Greece 2.0 revised September itinerary Crete/Nafplio/Athens
 

We were able to use ff miles to book flight to Chania, arriving at 1:35pm on a Sunday, mid September. We leave from Athens 10 days later, on a Wednesday. Based on some input from earlier thread, this is the basic itinerary:
Crete - 5 nts
Napflio - 3 nts
Athens - 2 nts

I'm thinking in Crete, we spend 1st 3 nights in Chania, then change to another location(s). Definitely want to visit Knossos, and if we fly out of Heraklion (to Athens), we would probably stay in that area for the last night. I noticed there seems to be a decent bus system in Crete. Will we need a car or can we manage with the bus for some or all of the time? We are fine with driving and will definitely have a car when we fly to Athens to drive to Nafplio. Will return car back at airport before going to Athens hotel.

As far as hotels, I'm looking at Aetoma Hotel in Nafplio, any thoughts on this? Last time in Athens we stayed at InnAthens, which we really liked so will probably stay there again. While there last time, we never did get inside the church across the street (The Sotira Lykodimou Church, the largest surviving Byzantine church in Athens and supposedly quite beautiful). The one time it was open, we had just arrived and rushed off to lunch. Little did we know, that it would be locked every other time we checked. I still regret not peeking inside when we had the opportunity.

I'm thinking we'd like to stay near the old city when in Chania, but near parking if we're to have a car there (I see that it's pedestrian only in parts) . Any hotel recommendations? Apartments are fine, trying to keep night cost between $100-200. I'm a bang for the buck traveler but location, quiet and cleanliness are very important. Don't need beachfront, pool or breakfast (assuming cafes nearby). I am now researching exactly what day trips we'll do while in Crete. We don't plan on any long beach days, but would like to see some of the more picturesque ones. I love ruins and old towns with windy little streets and interesting architecture. We don't mind walking, as we are city people and walk all the time.

From Chania, you can do the following day trips by public transport (touristic lines):
Kissamos - Balos/Gramvousa boat
Kissamos - Falassarna
Kissamos - Elafonissi Beach
Samaria Gorge hike.
Buses from Chania to Rethymno - iraklio are very frequent.

If you are interested in History, Knossos and the archeological museum of Iraklio are musts. For more, go to Malia or Phaistos. The Minoan architecture in Crete is older than and very different from the classical Greek one. You will not see the same around Nafplio: Mycene, Epidavros, Tyrins, etc.
My preferred hotel at Chania is the Porto Veneziano.

BTW: Buses between Nafplio and Athens are very frequent. Bus X93 runs directly from the airport to the Peloponissos bus station from where Nafplio bound buses start. There are buses from Piraeus to the Peloponissos bus station too (bus 420), but as they start far away from the Crete ferry pier, it's easier to go from the latter by taxi directly to the Peloponissos bus station.

Thanks Neckervd. I'll check out the bus info in more detail. I was just looking at that hotel!

Your itinerary is looking good.... and for CRETE, I think you might do well on public transit, or with just a one-day car rental.. For the short NAFPLIO visit, I think car rental will simplify things & enable seeing some key things without local-transit delays. But first things first:

CHANIA HOTELS -- Porto Veneziano is a well-reviewed modern hotel at the Eastern end of Old Town HArbour .. also think it has an elevator, important for some. I've really lilked staying on the no-cars flagstone lane just West ofthe Harbour, THeotokopoulu Street (see this map -- https://www.explorecrete.com/crete-m...chania-old.jpg) ... it's just a few yards up from the harbour view, but very serene at night. A place I really liked, right at the seaward end, is Hotel Palazzo https://www.booking.com/hotel/gr/palazzo-old-town-chania -- Sounds like a big hotel (and it is now owned by a group) but its really an updated beautiful Venetian mansion with 12 rooms; ask for a front-balcony room (it also has a roof terrace). A cute little place next door, https://www.booking.com/hotel/gr/her...ios.en-gb.html -- has just 3 units, also balconies w sea view.

CHANIA/AREA ACTIVITIES -- Exploring Old Town will take at least your first full day - here, thanks to Fodorite & ace photog "Stanbr" are pix of Chania & Western Crete delights -

Flickr Slideshows (Photostreams)

Any thoughts on Kastro Hotel in Heraklion?

Hotel Palazzo in Chania looks perfect!

I don't know Kastro hotel.... I see it on the map, it's several blocks in from the seafront boulevard. I usually pick more for location than an "experience" in Heraklion, because it's a big bustling concrete city -- the 2 I' ve stayed in & liked, Hotel Kronos, and Marin Hotel are both overlookign the port, are ranked "very good" in booking.com reviews, and are under 100 per night for balcony room in September. Kastro is closer to that central "restaurant square" which is a little noisier in late evening, and no view of anything but concrete buildings.

BTW, after posting above, i mentally went over the end-of-Crete scenario, and believe that you could, without rushing, see the 2 main Heraklion "musts' in one day. It would go like this -- catch 8 AM KTEL bus from Chania, arrive 10, reach hotel, check in by 10:45- 11. Then go DIRECT to Museum 11:30 - 1; lunch, Catch 2 or 2:30 bus to KNOSSOS -- return 5:30 - 6. Evening stroll l& dinner 7 - 10. Next AM check out, taxi to airport for 10 am flight to ATH. Talk it over. This would give u a bit more time in Western Crete.... of course there's a lot t see in Central, Eastern & Southern Crete (after all, it's essentially a major country!)... but you'll have to return. After my first visit in '99, I returned at least 4 - 5 more times.

Are the Balos/Gramvousa tours worth it, or should be just take a bus to Kissamos port and then ferry? If we do it on our own, do we need ferry tickets in advance, or can we just get them there?

IIf there is a price difference, take the KTEL bus to Kissamos port. It shouldn't be difficult at all to get boat tickets there.

Tour costs about $25-60. Not sure why such a range in price, they look the same. It's possible the more expensive one includes ferry ticket. The cheaper ones don't. I know that these tours that do hotel pickup/dropoff (which these do) could be an extra long day with all the stops. Just wasn't sure if a guide is necessary, or we can figure it out on our own. I'm leaning towards doing it on our own.

I'm thinking maybe we should do 4 nights Chania and 1 Heraklion. I see too many things to do from Chania as a base:
- Balos/Gramvousa day trip, probably do on our own using bus
- Imbros Gorge, probably with tour
- other beach(es). I see private tour of Falassarna-Elafonisi-Palaiochora, or small group tour of Falassarna-Elafonisi
I'd have to eliminate 1 of these if we only spend 3 nights here. Also, no need for car.

These take up 3 full days, which means 4 nights. Then we'd do as TravelerJan suggests, take early bus to Heraklion, and visit Knossos and museum that day.

Does this make sense?

I stayed at Aetoma back in 2015. I don't remember much about the room itself, but the location was very good, and the owners (mother and son) were extremely helpful and friendly. They moved their car to allow us to park right in front of the hotel to load and unload our luggage, and the son assisted us in getting the car out of the narrow streets when we departed.

Any thoughts on tours like this https://www.chaniaadventures.gr/en/j...eep-tour-balos where we can see a couple of different beach areas in 1 day? I'm trying to figure out the most efficient way we can see a mix of sights of nature, history, architecture, etc, with only 4 full days in Crete. I also see other jeep type tours that visit a variety of scenic spots. I don't need to spend significant time lounging on a beach. I would like to devote a decent part of a day in Chania, maybe do a walking tour there (guided or audio). Just trying to figure out what makes the most sense given the time I have.

This is what I'm thinking for Crete:
Day 1 - arrive Chania airport Sunday 1:35pm. Check into Chania hotel. We'll take it easy as I'm sure we'll be tired (I never sleep well on planes). Wander around town a bit, Have dinner, then call it a day.
*Day 2 - jeep tour of Balos and Falassarna beaches
*Day 3 - walking tour of Chania (guided or audio), maybe sunset boat ride (looking at this one https://www.getyourguide.com/crete-l...guide-t258302/)
*Day 4 - Imbros Gorge tour
*Day 2-4 tours days maybe rearranged based on daily tour availability.
Day 5 early bus to Heraklion (do we need tickets in advance?). Check into Heraklion hotel then Knossos and Archaeological museum. Will look into some kind of tour, guided or audio.
Day 6 fly to Athens in morning from Heraklion airport and continue from there

LOoks good! NO you don't have to buy tix in advance; but if u are walking by the bus station on a tour or jst a stroll, you can pick up tix... tix are for a specific departure time, but if plans change u can exchange. As far as Day 5, looks good, but I repeat previous advice... Go FIRST to the Museum late morning (that's when crowds are biggest at Knossos) then take bus to Knossos 2 pm oro later, after cruise crowds leave.

Thanks! I was agonizing on how to make the best use of our time. Not sure if we'll ever return, but then again, after 1st trip to Greece last September, we're going back a year later, so who knows??

Our last trip you had encouraged me to book a flight to Santorini right after arriving in Athens (I had originally figured we'd spend that night in Athens). I was hesitant, but took your advice. So glad we did. It worked like a charm, and we even had time for a sit down breakfast at the airport before Santorini flight. I would never had done it this way without your suggestion.

Glad to hear that Santorini-First thing worked for you. Fact is, we "old hands" don't just suggest things randomly, on a whim. We've learned in the process of many trips, and we're just trying to help others use the strategies that have proved best... and it's always rewarding to have someone say, yep, that was a good idea.

Balos - Gramvousa:
If you want to go to the beaches of Balos etc. take the boat. You can get food on board of most boats.
If you prefer to have only a look of this area from the cliffs above Balos, book the jeep tour.

Falassarna:
The KTEL bus leaving Chania in the morning and coming back in late afternoon is dirty cheap.
In September, most beach chairs are empty before the arrival of the bus.

Elafonissi:
Most famous beach in the area. Crowded in high season. KTEL bus from Chania as above.

I only have 4 full days in Crete. My 4th days is dedicated to sights near Heraklion, so that leaves 3 for Chania area. One of those days is definitely the town of Chania, so just 2 for day trips. I really am not that interested in spending hours lounging on the beach, and from what I can tell, with the distances and bus schedules, these trips take up much of the day.

I dabble with photography so I'm always looking for pretty or interesting things to photograph, whether it be people or nature (I've been doing at least a photo-a-day on Instagram for over 10 years, @marjfz). I also love small towns, ruins and things like that, so want to mix up my 4 days with different kinds of things. If I had more time, yes, I would definitely try to go to all those beaches, but unfortunately my time is limited, so I have to make the best of it.

Quick question, when we arrive at the Chania airport, can we just grab a taxi at the airport to go to hotel, or should we book a transfer? I also see on Booking that the Palazzo Hotel has an airport shuttle, I will inquire about that.

IF you just want a quick swim, handy to your hotel, and surrounded by locals not tourists, don't forget the walk west on the seafront 15-20 mins to "nea chora" (town)I beach.

There is some (Falassarna) beach time w jeep tour. the day we spend in Chania we may visit that beach. Thanks.

In Heraklion, in one day i took the bus to Knossos, and the went to the archaeology museum.

If you want to make time for this, the Venetian Koules fortress in Heraklion, has been marvelously renovated, you can pay to go inside and see: the first floor and also go onto the roof level and see a marvelous view of the Mediterranean. It might have occupied me for 45 minutes to an hour.

I did not rent a car on Crete or anywhere else in Greece.

I took buses from: Athens to Nafplio in one day, another day buses to Epidavros and Mycenae. I have a valid Michigan drivers license but I choose to avoid renting a car.

A couple of things...Hotel Kronos does not have any seaside view rooms available which is unfortunate. Besides not having the good view, some say the city view rooms could be noisy. Right now I booked Kastro, and requested a (partial) sea view.

As far as car rental, I think we'll stick to that plan just to have the flexibility and can make some pitstops along the way as TravelerJan suggests. I did notice that many of the car rental agencies have branches in the Athens, mostly along Leof. Andrea Siggrou. It doesn't look too complicated to access (am I wrong?). I would consider that as I think it will save us about an hour (~1/2 hr closer to Nafplio and about 1/2 hr closer to hotel than airport). Thoughts?

Our flight to Athens from Heraklion is in the morning, arriving at 9:10am. In Athens (after visiting Nafplio) the main sight we'd like to see is Agora. Had no time for it last visit. We have already done Acropolis tour/museum, National Archeology Museum tour, strolled through the National Garden Park and of course the Plaka. Anything else worth seeing in 2nd visit?

Any recs for car rental agencies, or should I stick with the more familiar American companies? We prefer automatic, 4 door, and room for a large suitcase and a carry on.

Regarding car rental i the city of course yo u can rent right in central athens on SYngrou, as long as crazy traffic doesnt bother you... YOu will STILL Have to find your way to a Major Highway -- the N-S one labeled A-1 AND E-75 on this Michelin Map --https://www.viamichelin.com/web/Maps/Map-Athens-10431-Athina-Greece, then STAY On it until you reach the Westbound E-94/A6 bypas that goes to Corinth. (that's the bypass you access directly, from Airport) If you mistakenly turn West to exit the city EARLIER< on Rte 8 -- you will encounter miles & miles of 16-wheelers. YOur adventure will be finding your way from Syngrou West to the E-75 ... Get GOOD instructions marked on a paper map as well as GPS. Lots o luck!

IF you want Automatic, best to reserve MONTHS ahead ... they are scarce in Greece (and most of Europe) because of gas/petrol prices being so high, & automatics are gas-guzzlers, most rental agencies are 80% stick -shift at least.

We booked automatic well in advance for Naxos. When we got to rental place, not only didn't they have automatic, they didn't have a car! They got us a car through another agency, It was manual. Luckily my husband can drive manual, but if it's tough driving he much prefers automatic.

We would probably pickup car at the airport and return it in town. There are a few locations. Another option is taking the bus to/from Napflio and renting a car for a day or 2 while there. Does the bus run from the airport, or do we have to go to a bus station in the city?

At the airport, if you exit at Door 5, you will see busses lined up and a ticket booth. KTEL express bus X93 (€6) leaves every 25 or 30 minutes, goes to the Kissifou Street KTEL INTERCITY BUS TErminal; it takes about 50-60 mins, depending on Traffic. From the Kissifou terminal, Express busses go to Nafplio on the modern intercity divided highway 2/3 of the way (scenic views of sea much of the way, from left side seats)... then the rest of the way on quiet local road. Takes just over 2 hours, costs about €13-14. Departures used to be hourly on half-hour, but since COVID, less frequent, about every 2 hours ... you can find exact timetable with a little online research, worth doing some research on your own. When u get to Nafplio, your hotel can arrange a car rental ... or you can call & arrange beforehand.

If you don't want to take the X93, a taxi to the Terminal will cost you over €50.

Athens Car Rental met us at the airport with a spiffy automatic transmission car. After our Peloponnese touring, we dropped it off at their base location near the airport and they arranged a taxi into town.

ACR is less than 1/2 the cost of Hertz! I'm still considering other options but this was a great recommendation.

We also booked through ACR last May. Excellent service, an agent was waiting for us on arrival at the airport, an automatic just as we’d requested. Took all of 10 minutes, the same on our way out too. Their prices were the best, much better than the other usual suspects, I highly recommend ACR.

I am trying to research KTEL bus service for various routes. 1 route I was researching was Nafplio to Epidaurus for a Saturday or Sunday (in September, but checked closer dates thinking maybe september was too far in advance). Nothing was coming up. I'm only seeing 1 bus on weekdays in either direction. Am I doing this wrong? I tried looking it up on the KTEL sight, google maps, rome2rio site (that google keeps finding) and busbud. It's confusing (or I'm just getting old)??? Also wanted to see schedule for Nafplio to Athens on a Monday in September.

NAfplio to Athens busses are ON the hour, and abouot 6 per day M - Friday. Earliest is about 6:30.

ABOUT LOCAL SIGHTSEEING - If you have only 3 nights in Nafplio (essential 2 & 1/3 days) you can't get to the Famous Classical ruins in that time using local transit... local busses are not really set up for efficient tourism, but for needs of local people. in season (late May - early Sept) there is (oro used to be) a bus TO epidaurus around 9 or 9:30 -- but the only bus coming BACK Is about 1:30... so it's essentially just ONE sight per day. If you rent a car locally you can do much more. I get confused by you... sometimes it seems you have ample budget, sometimes seems like scrimping. I"m getting weary of keyboarding so I'll just end with a recipe I recommended once on another thread, based on a memorable "Ruin-athon" by 4 of us in a car rented locally:

THe Schedule -- to MYCENAE by 9 sharp ... beat the crowds. On the way back toward NAFPLIO, you can duck in to TIRYNS ( right ON the road,only 3 mi outside Nafplion) for a 30 minute visit. NObody is ever there; Huuge rocks. Then, off to EPIDAURUS ... YOu can bring a picnic, for a quick Munch beside the road, by the Oldest Still-Active Bridge in the WORLD -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkadiko_Bridge At EPIDAURUS, don't get lost among Ruins the Theatre is the Main Event (2 hrs)... you'll be ready for a break, so drive back toward Tolo Beach -- but at the "bend in the road" stay LEFT, down a quiet road to... ASINE!! 2 beaches there.... one is sandy (no umbrellas) ... one is stony (bring watershoes ).... it's a little cove called Kastraki. https://www.greecetravel.com/pelopon...ine/index.html Change in the restroom of the little family-run taverna, swim and lie on their sunloungers (no charge but buy a beverage)... at sunset, sit in tavern and eat delish FISH. On the way home, if you like, you can drive up to the backdoor of PALAMIDI -- It will be closed, but you can look over the wall at the lit-up city below.

Of course, you can leave Tiryns & Palamidi for next day. TIP: don't walk UP the 999 steps... drive/taxi up the back way, and walk DOWN. The designated driver can go back around, and loll in the cafe below the last step, to greet the walkers-down.

I'm a bang for the buck traveler, but will spend more if it improves the quality of my "vacation" life. I don't need fancy hotels, just simple amenities and charm. But do need good locations, quiet, and clean. In comparing price of renting a car for the entire time in Nafplio vs doing 1 way private driver with tourist stops, then renting a car for a day or 2 in town, the cost is pretty similar. Doing the bus both ways does not appeal to me, but on the way back to Athens, seems reasonable.

THe car situation became clearer as you went along & explained, next time share up front so we aren't operating from wrong premises. It appears that transfer service will work for you.

Hope you get all the reservations you want... BTW just as a pvt tip, when people expressing wishes about Greek hotels put a big emphasis on "clean," it can sometimes offend our wonderful family-run places ... it could make it seem as if people regard Greece as a 3rd world country. I"ve traveled to many European countries... and even in the smallest islands in Greece, I've met with a level of cleanliness that is outstanding. Not to mention the fact that one can sometimes luckily get bed-linens that are line-dried in sun & wind... an absolutely heavenly scent!

TravelerJan, I would never request clean, that's just something I carefully check in reviews. I would not book a hotel if I had any doubt about cleanliness. From our previous Greek experience, most staff could not have been more hospitable and accommodating (the hotel in Paros, was a bit indifferent, but the others were wonderful, Hotel Grotta we left hugging Nicoletta and staff). I did request a balcony with sea view in the Kastro Hotel, Heraklion, there was no "view" option for this when I booked the room, so figured it can't hurt to ask.

My research process in general is considering all possibilities, for a combination of cost, convenience and time, then go with what works best for us. In this case, based on my husband's input (since he does the driving), we ARE renting a car, and using ACR, as it is highly recommended and very reasonable. We'd have more concerns if the car rental was right after arriving from an overnight flight, but we will be arriving on a 50 minutes flight after spending 5 nights in Crete.

Now that we are committed to having a car, we probably will make a stop on the way there (TBD), then use the car for day trips, and will definitely plan on an early visit to Mycenae. The hotel is in a pedestrian area, but did give me info on closest spot for dropping off luggage and where to park. We will be returning the car at the airport, then take taxi to Athens hotel. Basically back to plan A.

Glad you've been able to decide on your Peloponnse options. ACR is indeed what we "vets" have used repeatedly, with satisfaction. Of course - as my buddy "stanbr" on these forums always reminds me, with a rental from ANY agency, it's prudent to take a quick walk around a car and foto any little "ding" you might notice (lordy, the phone-cameras SO handy).

I've given so many options for a drive to/from Nafplio, and have myself done many variations, I can't remember all the tips on this thread. For a limited- time option, there are some ways to include stops efficienitly & reduce rushing/stressing. Here's the successful scenario for my 2019 trip with 2 newcomers, witih just 3 nights, like you...

• OUTBOUND -- AS noted before skip Ancient Corinth/Acrocorinth (that's for long trips)... After Canal, about 17miles (10K?), just off highway onRIGHT, is ANCIENT NEMEA.. 5 Km. Just take quick look at temple-collulm ruins, then drive 500 yards to Swell STAdium.. a Wow. (every 4 year there's a revived Nemean Games!) For a quick lunch/snack break, Nemea village is nearby... also has a cute wine-bottling plant & tastery on main street (this is heart of Greece's TOP red-wine vineyards). Then just cross the BIG highway to head straight south 30 min to Nafplioi.

• INBOUND to ATHENS -- If you plan ahead, you can see 2 things and avoid backtracking to Nafplio... this is the successful scenarioo of my 2019 trip On leaving-day, check out of hotal and -- on way out of town get the direction to drive up the back road to PALAMIDI ... just go there for the view and some spectacular picture- taking. then head EAST Across the "thumb" of the Pelops peninsula, to ANCIENT EPIDAURUS. As noted before, don't exhaust yourself wandering the ruins -- the Main thing is the stunninig THEATRE. After that, head EAST to the road on the seafront that goes N to town of "ISthmus" whre u can stop (if desired) by Old Bridge to take a gander at Corinth Canal (so deep! so Skinny!), and grabe quick lunch at a cafe. Then u get back on the Biggie intercity highway... remembring to stay LEFT at the fork at Elefsina, to stay on the bypass to Airport (The RH side goes into central Athens & is 16-wheeler Hell).

Have a lovely trip...

They pretty much have all day to get from the airport to Nafplio, so I wouldn’t dismiss the idea of more or longer stops.

We found the museum at Nemea Olympic site well worth the time. But then, we found wandering the entire site at Epidauros well worth the time. Horses for courses.

Mediterraneo wine bar in Nafplio is a great tasting venue if that’s your thing.

FT Ottawa, I did not mean to dismiss any of the aspects of ancient sites, -- I too have spent considerable time at all sites mentioned -- I simply was thinking of MFNYC's prior expressed concerns about her husband's age, stamina, length of trip etc, and wanted to indicate that a shorter stay was possible if energy was a concern.

Quick question about visit to Balos from Chania. I booked a tour but it includes about 3 hours on the beach. I really don't want to spend that time on a beach. I'd like to see it, check out views, look for photo ops, etc, but not really interesting in lounging/swimming there. I can still cancel my tour. From what I read, I can take KTEL bus to Kissamos Port, then get a taxi on the spot to go to Balos Beach. I'm assuming I can get a taxi to return to the port as well for the bus back. Just wondering if this is feasible, or if I'm misunderstanding something?