shelsabels

We are planning our 30th wedding anniversary trip in May. We are spending 2 nts in Paris, then 2 nts in Athens and then onto the Greek Isles. Being so close to Turkey, we have decided to go to Istanbul for a few nights. Our air is already confirmed to/from Athens, so....any suggestions for cheap air to Turkey ? Is it best to go to Turkey from Athens, or possibly from one of the Greek Isles ? by ferry maybe ? Our plans are Santorini and someone highly recommended the Island of Milos ?? anyone been to Milos or another suggestion on a quiet Island. ?
Thanks in advance or your suggestions...........

yorkshire

I think it will be important to know how many days you have in total for the Greek islands, and how many days you can spend getting to Istanbul. It's a long haul from the Cyclades to Istanbul.
Congrats!

Weadles

It's difficult but not impossible to get from the Cyclades to Istanbul. For the ease of your itinerary, I'd suggest going to Istanbul first, then Athens, then the islands either by air or ferry.

And now a question: Do you really want to stay places for two nights only? I think it's a huge PIA, since you lose so much time to traveling, packing and unpacking.

shelsabels

We have a total of 9 nts in the Greek Islands. We cannot change our flight, so our international flights are to / from
Athens. I was thinking we should see Athens, then fly to Istanbul,(2nts) ? and then from Istanbul either work our way to the Greek Islands or fly back to Athens and then spend the rest of the time in the greek Islands. It just seems like we are going back and forth to Athens, that's why I was wondering about other ways to avoid that.I agree with the huge
PIA !! but, I do have 9 nts to work with......

yorkshire

Well flying is always an option, but I would first take a look at all of the ferry websites (ones that have maps tend to be more helpful) to determine what the routes are. Then, check to see if those routes all run in May (some are seasonal), then once you know your options, you can see if there is a way to hop and skip from the Turkish coast to Athens in 9 days.
Good Luck!

pasqualino

Check into Atlas Jet. On their website, it shows they fly from Istanbul to Mykonos. However, when I plug in dates, I can never find any flights. Their summer schedule may not yet be out.

In June we are traveling to: Istanbul-Cappadocia-Ephesus-Santorini-Athens. The connections have been a real headache. I explored a million different possibilities. In the end, we are flying from Izmir to Athens to Santorini back to Athens. Pegasus flies Athens-Izmir. Sun Express presently does also, but they have no flights posted for the summer yet. These companies are very inexpensive as compared to Turkish Airlines.

If you fly Athens to Istanbul to Izmir, you could then get a ferry to Kusadasi. From Kussadasi you could ferry to Naxos or Paros and then to Santorini. Maybe not ideal, but an option.

Good luck!