Greece - Help for first-timer
 

A friend and I are planning a trip to Greece next sping/summer. 10 days in May or June. Neither of us have been. We're in our mid-30s and from the US.

I've begun reading up but an overwhelmed. Ideally we want to spend a few days in Athens, perhaps taking one day trip from Athens. Then ideally we'd like to spend the rest of the time on one island, doing some site-seeing, but also relaxing and enjoying good food. We're not night-club people, but would like the options for some evening activities.

We also prefer to not need a car.

Help!?

Hi, we have been to Greece a few times and really like it though have never thought much of Athens. The islands we have visited - Santorini, Myknonos, Delos, Naxos, Crete, Rhodes, Symi and Hydra have all been good but different from each other.

I'd say Santorini is one of the most beautiful spots on earth and you can either fly there from Athens or catch a ferry/ fast cat.

Mykonos is very pretty, a quintessential Greek island with white sugar cube buildings, bright blue doors and pink creeper - so photogenic. You can visit Delos on a day trip and Mykonos can be reached by plane from Athens or ferry / fast cat.

I would suggest one of these two islands and just a few days in Athens. You don't need a car at all and once you have picked an island to visit, you can start concentrating on which area to stay in and look at hotels etc. Trip planning is often overwhelming, I find all our trips sort of evolve and come together eventually. Good luck with Greece!

Kay

Just a thought if you pick Santorini - you could catch a boat to the island and fly back to Athens. The view of Santorini is pretty special when approaching from the water but the flight back saves time, it's very quick (about 25 mins).

Kay

Aegean Airlines flies to many Greek islands, and there will be promotional discount fares offered if you just keep checking their website for pricing.

http://www.aegeanair.com/

Flights to or from Santorini take 45 minutes.


If you choose Santorini, and since you're not interested in the nightlife scene, stay in the most beautiful and timeless village of Oia. If you want some hotel recommendationis let me know what your daily room budget will be.

Topping...

Santorini is the southern part of the of the group of islands called the cyclades You can fly or boat to most of the islands You can also do a bit of island hopping - 10 days is not enough for to many island but since your first - timer you can get a boat from Pireus http://www.bluestarferries.com/intro.htm and stop for a few days in Paros (nice place very relaxed) and then continue on with the same or other co. to Santorini These two islands are complitly different to each other.
You then can fly back to Athens. Flying back can assure you that you will arrive on time cause sometimes the seas can be rough. You can find nice hotels on both of these island.
Heres a link for Paros http://www.greeka.com/cyclades/paros/index.htm and a link for Santorini http://www.santorini-hotels.info/

For Paros i suggest you stay in the main town no car needed - as for Santorini im afraid you will need one.
The cheapest hotels are i Perissa the south part and the most expensive in Oia the north

Best of luck

Santorini has an excellent bus system, and sometime in late-May the timetable should convert to the summer schedule, which means frequent buses to every village from the bus hub in the main village of Fira. A car is NOT a necessity there, although it's a great way to explore at your own pace.