Getting around the Greek Islands
 

Since this is our first trip to Greece, this is bound to be the first of many questions. We are scheduled to arrive in Athens on Sept 23, then head to Rhodes for six days the following morning, then to Santorini for three days, then to paros for a week, and back to Athens for two days. I assume we would fly to Rhodes, but after that, would fast boat or plane be better? Can one fly directly from Island to Island, or does one have to fly back to Athens first? Would be nice to boat into Santorini, but might take too long. Finally, when should we *2 of us) start making reservations? Any help will be greatly appreciated.

I don't think every island has an airport. Most likely you will fly from Rhode to Santonrini to save time and then use the ferry to go to onward to Paros and then ferry from Paros back to Athens.

There is no fast boat between Rhodes and Santorini so if you want to get there in the fastest manner possible you'll have to fly there through Athens, not directly. The Blue Star Ferry offers a departure 3 days/week at 2pm, MWF, arriving at Santorini sometime around 1am. Not a particularly convenient time to go hunt for your hotel. The daily Hellenic Seaways fast ferry from Santorini to Paros is the way to go. Paros has an airport so you can fly (Olympic Air/Aegean Airlines) or ferry ( http://www.gtp.gr ) back to Athens.

For September you don't have to make ferry reservations far in advance. Buy your Santorini tickets on Rhodes and your Paros tickets on Santorini, etc. If you're going to fly now would probably be the best time to buy.

Axel, there is one good way besides flying to get from Rhodes to Santorini. 3x a week from Rhodes there is now a New modern Blue Star ferry, leaving 17:00 arriving about Midnight.

Brotherleelove and travelerjan were posting at the same time. Blue Star is the best way from Rhodes to Santorini, IMO. Don't worry about that late arrival time, as there will be a way to get to your hotel, as is always the case when a ferry arrives on Santorini. If hotel staff know you are on that ferry they should be prepared to check you in, or by prior arrangement be waiting for you at the port.

Since you arrive on Santorini in the middle of the night, you may want to take another Blue Star from Santorini to Paros. You get beautiful views of the caldera and cliff-top villages when leaving the island, best seen from the open deck of Blue Star. The Hellenic Seaways catamaran is faster, but you are inside the cabin, and may not even have a seat near a window. You also pass closely by several other islands on the trip, and will see the Portara when the ferry stops at Naxos.

A couple of years ago we wanted to get from Rhodes to Santorini and were not prepared for the long ferry trip. We caught a 6am flight from Rhodes to Athens then an 9 am flight to Santorini. We were in our hotel by 10. Sometimes time is more valuable than money and for us the expense was worth the extra time on the island.

Would it be desirable to work with a reputable Greek Travel Agency regarding inter island transport"

Again, in September it's not necessary. The ferries won't be full. Just book as you go as I described above: "Buy your Santorini tickets on Rhodes and your Paros tickets on Santorini, etc." If you know your exact travel dates and you want to fly go to this website to see what's available: www.airtickets.gr

If you know what you want to do, there is no point in using a travel agency. As brotheleelove wrote, the ferries won't be full, and you can buy tickets on the islands in a matter of minutes. Just stop in at a ticket agency when you get to Rhodes.

Should you decide to fly from Rhodes to Santorini (via Athens) you can do that on http://en.aegeanair.com. You can book both flights together in one transaction by entering Rhodes as the departure airport and Santorini as the arrival airport. There will probably be a later flight than that 6 am departure mentioned by stanbr, but if you are an early bird that would be a good choice.

Hate to be a bother, but if flying from santorini from Rhodes, is 40 minutes sufficient time to change planes in Athens?

Yes. The domestic gates are close together and they wouldn't sell you a ticket if the timing was an issue. They'll transfer any luggage you check so all you have to do is walk a short distance to the correct gate, get on the shuttle bus and ride out to the plane.

Trying to decide whether to rent an auto in Rhodes, Santorini, or Paros. What would we miss by not doing so? A tad leary about driving, but wish to cover the islands.

Depends where you want to go and what to do on each island. All three islands have a good bus network but a car in general provides more flexibility.

You might compromise by only renting a car for part of the time on each Island. In Rhodes, if you are staying in Old Town, and plan to explore it for 2 days, no point in having a car then. You also can easily day-trip to Lindos via bus or boat. If you want to explore highllights elsewhere on the island, car rental for a day or 2 makes it much easier. In Santorini also a 1-day car rental will cover highlights that take more time to combine using buses; i.e., Akrotiri, Ancient Thira... the rest can easily be done on foot or by bus. Paros? Much the same advice; if you're staying In parikia, no need for car to explore that port town & you can bus to Naoussa, and vice versa. Tp really explore inland and the eastern beaches, a 1-2 day car rental enables you to see much more, at your own pace.

If you really want to visit the best beaches in Paros, plus Parikia, and Lefkes ( medieval city), you'll need a car for more than one or two days. There's very little traffic on the roads, except in and out of Parikia, so driving is easy.

BTW, I wouldn't suggest basing in Parikia. Yes, The Church of 100 doors is worth a visit, but other than that I find it a kind of depressing port city with an uninteresting waterfront and lots of traffic due to ferry arrivals/departures.