I'm just beginning to plan a 2 week trip to Greece for August. (My husband will be there through a program at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens for the preceding 6 weeks, but we hear that things are so busy in the summer that we can't wait 'til he has some inside info to do our planning). I'm feeling really overwhelmed, but we are planning to spend some time on the mainland (Athens, Delphi), probably the Peloponnesian peninsula, and some islands (Santorini, a day on Delos, and one or two less traveled others, NOT Mykonnos).

Any favorite guidebooks or websites for planning? Any comments on the (obviously very vague) itinerary? Can I wait on booking some of the mainland stuff until my husband is there and experiences much of this first hand?

I personally like the Karen Brown guidebooks, and have used them throughout our European travels.

Blue Guides can't be beaten in Greece if you have any interest beyond the beaches (tho' they do beaches too)

Lonely Planet guidebook(s). www.greektravel.com for loads and loads of good on-line info.

We are definitely interested in much more than beaches! In fact, while we'll probably spend some time on the beaches, it won't be much per day and we certainly won't be spending any entire day on a beach. My husband is a Latin and ancient Greek teacher, so the classical sites and history, as well as generally relaxing by wandering through some smaller towns and villages, are of much interest (as I'm sure is evident from our very sketchy itinerary).

Alisa, you will have a challenge because of course your 2 weeks are Height of HI Season, when huge charter planes dump the whole of Northern Europe on the Islands; they will be tEEMING!
Your best strategy would be to choose islands that DON't have large airports or deep-water ports that accommodate cruise ships...those are hardest-hit... or at least plan to visit them only briefly.

ISLAND CHOICES
Since he's doing Classical studies, I'm assuming ancient sites rather than Byzantine will be your focus, and if you're like me, you enjoy 1/2 day ancient site, 1/2 day BEACH. In 2 weeks you could (1)rent car, drive to Pelopponnese -- Argolid & all its sites, then over to Olympia (stay at nearby beach town) then (2) drive over Parga bridge, go to Delphi, back to Athens (3) take ferry to islands: you would have time really only to stay on 2 islands, then back to Athens. For ancient sites & "postcard scenery" most people choose Cyclades Isles; Crete is also super that way, but farther and maybe too big to tackle in your SHORT time.

NAXOS/PAROS offer options that multiply your "coverage" -- 1-day "cruise excursions" that go to Santorini (arrive 10:30- leave about 5pm; bus takes u up to Fira, then to Oia, on your own, just return to bus to get back to ferry), and to Delos/Myknos (Delos 10:30-1;30, then Mykonos 2-5 pm, back in NAXOS or PAROS about 7-7:30). These cost about 55€ pp. OR you might consider taking o'nite ferry to Santorini, stay 1.5 days for the view & ancient Thera (Akrotiri site still closed), then ferry to Naxos or Paros & do the Delos excursion.

In Naxos, book rooms in beach areas like Plaka or Ag. Anna to minimize crowd-crunch. Local bus system great. In Paros, bus system doesn't reach best beaches or ancient sites as easily, consider renting 4-wheeler. Other isles with ancient-site interest - SIFNOS, MILOS. BUT on another ferry line; and in high season u MUST have reservations, because they have many fewer accommodations.

GUIDEBOOK ADVICE
For reading up on Greece I always advise going to your local BIGGIE bookstore, finding a comfy chair and looking through guidebooks for the ones that "speaks to you" Then go to your local library and borrow them if available, and fotocopy the relevant pages to study and/or take along. If library has the older editions, ignore advice on hotels & restaurant costs, concentrate mainly on sight-seeing highlights which don't change year to year.

My recommendations would be:
o FOR VISUAL: The DK "Eyewitness Guide to Greek Isles" -- Graphically VERY good; illustrations help u understand the important ancient sites of each island -- u can borrow this from library even if it's old, since using it just for the sight-seeing.
o FOR PLANNING/HOPPING -- Thos Cooks "Greek Island-Hopping" -- This really shows u how to plan & manage the "hop" system via ferries... shows which islands work best together, and alerts you to problems/ challenges of "high season"
o FOR MOST DETAIL with CANDOR -- Lonely Planet USED to be the choice, but I'm sorry to say, when trying to go "up market" they added color fotos, and to save money, they axed content bought CHEAP maps (grey on grey so won't photocopy well). Instead, I recommend ROUGH GUIDE to GREECE (not just to Islands). Few illustrations but LOTS of good text. A big fat book to carry, but Here's the Beauty Part --- it's Laid out so you can just rip out sections u want ("Argolid" etc) & make duct-tape binding to hold each segment together. Genius!! This is the one I'd buy.

PLANNING STRATEGY --
(1) Book Athens hotel for the night before your flight home... You KNOW that date for sure, and advance booking is best way to find a good budget hotel in Plaka area. (2)Huddle with spouse on priorities, he doesn't need to be IN Athens to figure out which major ancient sites! (3)Decide Sequence AND the time it likely will take... remember, you can't zoom magically from place to place, you have to allow 1/2 day minimum for each change! Be sure there are connections, i.e., few or no ferries BETWEEN some island chains ... See T. Cook book. (4) THEN research where to stay -- and if you're on a grad-student budget, you get the best tips on good cheap lodgings on Thorn Tree Forum, Trip Advisor, VT (Virtual Tourist. PLEASE use their search functions first before asking -- often your answers are already there, so we don't have to endlessly repeat ourselves REmember for a short stay, TIME is MONEY, and a flight at the end of your island-hopping can give u an extra day of enjoyment. Happy planning!

PS -- if u want to do onlline research, granted that "greecetravel" site (mattbarrett) is VERY popular and deservedly so. Why? PRO - it's well laid-out, easy to navigate illustrates all its sections with photos right in the text, easy to read, grasp print out. but inthe CON category -- some areas haven't been updated in quite a while, and the author, some of us feel, "plugs" a lot of services and businesses. Just my opinion.

Recently I discovered a quite NEW site with all the plusses of the above, less commercial, AND written by a youngish (35) GREEK guy. Same good organization, readabililty, (he IS a schoolteacher) & a refreshing outlook. check it out too -- http://www.greek-islands.us/

Given your stated interests you should seriously consider Crete

I agree that you should consider Crete - and there's a convenient overnight ferry. You might find my TR for Greece interesting - I spent more time on the mainland and less on the islands - www.wilhelmswords.com/eur2006

Thanks for all the advice, especially from you, travellerjan! I was actually planning to head to Barnes and Noble this afternoon and cuddle up with some books, but wanted to get some personal favs from folks here.

Our thoughts about axing Crete would be just that it is too much since it's a huge place. It looks like we'll probably have 16 full days in Greece together (plus a travel day on each end). My husband will be seeing all the major ancient sites during his program before I arrive in Greece, so his first hand knowledge would be just that (he'd be able to give me the scoop and which his favorites and must-see places were), but realistically that doesn't work with the high season, which is a bummer. We're absolutely planning on minimizing travel time between places with flights where able, but are well aware that some days will basically be travel days.

I had already bookmarked both of those websites and will be doing some serious guidebook and website reading over the next week or so as we begin to firm up a plan!

A point about Delos: the island has no accommodation, so you can't stay there. Options for visiting Delos are from Mykonos (I know!), or as a day trip from Naxos, Paros, or Tinos. The day trips from Naxos and Paros include a half day on Mykonos. From Tinos, you would take a ferry to Mykonos, a shuttle boat from there to Delos, then a ferry back to Tinos. No way to avoid Mykonos, I'm afraid!

Hi, here is a website with all the info that a visitor to Greece may require. I think is is really helpful and detailed. In order to go to Delos you have to go through Mykonos and you can't stay the night. Near Santorini there is another small island called Anafi which is beautiful and not so touristy. Ios is also close and Naxos would be a good choice. Milos is a nice, peaceful island as well.

http://www.greek-islands.us/