Hi everyone..

My boyfriend and I have decided to go to Greece this summer - from 9th to 22th of august, and I'm trying to plan our trip. But now I'm not sure if it makes sense with the amount of days that I'm planning for each place.
Plan is:
1) Athens from 9th to 13th of august.
2) Aegina Island from 13th to 15th of august
3) Crete from 15th to 22th of august.

1)
We both want to go to Athens for a few days, see the main sights like Akropolis, Monastiráki and Plaka, but also have time to feel the city a little, explore, have a drink or two maybe and relax with some good food.
With our current plan we will have 3,5 days in Athens. Is this too short??

2)
Then I really wanted to see the Island of Aegina. I read that it's less touristy than other islands, that locals usually go there and in general should be a very charming island to visit with a real Greek feel to it..
My bf think its a very small island and was afraid that a whole week or more would be to much, so we compromised, and now thinking of doing both Aegina and Crete.
Aegina for app. 1,5 day according to the above time-schedule.
Again, does this make sense? Is it to long/short or should we cut out Aegina from out plans entirely and use the extra days in either Athens or Crete?

3)
I've been to Crete once before many year ago, lived close by Heraklion, and didn't see much else.
Now we're thinking about staying in Chania or Rethymnon, but finding it very hard to decide which.
As with Athens, out main goal is to get a feel of the island, see maybe some villages, some main sights (haven't decided about knossos yet) and explore the city we will live in. We're not big beach-goers, but it would be nice to have the opportunity to go to a nice beach once or twice. I don't think we will be doing the Samaria gorge hike, since august will probably be very hot, and we're not the hiking type of couple in general - but if there are shorter similar tours, with great views that would definitely be and option for us.
We're also planing to rent a car for some days and we both want to go to Elafonissi beach..
Any recommendations to which city to choose?
Chania is a bigger city with more life, is that correct?


Thanks!
Annika

When we considered Aegina our Greek friends told us to skip it. Perhaps Hydra or Speyses? We liked Spetses.

August 15th is Assumption Day, the major Greek summer holiday when everyone who can gets out to the islands. I would imagine Aegina, Hydra, and the other Saronic Gulf islands will be heaving with people when you plan to be there.

Were it me I would get straight out to Crete as soon as you arrive in Greece, and save Athens until the end of the trip. You can take a day trip to Aegina or Hydra from Athens if you wish.

I'm no expert on Crete, but know that Knossos is near Heraklion, and Chania near the western end of the island, so you would be better off planning two bases rather than one. You will get more of a "Greek feel" in the inland villages of Crete than on Aegina.

You have probably already booked your flight to Greece, but if not, consider delaying the holiday by a week. If you can't make a change, be sure to have your flights, ferries, and accommodation booked well in advance for mid-August, the busiest time on the Greek Islands. Now is not too soon to start making your reservations.

Skip Aegina. The few beaches will be crowded (Athenian day trippers!).
Crete is fine. If you want to see another, less touristy island, take a ferry from Crete to Gavdos, Kythira, Anafi or Karpathos.

>> we will have 3,5 days in Athens. Is this too short??

No, Annika, it's not too short. I had 1.5 days for Athens and I did all the things you mentioned: see the main sights like Akropolis, Monastiráki and Plaka; feel the city, explore, have a drink, relax with some good food.
I even had time to get lost in the street labyrinth and do shopping (bought plenty of olive oil and ouzo).

But of course 3.5 days would be much better

For your information, Athens is all open on Assumption Day 15 Aug, so maybe you can go there first and then Crete? I imagine you'd have to fly into Athens anyway?

Just a few thoughts. Not sure where yo are coming from but if its a long flight I would tend to agree with Heimdall and catch a connecting flight to Crete on day of arrival.

Athens isn't a city where I enjoyed getting over jet lag.

I would fly to Chania. It is a beautiful city particularly the old town and Venetian harbour area. Stay right in the old town probably somewhere near Theotokopoulou street. it is just a block back from the harbour so is close to all the action but quiet at night for sleep. It is a pedestrian only street just full of shops and hotels in every price range.

You can rent a car after you have been exploring Chania for a couple of days. There is free parking at the foot of Theo street. Its a fairly long day to drive to Elafonissi but doable. A shorter drive would be the beach at Falasarna and a day excursion with two beaches and a pirate fortress would be the boat excursion from Kissamos harbour to Balos and Gramovossa. Ancient Aptera is also a good half day visit just 18 km east of Chania but so extensive you will need at least 4 hours to see it. Another day trip would be to Rethymnon to see its old town and the Fortezza.

I would definitely skip Aegina to add that time to Crete.

Western Crete http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr5...7632115757899/

Chania http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr5...7632117917828/

Chania 2015 https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr...57655164548880

Athens does require three to 4 days. There is a lot to see there.

Athens http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr5...7632121475515/

If you have not yet booked your flights you might consider pushing your vacation back just a little bit. The Greeks head back to School last week of August so things might not be quite as busy later in the month.

Okay, sounds like Aegina might not be worth the hassle then!
I guess we're skipping it..

Thanks a lot guys! Wasn't aware that 15th is a big holiday!!
Is everything (like shopping, restaurants etc.) open in Athens on the 15th?? or is it this kind of holiday where whole cities are dead?
And what about Crete, since we where planing to take a flight from Athens to Crete that day..

FurryFluffy:
I'm not sure I understand you correct, but we ARE going to Athens first and then to Crete, and then we are flying straight home from Crete on the 22th..

Aegina is actually a great choice, if you would like to experience a less known island... Yes it's popular among Athenians, due to the proximity to Athens, but it is still a nice quiet island with a Greek character.. unlike some of the crowded islands of the Cyclades. If you are looking for an island mainly visited by locals, Aegina is a good choice . I would recommend not more than 3 days there, an advantage is the proximity to Athens, which means you won't lose half a day to get there

Mid August in Greece means, that there will be crowds no matter where go, you should book your accommodation in advance, as most hotels will be full to capacity especially around the 15th.

Hi Annika, if you are flying home directly from Crete, then it makes sense to do Athens first. I would still recommend, if possible, travelling a week later, though. The last week of August is less busy on the islands.

stanbr:

Thank you for sharing all those pictures! Very helpful!

As to jetlag, that will not be a problem, we're travelling from Denmark, so it's just 1 hour time-difference.
We are planning to fly to Athens, and then to fly straight home from Crete.

Unfortunately it's not possible to move our vacation, since this is the only time I could get off from work.

We have decided to skip Aegina entirely now. And we are leaning towards staying in Chania for the Crete-part of our trip.

>> Is everything (like shopping, restaurants etc.) open in Athens on the 15th?? or is it this kind of holiday where whole cities are dead? >>

I was in Athens on the 15th Aug last year, and many things were open. The Acropolis, the Agora, restaurants, cinemas, miles and miles of street shops, etc. Less of tourists than other days, but the evening was quite animated on streets, all the better for you. According to its website the Acropolis Museum is open too.

Greece's economy is going down so they rely heavily on tourist shopping.

Annika, I think you've made a good choice re Crete/Chania, and you have had Splendid advice from Stanbr, and his superb photos.

Just a tips for the next time you go on a travel forum for advice -- please share the key details! It makes a BIG difference if one is flying from Europe, taking a 2-4 hour flight with almost no time change ... vs coming from the WEST of N. AMerica, which can involve up to 18 hours airtime, and over 24 hours clock time, and total exhaustion. Also, if you're travelling at a time thats super-busy or crowded, if you say upfront why that is, then people won't be pleading with you to change dates.

As for your Chania stay, if you save it till the last of your time, you could check out of Chanial hotel, drive to Falassarna and stay overnight at one of the small hotels on the top of the bluff overlooking this gorgeous beach. We did that at Hotel Petalida -- family-owned, they also have a fishing vessel and eery night in their taverna they serve the day's catch; considered best seafood restaruant in teh area. They have a main building and 2 small 1-story building right on the bluff-edge, with patios. THE most stunning sunset I've ever seen in Greece (and i've seen a jillion).