Mid Sept, to late October. The rest of Greece was so very welcoming and friendly

So much has already been destroyed. Tourists should leave at least are few places as they are. Does even the smallest island has be invaded by us. Big hotels, fully air-conditioned and all inclusive. We should limit ourself to those places mentioned by teresa. Or at least accept the existing infrastructure. Does everything have to be destroyed?

Yes, that's the tail-end of the season. No wonder everyone was so cranky!! :) Sorry you were disappointed.

Hi tereza, Are you saying first time visitors would be better seeing other places and not Santorini and Myconos?
I'm very interested.
We are going to Greece in October for 16 days, and have chosen a tour that we think covers some great locations.
We will be in Athens for 2 days , then Myconos, Paros, Santorini and Crete. Although it's never enough time, we're hoping to see the highlights and feel this tour is a good one.

Would we have been better to go to the more out of the way places if this indeed is our only time to visit Greece. ( Hopefully, we'll be able to return someday and visit some of the places you have mentioned, but would you have recommended seeing them instead of what we are doing?)

I'd appreciate any advice and anything special that we should be doing on the islands we will be seeing.

Tereza - I tend to agree with all you have said about the Greek Islands. When I first visited the islands, we looked at the glossy brochures for the main well trodden tourist groups, eg. Myknonos, Santorini, Naxos, etc, and we even looked at this Travel Chat Board, and noticed the huge number of people who actually travel to these above mentioned islands. it was then that we decided, no this is not for us, too many people, too touristy, etc. so we opted for a stay in the village of Ormos on the island of Samos, in late September./early october (hence lack of tourists) and thoroughly enjoyed our holiday. Ormos was no way touristy, most locals couldn't speak english, hence we learnt many of their words to get by, the village is a working fishing village, and after visiting other nearby islands, where tourism is a major factor, we realised that we were staying in a traditional greek island village, so we savoured every day in ormos.
Our next trip will be to either Halki or Symi

When people look at this question, there's no right answer. I think people have to first know what they like -- and THEN ask the right questions.

For example, while I personally think that way too many people get on the tourist treadmill and visit only Santorini and Mykonos, the truth is that those destinations might well be the best fit for a lot of them. (A similar argument is that while plenty of folks turn up their noses at Disneyworld -- it's not a bad fit for families expecting that kind of thing.)

When sizing up the islands you can put Santorini, Mykonos and a few others on one end -- as the islands that are truly driven to put up an iconic experience for tourists. Crete, by its size, is somewhat less so.

I'd put Paros, Naxos and Lesbos in the midrange -- and plenty of islands most haven't heard of are on the other extreme, where they care very little about cultivating a tourism economy, but the tradeoff for fewer tourism comforts is often a more realistic slice of Greek life.

That's not to say you can't find that on Santorini or Mykonos. And it's not to say you can't be comfortable on a tiny unknown isle -- but it's just not a priority.

Greek visitors are well served to figure out where on this scale they fall -- and then there are plenty of folks here who can make suggestions.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I would imagine that Santorini and Myconos became popular with tourists for a reason. Are they not beautiful islands to see?
And now that they are so popular, they get a bad wrap for being too touristy.

It's the same as Niagara Falls. The falls are beautiful to see and that's the whole reason tourists started going there, and now when people express and interest in going there, they are told by many to not bother, but to go to Niagara on the Lake instead, which is really a cute town, but all about shopping and quaintness.
People WANT to see the falls.

The same as people want to see the most talked about Greek Islands.
I'm going to Greece for the first time this year, and I certainly am very excited about seeing Myconos and Santorini as well as Paros and Crete.
Perhaps on a return trip, I can visit some of the lesser known islands. But I'd sure hate to miss the ones I've always heard so much about.

That's exactly right. It does't matter how many tourists visit these islands, that doesn't diminsh how beautiful they are. The views of the caldera from the cliffs of Santorini are and always will be spectacular. The whole island is worth exploring. Don't let anyone else tell you differently.

tt

OK, since you asked, I'll correct you -- or at least expand and try to clarify. There are a lot of reasons for popularity.

First of all, I wasn't recommending for or against the Mykonos/Santorini duo. I was just advising folks to take a broader view rather than following the well-worn path.

As regular readers here can attest, I've said several times that Santorini is a must-see. It is flat out spectacular. Mykonos does a number of things well, but in terms of beauty, I don't know if it would be in my top 10 islands.

There are plenty of reasons why a place becomes popular. In tourism (and many other industries), it's very often tied to opportunistic development, marketing, logistical convenience, momentum and a variety of other reasons.

As for ``too touristy'' . . . that's a purely subjective, personal call. But it's undeniable a valid factor when deciding on a destination -- at least for many people.

My point is that just because Santorini and Mykonos each can be great fits for a lot of folks, they are not a one-size-fits-all pairing for the everybody. When it comes to U.S. visitors choosing island stops, it's often a matter of following the pack rather than doing the research.

That's all I'm advising.

Repeat,I do understand what you are saying. Places do become popular for different reasons and I do agree tourists should perhaps take a broader path. One fit is not for everyone.

BUT for the first time visitor, I think the well worn path is still the one I've dreamed of taking for many years and is still a good plan.

With more time in the future, it would be great to walk down a different path and see some of the lesser known islands.

However, responding to the original post, Teresa stated that she thought it was "unfair that most of you guys out there only want to travel to these islands and not in any other places".
This is the posting that I disagree with. I'm sure Terese is correct in saying there are so many beautiful islands.
This is the post I have the problem with. I don't think tourists ( or me) are unfair, they simply want to see the beautiful places the've heard so much about.

After my upcoming trip, I'll gladly go back when I have the time to see the other places. But I don't think it's unfair of me not to do that on my first trip.

I'll still wecome any advice on what obscure things there are to do on the islands I will be visiting, which I mentioned earlier in this post.

kodi -- Not unfair at all. As I'm sure you've noticed brotherleelove is a great resource for all things Santorini.

Plus the great thing about Greece -- and especially the islands -- is that it's very hard to make a bad choice.

Best of luck in your trip planning and happy travels.

Thank you repete. I'm really very excited about our upcoming trip. I've wanted to see Greece for a very long time.
Perhaps I'll start a new thread , asking for any special tips on things to see and do.

..

tereza- though for first time visitors (who can't do it all in 2 weeks or less), it's difficult to prioritize. Also, one hears that if you go in the real heat of the summer it can get really hot and Athens can be polluted, so one would think that being by the shore (hence the islands) would be more comfortable, too. So I think it depends on what time of year one is traveling, too. We are going in July and have been told the weather can be uncomfortably hot, to see things in the morning before it is very hot and to be by a beach or pool in the heat of the afternoon. Is this not true?

kodi- we have similar itinerary except for Paros since we are going 12 days not 14 so it would be too much. We decided on Crete over Paros.

The Ionian islands are so different from the islands such as Mykonos, etc.The landscape is more lush and less rocky. Corfu (Kerkira)is so beautiful, but my favorite is Cephalonia. Has it been mentioned? My ancestors come from Corfu and the little island of Hydra in the Saronic Gulf (a short ferry ride from Athens)which has no automobiles or mopeds. One of my fondest memories is having breakfast on the terrace of the Mistral Hotel on a Sunday morning and listening to the myriad of church bells ringing one after the other.

What a beautiful image! The island of Cephalonia was highlighted in the movie, "Captain Morelli's Mandolin" (may be mispelled) I had an occasion to visit Corfu as a kid when we took the ferry to Brindisi, and remember images suggesting that these Ionion isles have some spectacular landscapes. Alas, for most Americans, a visit to Greece is hard enough to engineer, much less trying to visit these islands on the side of Greece "opposite" from the Aegean. But for those who can, a "killer" itinerary is to start in So. Italy, ferry to Corfu and Cephalonia, cross to the mainland, cut over to Salonika*, travel via rental or rail to Athens, a few days in Athens, then cross the Corinthian Isthmus to the Peloponnesean peninsula, go to the Western port city on the penisula whose name I connot remember, back to Italy. Do this itinerary and you will experience dozens of "greeces."
*It is technically feasible to do this itinerary by ferry and rail, except for the Ionian coast to Salonika connection which is feasible by bus or rental, but not for the faint of heart.

tereza and brotherleelove2004, I'm making my first trip to Greece (since Corfu in the 70's) this April. I'm planning to start in Thessaloniki, then Kastoria, Ioannina, Kalambaka, Athens, two-week Peloponnese tour, Crete, Rhodes, Kos. Can you help with hotel suggestions for Kastoria and Ioannina (my specific request has drawn 0 replies...)? How about Chania, Rethymno and Kos? I'm looking for small and friendly, definitely not beach resorts.

I'm sorry, I have no experience with those destinations.