Hi,
I will be 26 next year and a female, I will be either solo or hopefully with a friend for part of the trip, staying in a mix of private hostel rooms/hotels/Airbnbs. I won't be hiring a car.
I am not a big party person hence leaving off Mykonos and Ios but don't mind a bit of lively nightlife. Looking for fun, safe and scenic islands (good beaches and hikes are a plus!).
I will be going to Greece in June next year and this is what I was thinking for an itinerary:
Athens- 1 nights
Paros- 3 nights
Naxos- 3 nights
Santorini- 2 nights
Crete- 7 nights
Athens- 1 night

My questions are:
1. Does this itinerary look like a good taste of the Greek Islands?
2. Is 6 nights in Paros and Naxos too much as I have heard they are very similar?
3. Is 2 nights enough for Santorini? I have heard very mixed opinions on how long to stay here.

Any help would be appreciated! Thank you.

I would spend 3 nights on Santorini which gives you 2 full days. This way you can spend a day walking along the caldera trail and exploring Oia, Firestefani, Fira and Imerovigli. Then you could explore Santorini on the other day. Since you don’t want to rent a car, perhaps you can find a bus tour or hire a private driver. We rented a car for a day (very easy driving) and visited Akrotiri Lighthouse, Akrotiri archaeological site, red sand beach and black sand beach. Santorini is crowded but there is a reason for that. The views along the caldera are beautiful! I think people should visit Santorini at least once in their lifetime.

We loved Naxos and spent 4 nights there. Didn’t visit Paros so can’t comment.

Rather than split your stay in Athens, I would fly directly to one of the islands first. Perhaps you could fly to Crete and spend your first night there, rather than in Athens. You need to check ferry schedules and airline schedules to find out which routing makes the most sense.

Then spend your last 2 nights in Athens.

I would spend 3 nights on Santorini which gives you 2 full days. This way you can spend a day walking along the caldera trail and exploring Oia, Firestefani, Fira and Imerovigli. Then you could explore Santorini on the other day. Since you don’t want to rent a car, perhaps you can find a bus tour or hire a private driver. We rented a car for a day (very easy driving) and visited Akrotiri Lighthouse, Akrotiri archaeological site, red sand beach and black sand beach. Santorini is crowded but there is a reason for that. The views along the caldera are beautiful! I think people should visit Santorini at least once in their lifetime.

We loved Naxos and spent 4 nights there. Didn’t visit Paros so can’t comment.

Rather than split your stay in Athens, I would fly directly to one of the islands first. Perhaps you could fly to Crete and spend your first night there, rather than in Athens. You need to check ferry schedules and airline schedules to find out which routing makes the most sense.

Then spend your last 2 nights in Athens.

Before I (and others) start giving specific advice, can I justt enter a plea -- be even more specific THanks for listing number of days/nights -- but can you ALSO give us the DATES in june (if u have booked the flights) You're obviously traveling on a shoestring -- good for you!! -- & it's easier to advise how to save time AND Money, when we know your dates. It even helps to tell us the TIME of day you land in GReece, because it may affect whether you move on right away to an island, and thus have TWO days in Athens at the end (much more efficient than going into Central city TWICE -- eats up precious hours)

There are fans of both Paros & Naxos... I know bth f them... have visited Paros at lesst 5 times, but Naxos 14 times so u know where my heart lies. I would say 2 days in Paros, 4 in Naxos, it's much bigger. Also, , I've found Naxos bus network & service much better for those without car. I even like the idea of staying on cute littel Antiparos, right on a beach a 10 minute walk from its wee pier, and doing PAROS as a day trip. Details later. NOTE: at one end, OR both ends oof your island time, suggest doing domestic air not long-distance ferry. When pllanning ahead as you prudently are doing, the€€ for flights is not that much different from economy ferry.... and a great saving in precious time. Do your ferries between the islands. esp the open-dck ferry Naxos - Santorini.

PS: if you plan it right, you can have a decent "sampling" of Santorini in 36 -48 hours... I've done this at least 4 times with "newbie" travel companions & they enjoyed the experience greatly. Karen Woo is giving fine advice, but perhaps not considering the cost factor ... at 26, pvt driver can be too pricey.

Hi travelerjan. Thanks for your great advice!! We will start in Athens on the 18th of June (not sure how to edit my original post to put in the dates). Also I don't have a strict budget so won't be travelling super shoestring but obviously want to keep costs relatively low hence leaving off Mykonos! Unfortunately I think I have to go back to Athens twice as I will be coming from Lisbon Portugal so will have to fly into Athens and going onto Croatia so again can't get a direct flight from any other islands and have to go back to Athens! Also flights might be a bit more expensive as I will have a decent amount of luggage as I am doing over 3 months of travelling haha so can't just do carry on.

You have a great plan, with islands in the right order to take advantage of ferry routes. To paraphrase one of travelerjan’s comments, I have been to Naxos four times, and Paros/Antiparos over 20 (I lost count long ago). The relentless hype of Naxos fans is partly to blame for it being extremely crowded these days in the area where most tourists stay. True, it’s the largest Cyclades island, and if you enjoy exploring remote mountain villages there is nowhere better in the Cyclades.

I like Paros because there are beaches for every taste, including small sandy coves sheltered from the wind. The island of Paros has an excellent bus network, allowing you to go just about everywhere on the island. As a bonus you have the smaller island of Antiparos only minutes away by ferry. Actually there are five “wee” piers in Antiparos Harbour, plus a large slip where the landing craft ferries dock. There are now four landing craft ferries based on Antiparos, running every 30 minutes throughout the day between there and the small port of Pounta, 15 minutes by bus from the island capital of Parikia. The crossing from Pounta to Antiparos takes only 7 minutes.

Over the last 20 years an archeological team led by Yannos Kourayos has been excavating the site on the island of Despotiko, near Paros and Antiparos. It’s become evident that the site was, in antiquity, as important as the better known Delos, near Mykonos. Each June a team of archaeologists, including students from the USA, are active on the island. The site will eventually become an open museum. I have communicated by email with Yannos, and he assures me that visitors are welcome on the site. Admission is free for now, and a boat operated by Captain Sargos can take you there from Ag Georgios at the south of Antiparos.

https://realgreekexperiences.com/des...ollo-sanctuary

OK Heimdall, thanks for your advice! I am going to start a campaign among Naxophiles to say bad stuff constantly about that island .. I'll report back on results... meanwhile I'll be hiding out on Antiparos he he.

No, please, you are already starting to hype Antiparos. The island is going upmarket, with expensive villas dotting the hills around the island, and plans for a yacht marina on Psaraliki Beach have been proposed, with a 5* hotel going up there as well. The extension of the Paros Airport runway will allow international flights to land there. Enough is enough!

OMG... not Psaraliki Beach!!! All this news is beginning to reconcile me to the possibility that my Greece days may be over.

Yes, TJ, that was my reaction too. Until recently most land on Antiparos was held by the islanders, but now big money is moving in. The marina is only a proposal, AFIK, but it would change Antiparos forever. Here is the plan for the Psaraliki Beach area, and it looks like they hope to dredge out the salt pond behind the beach, even though it is a protected wetland for migratory birds in the winter. The 5* hotel would be on land between Psaraliki 1 and 2 beaches.
https://evripiotis.eu/news/proposal-...tiparos-marina

There are also plans for a large hotel at Ag Georgios at the south of the island. In the meantime, cement mixers are coming on the Pounta ferry to build expensive villas like these:

https://oliarosvillarentals.com/

When word got out that Tom Hanks, who owns a more traditional villa on Antiparos, and his Hollywood friends come to the island, the fan magazines have been printing stories, so the island doesn’t need any more hype. Paul McCartney stopped on his yacht last summer after staying on Mykonos. I have stopped recommending Antiparos, except to help people already planning on coming there or a day trip from Paros.

Antiparos has two new webcams, one in Antiparos Town and the other at Ag Georgios looking over to the island of Despotiko. The one in town sweeps from the fishing dock to the ferry slip below Ag Marina church. Have a look during daytime, and you will see the cruise boat Alexander which winters on Antiparos (the owner is an Antiparian).

https://antiparos.tv/

Thanks Heimdall.. I'll bookmark the webcams & can enjoy the island before the worst. I have memories that can't be changed, and will be content.
I'd only hoped to encounter u on antiparos one day, but guess I'll have to make another trek to England ... have so many friends from various forums to meet in person. My fave, from TA crete, finally visited in a magical village outside Cambridge. ex-professor, we've emailed & traded books about Minoan crete for 17 years. Internet CAN be a blessing.

Hi Newbie, you're spoiled for choice, yeah?
Maybe check out Folegandros island. For a traveler who is 'not a big party person' it fits the bill. The nightlife there seems not to be too out of control. Folegandros is easily reached from Santorini, so one could conceivably do a 2-fer. Three nights on each isle?
Personally, I'd chip down the itinerary from six places down to say, four places.
Wishing you the best!

I am done. the octopus