Greek islands
 

Hi! I'm heading to the Greek Islands on Sunday May 24th. Planning to fly straight into Thira from Australia with my husband for my 40th birthday.
I need some advice if possible? I am planning on staying in Santorini until Thursday - Naxos (Thurs/Fri) - Mykonos on Saturday, Athens Tuesday and fly back Wednesday night 3rd June. Is this achievable, or should I drop Naxos and say on both islands longer? I know many people have recommended Athens for a longer time, but my sole purpose is to come to the Greek Islands and spend as much time there as possible.

We are keen on having a romantic, but fun trip - with exploring of all areas, beach and restaurants. As I have read so much about Santorini being the most beautiful place on earth - I'm hoping to spend the most on accomodation here and I can't decide on staying in Thira or the other end Oia. Can anyone recommend at this time of the season the best area? We are hoping to be able to have some down time from the flight, but also explore the island and be able to get to places easily- I was thinking about hiring a car for the day.

I have added Naxos in, as I have read a fair few threads, which say how beautiful it is and also it's on the way to Mykonos. Any recommendations for great places to stay for the 2 nights?

I am spending that amount of time in Mykonos as I am meeting my girlfriend there for the remainder of the trip as my husband is travelling on for work.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions!!
Sooo excited!

For Naxos, I was exceedingly pleased with my stay at the Hotel Grotta:
Hotel Naxos Grotta, Naxos Greece Hotels, in Naxos Town Hora with direct view to the sea, sunset and Portara. Naxos Island Cyclades

I may be the only Fodorite (ever!) who was not wowed by Santorini, and I would find Santorini and Mykonos too similar to justify the opportunity cost to include both on such a short trip -- but I'm sure other people will offer very different opinions. FWIW, I thoroughly enjoyed Naxos and thought it provided a very nice contrast to the tourist crowds of Santorini and Mykonos.

If you haven't seen it, you might find some useful information in my trip report. The section on Santonini starts with post # 89, followed by my time in Naxos (and a day trip to Delos that included several hours on Naxos).
https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...reece-1460735/

I'll just point out if you're flying all the way from Australia you might find your home beaches nicer. Obviously it depends on your personal idea of a nice beach but I'd personally plan on spending more time on the other parts of your trip

Absolutely a big fan of Australian beaches, South African too, although the water around Cape Town is very cold. My favourite Aussie beach is a tossup between Whitehaven in the Whitsundays and Cape Trib near Port Douglas. You won’t find anything like that in Greece.

Santorini has views, Mykonos has the archaeological site on Delos, but I’ve never warmed to either island. of course if you enjoy expensive high end hotels and restaurants they may be what you want. Were it me, without changing your itinerary, would spend more time on Naxos. It has beautiful beaches, interesting mountain villages, and tavernas with good food at reasonable prices. The best part, it won’t be crowded in late May.

I agree to spend more time on Naxos. But while you are in Santoroini be sure to visit some of the inland villages - easily done by public bus - such as Pyrgos and Emborio. Very different feel from Fira and Oia and way less crowded. Also there is the walk between Fira and Oia. I have photos of them here: https://andiamo.zenfolio.com/f320347206

Thank you for your advice! Kja your time in Greece sounded so fun. Hopefully this will be the first of many more trips to come!

"Santorini being the most beautiful place on earth"

May be therefore I prefer to just have a look at the Island from a deck chair of FB Prevelis crossing the caldera on it's itinerary from Anafi to Piraeus

Wow, you are travelling from Australia to Greece? You will have a great time, Greece is beautiful, just I hope you know that water on the islands at the end of May is still not so warm (warm for my definition).

I did have fun -- thanks for letting me know that my report conveyed the delight I experienced there!
Whether just one trip of the first of many, I'm sure you'll have a great experience. :)

Hi, we're Australian too and love the Greek islands. We had a similar trip, a fair while ago, visiting Naxos, Mykonos and Santorini (and Athens which I didn't like that much). A word about the beaches, I would never recommend anyone visit the Greek islands for the beaches, to me they are borderline dreadful. But that's comparing it to what we have here. The views of the caldera in Santorini are really beautiful and around every corner in Mykonos we were stopping for more photos. So picturesque. Naxos was lovely too. We stayed at the Hotel Grotta as well and liked it. On Santorini, I'd stay in Oia. We stayed first trip in Fira and second in Oia and preferred Oia which is prettier and slightly quieter. The bus goes from Fira to Oia, takes around 20 minutes.

Kay

The beaches found in Santorini in Mykonos are NOT representative of the beaches in Greece. Yes, the landscape in both islands is otherworldly but if you want to get a real taste of the how beaches in Greece are, please choose another destination in the country :)

I prefer to find a single Greek isle to base from and not island hop for nightly stays. It is far more relaxing, in my opinion.

NIKOS is right. But I'm sure that nobody in this forum would go to places like Elafonissos Island (Laconia), Gavdos Island, Falassarna, Gregolimano (Evvia), Paralia Kalogria south of Nikiti (Chalkidiki), Milos Beach (Lefkas) or so. They would all find it too time consuming to go there.

For the absolutely spectacular views that Santorini is known for, Canaves Oia is absolutely perfect -
https://canaves.com/canaves-oia-hote...BoCIX0QAvD_BwE
Pricey, but perfect.
We did not visit the beaches on Santorini.

When I return, I would like the mix of Athens, more of the mainland, Santorini (again) and another island. TBD.

KayF, I wouldn't be quite so harsh about Greek beaches, but agree with you there is nothing to compare with what you have at home in Australia. I just had a wonderful two weeks in Cape Town, South Africa (my fourth time) and enjoyed the beaches at Clifton and Camps Bay. If only the water weren't so cold! Another plus about Greek beaches, there is nothing waiting to bite or sting you, unless you step on a sea urchin.

Not all Greek island beaches are volcanic like Santorini and even on Santorini there are decent beaches on the opposite side of the island to the caldera. Some of the best beaches in the Med are in Greece and the islands. The Australian beaches I've been to were too cold to swim in (even in summer) and had too many jellyfish and other dangers. Bit like South Africa, beautiful to look at but not possible to go in the sea.

Santorini
 

I think that Santorini is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Yes the beaches aren't white and sandy like other Greek islands, that's because it's volcanic. I actually stayed in Perissa on the other side of the island. There's a great boat trip to a volcanic island and a swim in the natural hot springs on the way back. Great views too. There's a beautiful coastal walk from Oia to Fira. I wrote about my trip to Santorini if you want to have a look, lots of photos:
http://www.daredreamdiscover.com/