As usual this forum is great for travel tips etc. ! I am looking forward everyone's advice on this dilemma!

My husband and I are experienced travelers but have always traveled for extended trips (2-4months at a time) and are finding it difficult to plan our itinerary for 3 weeks! This will be our last chance to travel in Europe for quite some time so we would like to try and fit in two different elements while we have the chance. We know it is a little rushed and we're not getting an authenic experience in such a short time, but that is all we have in vacation time left! Here is what we are thinking:

PART 1
June 14: arrive Prague (4 nights)
June 18: train to Vienna (3 nights)
June 21: train to Budapest (3 nights)

PART 2 (Greece)
June 24: fly to Athens or Crete
????????
July 3: home to Canada

Option 1:
June 24: Crete (3 nights)
June 27: boat to Santorini (3 nights)
June 30: boat to Athens (3 nights)
July 3: fly home

Option 2:
June 24: Athens (2 nights)
June 26: boat to Santorini (3 nights)
June 29: boat to Naxos (3 nights)
July 2: boat to Athens (1 night)
July 3: fly home

It seems like a waste of money to fly to Athens then just to pay more to take the boat - but from everyone else's posts it seems like Santorini and Naxos are more our style than Crete (which is the only island flown to from Budapest). Perhaps we should be considering other islands or something else on the mainland instead? Any ideas? Comments? We are budget travelers in our 20's, but prefer outdoor activities, nice beaches and modest local restaurants to nightlife and noise.

Thanks in advance for your help!

I"m just going by what you say -- prefer outdoor activities, nice beaches, modest local restaurants to nightlife & noise. Sounds like Crete to me!

Santorini is the only one on your list that may be all about nightlife & expensive dining in Late June. Of course, if you're willing to spend $$$ on lodging you may stay all day on a scenic balcony in Oia and swim in a pool, and have a quiet evening. Elsewhere in Santorini, crowds... not-good beaches ... main outdoor activity I know is climbing to ancient Thira ruins.

Here's a thought -- fly direct to Chania in Crete... if the Budapest fllight gets into Heraklion, get a cheap rental car and flee along North Shore to Chania -- or you can stop for first night at LOVELY beach 12 miles west of Heraklion, Ag. Pelagia. (Google it)

Chania is the most beautiful town in Crete... (stay on the West Side of town near Theotokopoulou St). Lovely restaurants, cobbled streets, etc.. and offers day trips to sandy beaches and ruins, tiny villages, little tavernas. You can 'get away from it all' easily.

June 27 you can get a fast boat at 9:45 a.m. to Santorini -- and IMHO, 2 nights is enough ... see the fabulous view of the caldera, check out the great museum, buy som gold jewelry, and SCAT on Friday AM June 29 to Naxos.

Enjoy yourself at a ST. George Beach adjacent to Naxos Town (for serious swimming, take a 15 min bus to Prokopios Beach) .. . do some water sports or hike a bit, whatever. Get a 9:45 ferry Sunday AM July 1 back to Piraeus, arrives 2:45 pm. Check in your hotel and -- if you wish -- go FREE to the Archeological museum (free every first sunday) for a quick tour. Enjoy dinner with a view of Acropolis, and go up there early Monday Morning, and browse the Forum on the way back. Pack, enjoy a good dinner, buy souvenirs in the Plaka District and you're ready to fly back... and I bet you'll remember the days in Crete most of all. Happy travels!

You could fly to Crete from Budapest (Wizz Air flies there on 23th June if that's any use to you). Then you could stay in Crete, and if you want catch the ferry to Santorini and from there fly to Athens, or take another ferry, for your return flight to Canada. Either way, I would spend your last night in Athens so that you don't have to worry about ferries or connecting flights being on time.
Good luck,
Carolena

Just to add to Jan's post--Santorini isn't just about nightlife, expensive dining and $$$ lodging if you're willing to do some research and are on a tight budget, even in Oia. Check out the Musses Studios, Casa Francesca, Anemomilos Hotel, Delfini Hotel, Thea Studios, Studios Margarita, Olympic Villas, Finikia Place Hotel, Hotel Finikia, Agnadi Villas. These are some of the least expensive accomodations in Oia. There are others that don't advertise that you can walk into if you want to be spontaneous: Lauda Traditional Rooms, Hotel Fregata, Anemones Hotel.

The main beaches offer good bargains as well. Check the listings for Perissa Beach and Kamari Beach. True, the beaches themselves are hot and gritty black sand/rock, but the water is wonderful. The best swimming on the island, and not at the beach, is below Oia at the end of the seawall that begins on the wharf at Amoudi--deep blue water, large rocks for sunbathing and a spectacular view of the caldera from sea level.

Thanks for the info everyone.

TravelerJan: WizzAir flies directly into Chania from Budapest also. If we fly into Chania rather than Heraklion can we also catch a fast boat from there to Santorini or would we have to rent a car and drive back to Heraklion? How long would this drive take?

Brotherleelove: you seem to have great ideas for Santorini - do you have any suggestions for Naxos (or great day trips from either). Would Naxos be the other island you would recommend or one of the others on that ferry route?

Any other thoughts would be helpful! I love to sit on the beach and enjoy the sun but my husband perfers to get a tan while DOING something. As a compromise - day trips are a must!

Many people recommend Naxos, but I prefer Paros. And from Paros it's just a short local ferry ride to Antiparos for daytrips. Also, from both Paros and Naxos you can take the excursion boat to Delos, birthplace of Apollo and Artemis.

On Santorini you can take the full- or half-day excursion into the caldera to visit the new volcano, the neighboring island of Therassia and swim in the volcano hotsprings. There's also a sunset cruise. Daytrips to neighboring islands like Ios or Naxos are limited to just a few hours because of ferry connections.

Talia, I also love Paros .... when I stay in Naxos, the day before I return to Athens I take the ferry to Paros for a 1-day/night experience, then catch the Athens ferry the next morning at 10:45 a.m. (it stops at Naxos an hour earlier).

As for day trips (so your husb can tan while site-seeing), on both Naxos & Paros, you can rent a car (stick shift is easiest to get) and have a blast driving all over... Paros has a beautiful town, Lefka and a couple of nice colored stone beaches on the east side. Naxos is more scenic, highhhh mountain roads & villages, ruins, ancient statues lying in orchards, 15 miles of golden sand beach from Naxos town on down.

The diff for me is that, after the 1-day, you can enjoy Naxos beaches, town shopping, dining etc without having to rent car again, while in Paros u must rent car or scooter to get to better beaches. Brotherlee, if there's another easy way, please let us know; I'm here to learn.

Jan, you're probably right. I know Paros has a bus system, but I've never used it so I can't comment on its efficiency. I rented a scooter and enjoyed that very much.

I have often used the bus system on Paros when I can be bothered to leave neighboring Antiparos. It has routes all round the island, and works well for me, but a car or scooter would no doubt be more convenient.

Two things I enjoy leaving behind when on the Greek Islands are television and driving. My suitcase is filled with books, and I walk everywhere on Antiparos.

Thanks for your input again - very helpful.

Has anyone every heard if something like a "boat pass" exists for different ferry routes? It seems that I would be using the same ferry route every few days (Santorini - Naxos, Naxos - Paros, then Paros - Athens)wondered if there was a discount for anything like this?

There hasn't been anything like this in the recent past. You must buy point-to-point tickets for every stop you make.

I double checked the flights available from Budapest and it looks like I cannot fly directly into Chania after all. If I wanted to fly direct to the islands I can fly into either Heraklion or Rhodes.

I am not sure if it is worth it to land in Heraklion - drive to Chania - just to drive back to Heraklion the next day. Does anyone know how long this would take to drive?

Any thoughts about changing the route to start on Rhodes rather than Crete or is that too far out of the way? I have read some great reviews of Rhodes on the forum.

Thanks.

The bus service on Paros is indeed very easy and efficient. Five minutes south of Parikia (maybe two buses an hour in the summer) is Parosporos beach - sheltered from the north winds with a couple of quiet beach bars; or from Naoussa at the north of the island runs a regular small boat to the beautiful beaches of kolymbithres and Monastiri. Renting a car or bike is good for the quieter hidden beaches (Molos is a good example, complete with mud bathing) but not necessary.