dligler

Hi! My husband and I are considering travel to Greece at the end of March 2016 (the week after Easter). Would like to start in Santorini, hit one other island, and end in Athens. I know this isn't the best time of year to go - but is it possible? Will enough be open that we can get around and see the sights?

We only have nine nights. I would also love recommendations for a second island - one that is easy to get to from Santorini in March.
Many thanks!

Christina

Why do you want to go to Santorini in March? You can't swim, it's going to be fairly cool (mid 50s) and not necessarily sunny. Lots of hotels and restaurants are closed, but you won't starve. Ferries and flights have limited schedules.

I don't know if the ferries will even run in March, but it wouldn't normally be difficult to get from Santorini to Maxos by ferry, doesn't take too long. And at least its farther north so the weather might be a tad bit better/warmer and in the right direction if you wanted to take the ferry back to Piraeus.

brotherleelove2004

Greek Easter is May 1 in 2016.

Ferries between Santorini and Naxos (as well as Paros) are daily all year long.

Naxos isn't far enough north from Santorini for there to be any weather difference. It will probably be cold and windy on both islands, and there's a good possibility for overcast skies and/or rain.

Although lots of shops, restaurants and hotels won't be open yet there will be some choices available.

You can fly from Athens to Santorini on Aegean Airlines or Olympic Air, both owned by the same parent company. If you keep an eye out on their websites you will be able to find some very cheap flights if you book as soon as you see them, sometimes as low as €39 one way, all taxes included.

Blue Star Ferries is the best company to use for the ferry from Santorini to Naxos, and from Naxos back to Athens. www.gtp.gr

Nikki

My one visit to Greece was in March ten years ago. I decided against going to the islands because of the reasons stated here and toured the mainland. It was early spring weather and just beautiful in Athens, Olympia, and Delphi.

Heimdall

As brotherleelove states, Greek Orthodox Easter is May 1st in 2016. The week leading up to Easter will be busy on the islands, and popular coastal resorts, e.g. Nafplio. This isn't necessarily a bad thing because it will give you an opportunity to observe Easter festivities, but you will have to insure transport and accommodation is booked well in advance. Extra ferry services are laid on during that period.

I haven't travelled to Greece during the Easter period, but several of my friends have and some go every year. Activities take place throughout Easter Week, but here are a couple of links showing Good Friday festivities on Santorini and Paros:
http://www.pyrgos-santorini.com/east...ntorini-pyrgos
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michae...b_5182131.html

dligler

Thanks - Cristina - March is just when we are able to travel this year, and we were hoping a Greece trip might work out. Heimdall- we would actually be going the week after Easter.

We don't necessarily want to swim in Santorini, but if the weather is going to be as abysmal as you make it sound, perhaps we should reconsider.

Thanks for the feedback.

stevelyon

A lone voice on this forum, but I just don't get Santorini, any time of the year. If you do want to do an Island pick a big one like Crete or (dare I say) Cyprus which gets scant attention on this Forum. These offer more than just beach. I wouldn't even recommend my beloved Skiathos at that time of year - unless you are in to hiking. There are plenty of mainland places I would love to go to in March.... but then again, I do love the beach.

mariha2912

99% of my travels take place off season and after doing some research and knowing what to expect, I have visit many many destinations that people advice against. But here is an important detail: Ample time/Flexibility. I have weeks available, not 3 days. If I arrive on a place popular for its views and it is down poor raining for 3 days in a row, it is not the end of the world. I relax and stay longer till the sun comes out. If I want to travel on a distant place I research intermediate destinations and where I could stop over before/after for a few days. I like it somewhere, I stay longer. I do not like it, I move on.

Saying "I land and depart in Athens and I have 3 weeks available, thinking to take a flight on Santorini, see if I like it, stay a few days till I feel ready to go, get ferry to Naxos or Paros, stay a few days, decide on the spot if I want to extend my stay or return soon in Athens, see how weather co-operates etc" is completely different to "I have one week and I want to visit Athens, Santorini and one other island". On my opinion, been on a tight time-frame, it is too much of a risk to spend time and money to go all the way to a deserted island where the main attraction at this time of the year will be the architecture and landscape and fall into a storm or fog. Or going on the island and having to be back on mainland for a flight home in two days time but meet strong winds that have all ferries docked and not running. Just my opinion of course.....

Heimdall

<i>"Heimdall- we would actually be going the week after Easter."</i>

If you are travelling in March you will be going a month <b>before</b> Greek Orthodox Easter, which falls very late in 2016. Since 98% of the Greek population are Orthodox Christians, that is the date they celebrate. It is important for travellers to know this, because Easter signals the start of the tourist season.

If you are willing to gamble on weather, and understand that much of the tourist infrastructure will still be closed, go ahead with your plans. I have several friends who visit that time of year, Scandinavians wishing to get away from the snow and cold in their home countries. They usually travel to Greece 3-4 times every year, so aren't too worried if the weather is bad on that one trip.

Odin

I would recommend following the advice from all the posters who suggest either staying on the mainland or go to a bigger island which is not just a tourist island. Spring is a beautiful time especially on an island such as Cyprus which gets roasted in the summer, to see the spring flowers is a delight. Fall has been extremely mild so far, let's hope spring is equally so.

traveller1959

Why does everyone want to go on the islands? There is not much to do and to see on the islands, especially in March (except Crete which is a mega-island).

My earnest advice: Go to the Peloponnes (which is practically an island, but a big one and connected with the mainland). The southern tips of the Peloponnes have beautiful climate and fantastic beaches. There are abundant first-rank archeological sites (Messene, Olympia, Mykene, Corinth, Epidaurus..), byzantine monasteries and medieval castles. And towns and cities with a life of their own, not spoiled by mass tourism (which is probably worst on Santorini where you find nothing but souvenir shops and restaurants for cruise ship passengers).

If you want to catch some warm weather consider Rhodes - it has the best climate in Greece (and more to offer than beaches).

Michael15

Hi there!
I think that if you want to travel in Greece during March, it's better to visit the mainland! You can visit some islands as well (Rhodes, Crete, Evia), but search for destinations in the mainland. my recommendation? Chalkidiki! It conbines all!!

annw

Just tagging along, we are going to Greece this March, in a few days actually! and we decided on Athens, Delphi, and Nafplio, then over to Italy.

Looking forward to the islands some other time.

stevelyon

This is a resurrected post and dligler has not been back since so we don't know if they got to Greece in March.

JulieEC

We went to Greece in March and the weather was lovely except for the day we left Santorini. Very strong winds caused all flights and ferries to be cancelled. Thankfully, I had enough buffer in our plans that we did not miss our international flight home from Athens. But it was a bit too close for comfort.

Santorini was my least favorite part of our trip. I preferred sites on the mainland (Delphi, Mycenae, Meteora, etc). If you really want to see it, go. If I did it again in March I would put it at the start of our trip.

We returned last year and I loved the island of Hydra. Plus, the logistics were much easier/cheaper.

annw

Since March '16 is just coming up they won't have gone yet; hopefully they will stop by afterwards and give us a report.