next summer. Happy plans!

oliver, that IS a very good site ... I particularly like the illustrated sections on Greek foods. I do find that Mike Barrett is getting a bit greyhaired, and while I myself am really comfortable with his approach, honeymooners in their 20s might have a bit more of a "party" DNA -- that is why, for an Island overview site in my first message, I recommend one put together by a youngish greek guy. However, Barrett does cover a great deal MORE than island descripts in his website -- all the nuts & bolts of travel in Greece, and I recommend many many of his sections. Only caveat is, be aware that he seems to recommend very heavily certain services that he is very close to ... just one "taxi-Tour" service, just one travel agency, just one athens Jewelry store, etc. Just saying. So before limiting yourself to those, do more research.

It's actually <i>Matt</i> Barrett. ;-) In the early days of the Internet, his guide was probably the best source of online information for travel in Greece. Matt Barrett's guide is still a very good starting point, but these days you can get much more detailed information with Google searches and on Fodor's and Trip Advisor. :-)

We loved Sifnos and Milos. Both have beautiful white-washed villages. You can walk on paths throughout Sifnos. Santorini is also wonderful, although quite touristy.

Matt's site was very helpful 5 years ago. Plus he responds to email questions. We used a Greek travel agency to book hotels on three islands and ferry/air tickets/rental cars for a two week trip. He does seem to favor certain services and places. He mentioned the travel agency on his site. When I found the travel agency also mentioned in a travel book I went with them and was quite happy with our accommodations. Matt's site and this one and trip adviser should help sort out which island will be the best fit for your nephew.