Greece trip with daughters
 

I am planning a trip to Greece from May 12 leaving usa staying til June 2,2014. Flying in and back out of Athens. I am traveling with daughters ages 20 and 22 . I dont know much about Greece or what to do and see so I am very open to ALL suggestions. I am on a strict budget bc I am paying for all 3 of us. We love history,the Arts, shopping,beaches and some night life is ok also ;) I am having trouble finding ferry schedules and or flights. I guess its harder since I dont know where to go or what to do. Would love to see a ballet in Athens. Would love a few days in Turkey and some days on island(SUGGESTIONS PLEASE) If anyone simply wants to tell me where to go when Im even open for those suggesstions-Any trip planners wanna take this up?? Would love Crete Korfu,,Delpi,Olympia,Santorini,Mykonas,Kos???We are pretty experienced travelers but Greece seems so complicated somehow.Ferries or flights places to stay things to do all welcomed!!!! HELP ME PLEASE THANKS IN ADVANCE!!!!

Hi silverdogd!
If you like History I suggest to stay in Athens for a couple nights and visit the Parthenon and its museum. There are very nice places in Athens, like Plaka, Thisio and Mikrolimano (small port in Greek) near Pireaus. I would definitely recommend to go to Crete, my favorite island in Greece.
Crete is a very beautiful island, full of places to visit, rich culture to explore and amazing sights. There are numerous beautiful beaches to go, a fair enough night life (for all the ages, not only teen parties like Mykonos), plenty of museums, an amazing aquarium you have to visit, the Dinasor Museum and the list goes on!
You may want to check them here: http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/g...te/sights.html

About the Budget you don't have to worry. It is a cheap island. The ferry from Pireaus (near Athens) to Heraklion (the main city in Crete) is about 40€/person and your daughters may get a discount if they are students of any university and they use their the student card. The Food is EXCELENT! It's cheap, plenty and very tasteful! Crete owns the biggest Souvlakia in Greece! And one piece is well enough to fill your stomach for a day. But you may want to try the traditional kitchen which is very good as well. And don't forget to drink Raki (be careful, it's a strong drink :) ).
You may need to Rent a Car as well as the island is pretty big and you are going to spend a lot of time on the bus. There are some websites for online booking with fair prices (about 12€-14€ per day) such us http://www.crete-car-rentals.gr/ and http://www.carantee.com/
I had used those two in the past and their services were good.
About the accommodation.. I can not help you. I always had friend in Crete of Erasmus Programms so I was from the lucky ones with a free place to stay! :)

I hope that I helped you! :)

I was on Mykonos when I was 23.. these girls are 21 and 20.. trust me,, its NOT teen parties on Mykonos.. its very much party atmosphere for ages 20-30. They would love the nightlife.

By the term "teen's parties" I didn't actually mean teens. It's a way to say that the parties are all about drinking and nightlife. Yeah sure it is a great experience for those ages but it is not recommended as a place for "mother and daughters" vacation.. And historical sights? Very few.. There are not great beaches, compared to other Greek islands like Crete, Rhodes, Corfu etc.. Of course it is just my personal opinion. But I had this discussion with all my Greek friends and it is the less beautiful island in Greece according with them as well! It is all about nightlife. It's popular island for the Greek tourists because it's near Athens

One suggestion is something like: 4 days in Athens, rent a car and drive to Delphi for 2 nights, drive down to Nafplion for a 5 days (exploring Corinth, Mycenae, Epidaurus), to Monemvasia for a night or two, then drive back to Athens and ferry over to Santorini and then to Mykonos. That would get you a lot of history, a variety of natural beauty, great beaches, and fun night life.

As much as I love Crete (and I do love it), I was more captivated by Santorini and Mykonos when I was a 20 y.o. (also my friend just went to Mykonos with her girls and they all LOVED it).

If you wanted to combine Turkey with this trip, that's a whole other ball of wax . . . .

Actually, I should clarify - I did love Crete when I visited in college. But my friend who tagged along with me did not spring to life until we got to Santorini. So that has probably colored my perspective about whether Crete is fun for the average 20 year old.

I understand your initial confusion about planning a trip to Greece - it took me about 5 years to make a plan and give it a shot - I am going this May too with my adult daughter.

Check out Matt Barrett's Greece website - many good suggestions. But for simplicity, I suggest you pick one island GROUP and just go there. You can land in Athens and then fly or ferry to Santorini / Mykonos - these two are more touristy and expensive but will not disappoint. Then go to another island in the Cycladies - like Paros or Naxos, either of which you can ferry to from Sant or Myk (I think - the ferry shcedules are "out there" - keep looking or someone here may post).

It is not hard to fly from Athens to Istanbul - we are paying about $200 per person on Agean.

You might want to use a travel agency - on Matt Barretts web site there will be more info. I am just putting the finishing touches on the trip I have "toyed" with for 5 years! We are going to Istanbul for 5 nights, flying to Athens, ferrying to Naxos for 6 nights. I would have loved to add time on Santorini but didn't want to pack up and move again - if you have more time, do two islands! Good luck!