miss_emery

Hello!

I am hoping some of you Greece experts might be able to offer some advice on my itinerary for an upcoming trip My husband and I will be traveling from Los Angeles to Greece Tuesday, may 19 to Monday, jun1. We found tickets via Air France for $612 r/t, so we are trying to make the most of our tax refunds and take an all-too-rare (for us, that is) adventure.

A bit about us: we are in our early 30's, with no physical limitations. We don't know when we will be able to make it back, so we do want to see as much as we can without going nuts and sacrificing all relaxation! We are looking to get a good first glimpse of Greece, focusing on soaking up the scenery (nature hikes as well as city cafes), eating truly delicious food, and exploring the historic sites of the Cycladic islands - in that order. I am pale as a ghost, and i live in LA, so lounging on beaches for long periods of time isn't so important to me, but i do like to stick my toes into some good sand now and again. We are both prone to design snobbery, unfortunately, so we are either looking for places that are filled with authenticity or are tastefully modern, but we are simultaneously trying to keep it relatively cheap. Champagne tastes on a beer budget over here! (Thanks to these boards, and the site http://www.smallhotelsingreece.com/ i have happily found several amazing places to stay already that seem quite affordable (in the 50-100 euro/night range), but am still waiting to confirm reservations.)

On the list:
*I studied art history in college, and am eager to see the palace of Knossos in Crete, as it was one of the places that really captured my imagination back then, so that is on my list. There is also this place on the southeast side of the island that i'd love to stay at (Aspros Potamos), but i think it might be too out of the way with not enough around to visit. Another option would be Kouriton House in Rethymnon... more convenient perhaps?
*Of course we are passing through Athens and feel the need to see the Acropolis. *Santorini seems compelling, and we feel obligated to spend at least one night to see what all the fuss is about, but from what i've read on these boards, I have a feeling that we will prefer the more relaxed authenticity of an island like Naxos or Paros and would like to focus our time on those islands.

Here's our rough outline so far below... My question is, are we trying to do too much, given the unreliable ferries AND all the travel time involved? We are both the sort to really enjoy all parts of our travel, including bus and ferry rides and all the people watching they will provide... but is this not going to let us ever feel relaxed? Kindly weigh in with your expert opinions! And thanks in advance for hearing me out - i have learned so much from you all already!


• Tuesday, May 19: Depart LAX via Air France @ 6:45pm
• Wed, May 20: Arrive Athens 10:35pm, check in to Fresh Hotel
• Thursday, May 21: Check out Acropolis, wander Athens
• Friday, May 22: Check out of Fresh Hotel, travel to Naxos. Night 1 in Naxos
• Saturday, May 23: Night 2 in Naxos
• Sunday, May 24: Night 3 in Naxos; day trip to another island? (or not)
• Monday, May 25: Night 4 in Naxos
• Tuesday, May 26: Night 5 in Naxos
• Wed, May 27: travel to Santorini; night 1 in Santorini
• Thursday, May 28: travel to Crete; Night 1 in Crete
• Friday, May 29: Night 2 in Crete
• Saturday, May 30: Night 3 in Crete
• Sunday, May 31: Fly Crete – Athens (10am-ish), Athens – LAX (depart athens 3:30, to arrive monday afternoon)

brotherleelove2004

Your 24 hours on Santorini minus travel time to and from the port doesn't leave you very much time to enjoy your surroundings. With your background aren't you interested in seeing Ancient Thera, the Museum of Prehistoric Thera and the Akrotiri exhibit as well as the villages and galleries? You can't do all that in such a short time without moving at warp speed. I suggest you parcel out your time a little more liberally in all directions.

stanbr

Just a couple of thoughts.
There is a reason why so much fuss is made about Santorini. As Brotherlee says you probably need to find an extra day at least for your visit there.

Crete is huge and in three days you are not going to have an opportunity to do much sightseeing. I know you specifically mentioned Knossos so maybe Crete is an absolute must for you, however Crete deserves at least a week or two just by itself.

For history, consider the day trip from Naxos to Delos which is a whole island archeological site. As an added bonus there is a 3 hour stop at Mykonos.

I see your plan hinges on flying back to Athens on the day of your ultimate return flight. You can get a flight from Santorini to Athens as well.
While there is no particular reason you should be concerned about a problem flying back to Athens, many people prefer to get back to Athens the day before their flight just in case something happens. By that time you will be fully immersed in Greece and that last night in Athens at the end of the trip is always special.

Here are our Naxos Pictures
http://travel.webshots.com/album/552001505EYxVYT

miss_emery

hi brotherll - Thanks for your reply. We have definitely dithered about how much time to spend on Santorini, as we have heard it is very tourist focused and commercial-feeling, but do feel a desire to experience the unique place. I should clarify that I am not an art historian - rather an artist - and i studied contemporary and modern art more extensively than ancient and classical periods. So I have an interest higher than most, but I also don't want to spend my entire trip racing to check every museum off my lists, but rather soaking up the character of the place as it is today. What do you think - would one additional night on Santorini (all we'd probably spare) would make much difference? Would we be able to cover much of those sites you mentioned in one day? should we cut Santorini altogether if we aren't able to do it justice? I don't really want to do that...

ps Do you have any thoughts on Crete vs. Santorini?

miss_emery

stanbr - Thanks for the additional perspective. Your photographs are fantastic, by the way - I have actually seen them already, from a previous posting you made... they were actually one of the reasons I wanted to stay on Naxos for so long! Planning this trip has been so difficult, because there are so many fantastic places to visit - it's so hard to decide where to go. It was tough enough to narrow it down to the Cyclades, as there are so many other islands and villages on the peninsula that I'd love to visit. So now I am struggling with wanting to see 2 islands decently vs. 3 islands less decently! I do really want to see Knossos, but the decision between Crete and Santorini is a tough one. Is it an easy decision for you?

brotherleelove2004

Stanbr's right about Crete needing many days to explore thoroughly, so if at all possible decide eliminate one island and change your itinerary to include Naxos and Santorini, Crete and Naxos or Santorini and Naxos, but not all 3 with the days you have. Part of the positive experience you'll get from this decision is from the more-relaxed pace.

sunny16

Miss_Emery, I see that you're spending a lot of time in Naxos and only one day in Santorini. I understand your reservations about the touristy nature of Santorini - I had the same concerns before my trip - but trust me, you'll want to spend more than a day there. DH and I spent something like four days in Naxos, including one day trip to Paros, and about 2 1/2 days in Santorini, and we wished we'd taken a day from Naxos and spent it in Santorini. Photos don't do the place justice, and it's hard to put into words, but there's just no other place like it on earth because of the caldera. We didn't stay in one place, either; we rented a car for a day and drove around the island from one end to the other. The beach side is just as pleasant, if not as unique, as the caldera side.

Take the advice I read on this forum and splurge a little on a room with a view of the caldera. It'll be money well-spent. Actually, the room I had at the Hotel Ira in Firostefani wasn't even too expensive.

Since you guys like to walk, you might enjoy the hike to the Skaros on Santorini, as well as a trip out to the volcano, which I thought would be stupid until I did it.

Stanbr actually helped me decide on lodging in Naxos - he was there and took a bunch of pictures of the hotel I was looking at.

Also, if you're into art, there are a number of small museums in Fira. When we were there, some convention center was also having an exhibit on Minoan art, which was stunning.

Finally, if you're into art history, you might enjoy the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. It is one of the greatest collections of antiquities in the world. I wasn't planning to visit it, but we stumbled upon it and I am now grateful that I took an hour to blow through it.

My pictures from my trip are here, broken down by location:
http://sunny16.zenfolio.com/f510658031

Have a wonderful trip!

Weadles

I agree that it's tough ( in fact nearly impossible) to tour Crete well in just a few days. However, with your interests, it would be a shame to skip it. Why not skip Naxos this time around, and visit Crete and Santorini? You could fly to Crete from Athens, spend two days in Chania, overnight in Heraklion so that you can visit Knossos, then take the hydrofoil to Santorini from Heraklion ( about 2.5 hours).

BTW, I agree with the other poster who mentioned that many, maybe most people like to spend their last night in Athens, so as to avoid any potential delays/cancellations coming from the islands.

Have fun!

Weadles

I forgot to add that I also agree with the recommendation to add more time to Santorini. It is one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited, and it deserves more than a 24-hour run-through!

dfr4848

Just to add a couple of thoughts. I totally agree with comments about trying to spend more time on Santorini. We had a hotel in Oia with amazing views of the caldera and the sunsets were stunning. Pictures really don't do it justice. We were there 3 days and also rented a car and thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the island.

I also think you're shortchanging Athens. We thought it was fascinating and well worth several days. There's a lot more to it than the Acropolis. I agree with sunny16 about the National Archaeological Museum (and would add the Benaki Museum). Both are world class and really shouldn't be missed. We spent a full day just in those 2 museums and still didn't see everything. Many of the cities neighborhoods are interesting mixes of people, art, history, architecture, etc.

If you'd like more details I did a trip report this past Dec which you can find by clicking on my name.

sunny16

Now that I think about it, I agree with Weadles about eliminating Naxos from your itinerary. When we went to Greece for two weeks, we only went to Naxos, Santorini and Athens. That gave us plenty of time in each place. You could do the same by swapping out Naxos for Crete. On our trip, we decided to save Crete for another trip so we could spend a whole week there.

I don't know what kind of budget you guys are on, but you are lucky enough to be going to islands that all have airports. On our trip, we flew to Naxos, took the ferry to Santorini, and flew back to Athens. You could do the same: fly to Santorini, ferry to Crete, and fly back to Athens (I don't think there are any direct flights between the islands). That way you'd still get to experience a Greek ferry while saving some time. I thought the airfares were quite reasonable.

travelerjan

I actually started with the premise that you wanted to see all you listed, and meet the objections of not enough Santorini time. Since you're young & energetic, if you make your transportation more efficent, I think it can be done! Here's a possible scenario:

WED May 20 – check into B & B (St. Paul’s) near Airport (15 mins by taxi or pick-up).
THUR May 21 – Fly Aegean Air (68€) 9:10 am to Chania CRETE – arr 10am Explore city!
FRI May 22 - Car rental.. explore? Vamos traditional village; crafts/art …day hikes? beach?
SAT May 23 - Drive East (w byways!) to Iraklion; see Museum exhibit (open til 3) drive
To Knossos 4 pm (open til 7), stay at beach town (Karterados?) for nite (4 mi to airport)
SUN: May 24 - Go to airport @ 8 am turn car over to rental guy, and (by pre-arrangment) have him drive YOU to Ferry dock for 9:45 ferry to Santorini ½ day + Nite in SANTORINI
MON: May 25 -- Santorini
TUES May 26 -- In Santorini until afternoon. 3:15 Blue Star ferry to Naxos (on deck for the Famous Caldera view. Arrive 5:30. Sunset, dining & Nite in Naxos (St. George beach?)
WED: May 27 -- Naxos … museum a MUST! … “soak up culture”? Beaches!!
THU: May 28 -- Driving tour of island?? (we can advise highlights, ruins etc) Thurs PM
Take “dinner Ferry” Blue Star @ 6:30, arrive Piraeus 11:45 pm –in Ath hotel by 1
FRI: May 29 -- Athens sights
SAT May 30 – Athens Sights
SUN Mat 31 -- A last look (up Philappapos Hill?) take 12:30 X95 bus to airport arr 1:30.

It's more efficient not to go into Athens twice, and having your sightseeing there at the END of your trip gives you a safety valve in case of any transport glitch so u don't miss plane. Of course it's NOT enough time for ANY of these stops... but it may suffice to infect you with the fatal Grecophile Virus that keeps the rest of us going back and back and back...

baladeuse

I just want to echo those who have suggested more time in Santorini and less in Naxos. On our trip to Greece we went to Athens, Santorini and Naxos. While Naxos was certainly relaxing and enjoyable, we found much more to see and do in Santorini. It's such a beautiful place and as an artist you will appreciate it even more. I think we were there in April or early May and in many sites in Naxos we had the place almost to ourselves, whereas there were always lots of tourists around in Santorini, but it shouldn't stop you enjoying the exotic beauty of the island.

stanbr

Well you now have lots of experienced people offering you lots of different thoughts and recommendations. All of them are correct for one reason or another.
Ultimately you are going to have to make a decision on what is the most important aspect of this trip to you.
Is it relaxation and recovery from a busy life? Or is it, we need to see everything on our list and a change is as good as a rest. There is no wrong answer here.
Everybody agrees that Santorini deserves a longer stay. Jan has given you a very well thought out plan that will allow you to achieve all you planned to do. The sacrifice in Jan's plan is stated early in her posting, since you are young and energetic. You will see everything you want but it will take energy, particularly all the transfers between islands.

My last thoughts on Crete. We spent 14 days there in 2007 and loved it, however we confined our visit to only one part of Crete being Western Crete and in the end we simply were not able to get to all the places we had planned to visit.
Crete deserves a lot of time.

cheryllj

I agree with most of the above comments - if you can't spare 2 nights for Santorini, it's not worth the bother. But if you an artist, you should definitely visit Santorini imho. It's almost mystical, the beauty of that place.

I enjoyed Naxos also, but it's very different. But if you budget your time wisely (travelerjan's suggestions are good) you can squeeze in Crete, Naxos and Santorini. But Crete is a huge island and deserves far more time than Naxos. At the very minimum, add more time to Crete and at least one more night to Santorini, if not more.

sunny16

I want to add here that Naxos is a cool island to explore by car, if you take a day to do so, but that's how I overestimated how much time we'd want there - I thought we'd spend two days driving around, when we only spent one.

Naxos certainly has its charms - the kitron, and the local wine and foods are lovely, and there are many beautiful spots facing the water - but if I had it to do over again, I'd still give a day to Santorini.

Robert_Brandywine

Okay, my take!

I think Santorini is way overrated, and wouldn't hesitate to skip it entirely. Or, stick to your plan of one night there.

You can do what you want to do in Crete in less time and have an extra day for Athen. Knossos is only 3 miles outside Heraklion. The archaelogical museum in Heraklion was equally enjoyable to me. You can see both in 1 day and have time to kick back that night. Day two, go to the beach. I think the water is cleaner there because it is so far off the coast. Definitely cleaner than Santorini.

Yes, don't go to Athens and skip the Acropolis! Like going to Paris and not seeing the Eiffle tower. The Acropolis visit will be a full day because on one side are 2 ancient theaters, on top is the Parthenon and a smallish museum. On one end is the Areopagus -- the rock Paul preached from. And, all along the other side is the Agora. Expect to be VERY tired that night -- and sunburned if not careful. I would also spend a day at the archaeological museum and walk to see the 1896 Olympics stadium.

I haven't been to Naxos.

Weadles

Hmmm... I think it would be a real mistake to skip Santorini. For me, like going all the way to the Amalfi Coast and skipping Positano or Capri (overnighting there, hopefully!)because there are too many tourists. You ARE one, after all! Santorini has one of the most beautiful and distinctive landscapes I've seen anywhere, and that includes the Amalfi Coast! You shouldn't miss it. On top of that in May, you're getting there before the huge summertime crowds. When my husband and I visited last May, we were two of the four people (total) on Red Beach, another Santorini favorite.

Like you, I also dream about visiting Naxos.We just haven't gotten there yet, but if I were going in May on my first trip ever to Greece, I'd check out Santorini, which is a real highlight for most people.

travelerjan

Tho Santorini buffs may object, I was actually trying to follow the OP's stated interests -- and she spoke about "relaxed authenticity" and "Nature hikes" and Santorini despite its admittedly glorious caldera view alas has little left of the former, and its lack of greenery and wild-life thus kinda rules out nature hikes. ALSO, she specifically said they would like to focus their time more on Naxos and or Paros, those kinds of islands.

The rest of you read the same text I did, but then said, oh no, I enjoyed Santorini more, so let's make HER enjoy it more. I didn't cross it out by any means -- I just tried to follow her stated preferences.

brotherleelove2004

Santorini's 'nature hikes' are certainly not full of flora and fauna, but the clifftop trail between Imerovigli and Oia as well as the hike between Perissa and Kamari Beaches that passes by Ancient Thera at the summit of the mountain are both challenging and enjoyable hikes in that island's version of nature. On either of these hikes be sure to along bring sunscreen, sunglasses, a shade hat and plenty of water, and don't forget your camera!