greece, best way to go island to island
Jan 1st, 2001, 09:20 PM
#1
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greece, best way to go island to island
planning a trip to greece in april
is it better to be part of a tour?
if not what is the best way to go from athens to mykonos, mykonos to rhodes ect.?
we are not sure which island to visit?
we have been told that the ferry takes 4 hours from most island to island?
that is a long time.
is it better to cruise?
if so, which cruise line?
is it better to be part of a tour?
if not what is the best way to go from athens to mykonos, mykonos to rhodes ect.?
we are not sure which island to visit?
we have been told that the ferry takes 4 hours from most island to island?
that is a long time.
is it better to cruise?
if so, which cruise line?
Jan 2nd, 2001, 07:46 AM
#4
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Hi Claire. I'm sitting at home here in Toronto and can't recall a colder, more snowy winter in the 25 years I've been here! It's nice to think about Greece! We were there in September and visited 3 islands. I'm not a big fan of tours and it's so easy to get around that I wouldn't recommend one to Greece. We flew between islands, except for a hydrofoil between Santorini and Naxos. We started off in Rhodes. We flew from Athens to Rhodes -- it wasn't very expensive and the ferry would have been 18 hours or so (I think). The flight is an hour. We then spent a week in Turkey (which we enjoyed even more than Greece, but that's another story), came back to Rhodes and flew to Santorini. Again, it would have been a long ferry ride. The only disadvantage to the flight was that it got into Santorini very late in the evening and there was a mixup at my hotel with our reservation. I would have preferred getting into Santorini a little earlier. We then took the hydrofoil to Naxos - that was maybe 2 hours, and then we flew from Naxos to Athens at the end.
As for which islands to visit, we don't like to be on the move all the time - we like to spend a few days in a place to be able to explore. (For that reason, I wouldn't like a cruise.) Having said that, we spent too much time in Santorini - we had 4 days there and while it is visually stunning, it wasn't the high point of the trip and really doesn't feel very Greek. 2 or 3 days would have been enough. Naxos was wonderful - I had been there 24 years ago and I loved seeing it again - nostalgia, yes, but it's a pleasant island to visit. Rhodes was fascinating because of the walled city. We went to Rhodes because of its proximity to Turkey.
Depending on how much time you have, you may be better off focusing on a group of islands. There are so many!
Do a lot of reading. There was a hosted forum last year (or maybe 1999) on Greece - you could start there. There's also a good internet site - a guy called Matt Barrett has created a site and there's lot of good information on Greece. I'm sure whatever you decide, you'll enjoy. And doing the research is part of the fun!
As for which islands to visit, we don't like to be on the move all the time - we like to spend a few days in a place to be able to explore. (For that reason, I wouldn't like a cruise.) Having said that, we spent too much time in Santorini - we had 4 days there and while it is visually stunning, it wasn't the high point of the trip and really doesn't feel very Greek. 2 or 3 days would have been enough. Naxos was wonderful - I had been there 24 years ago and I loved seeing it again - nostalgia, yes, but it's a pleasant island to visit. Rhodes was fascinating because of the walled city. We went to Rhodes because of its proximity to Turkey.
Depending on how much time you have, you may be better off focusing on a group of islands. There are so many!
Do a lot of reading. There was a hosted forum last year (or maybe 1999) on Greece - you could start there. There's also a good internet site - a guy called Matt Barrett has created a site and there's lot of good information on Greece. I'm sure whatever you decide, you'll enjoy. And doing the research is part of the fun!
Jan 2nd, 2001, 09:59 AM
#5
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We took a ferry trip that was 9 hours long, but I thought it was interesting because of the stops it made at other islands. Greek ferries are a little worn looking. We rented a room to make the trip more comfortable.
I found travel in Greece generally awkward. Travel agents and taxi drivers were often not very helpful. It is one place I wouldn't mind taking a cruise. For me, I'd be happier with the food.
I found travel in Greece generally awkward. Travel agents and taxi drivers were often not very helpful. It is one place I wouldn't mind taking a cruise. For me, I'd be happier with the food.
Jan 2nd, 2001, 10:33 AM
#6
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I'm sorry that April didn't enjoy Greece. We did use a Greek travel agent here in Toronto, but I honestly think that I could have done the same job using the internet. For example, we had problems in Santorini with our hotel and the guy claimed that his obligation was to his internet customers - since we had booked through an agent, he wasn't obligated to us! That was the only problem we had. (Mind you, in Turkey, we justed found places as we went along and we had no problems.) We took cabs only a few times (to and from airports) and had no problems. Even in Athens, where we were geared up to be riped off, everything was fine.
We rented cars on Santorini and Naxos, by the way - that made the trip much better and we were able to see more.
We rented cars on Santorini and Naxos, by the way - that made the trip much better and we were able to see more.
Jan 2nd, 2001, 12:22 PM
#7
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Claire, we just got back from Greece in October and due to our limited time (3 weeks, but we had a charterd a yacht for the last 10 days) we chose to fly Olympic Airways...now I had heard horror stories of Olympic.. delays cancelled flights rude service. I don't know about in general, but our flights were inexpensive, on time and nice standard "commuter" type service. We flew from Athens to Mykonos, Mykonos to Santorini and Santorini to Athens again. The total for 2 people was about $280.00 for all flights. Our luggage arrived with us, and the average flight time was about 30 minutes.
Of course the yacht charter around the Saronic gulf (Aegina, Hydra etc) was THE best way I can imagine for getting from island to island, but that was sort of a vacation experience by itself and the only way we could afford it was by splitting the cost with another couple.
We had absolutely no problems NOT going with a tour, generally in my opinion, I think travel on your own is more rewarding and enjoyable, but that is your decision. Also I think the ferry from Athens to the Cyclades is overnight.
Of course the yacht charter around the Saronic gulf (Aegina, Hydra etc) was THE best way I can imagine for getting from island to island, but that was sort of a vacation experience by itself and the only way we could afford it was by splitting the cost with another couple.
We had absolutely no problems NOT going with a tour, generally in my opinion, I think travel on your own is more rewarding and enjoyable, but that is your decision. Also I think the ferry from Athens to the Cyclades is overnight.
