Greek Islands and not reservations
Jan 24th, 2005, 07:18 PM
#1
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Greek Islands and not reservations
It is up to me to plan a trip to Greece and some islands, my husband thinks we don't need to make hotel reservations, we want to go to Santorini and Mykonos but, I also considering going to Lipsi and Samos instead. I don't know where to start! Suggestions on Hotel/Pensions/rooms
Any help will be welcome.
PS we are traveling with a 4 year old girl.
Any help will be welcome.
PS we are traveling with a 4 year old girl.
Jan 24th, 2005, 07:32 PM
#2
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Uhhh, when are you going? If it is high season then you should make some reservations for Santorini and Mykonos.
What is your budget per night? What are your priorities for your accomodation - like proximity to beaches, caldera view on Santorini, etc.?
What is your budget per night? What are your priorities for your accomodation - like proximity to beaches, caldera view on Santorini, etc.?
Jan 24th, 2005, 08:16 PM
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Thanks for replying!
we are thinking on May 18-28, our projected budget is about 75 -100 per night (euros)
This is supposed to be a relaxing trip, I am looking some proximity to beaches and the husband is looking for caldera view. Any help greatly appreciated
we are thinking on May 18-28, our projected budget is about 75 -100 per night (euros)
This is supposed to be a relaxing trip, I am looking some proximity to beaches and the husband is looking for caldera view. Any help greatly appreciated
Jan 24th, 2005, 08:32 PM
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You should look at some of the websites for hotels... here are some links.
www.travel-to-mykonos.com
www.travel-to-santorini.com
Both have lots of info and link to many hotels.
Also try:
www.greekhotel.com
Also check out Matt Barrett's Greece travel website at www.greektravel.com
Since you are not going in the high season months of July and August it may be possible to go without reservations, but I like to have them just for peace of mind. Others may disagree. There are always people offering rooms of varying types (in houses, small hotels, etc) at the ports when the ferries arrive and that may be what your husband is thinking of. However with a small child in tow, if it were me I'd rather have something pinned down in advance.
Also try a search on this forum for other peoples' trip reports from their travels in Greece.
Have fun.
www.travel-to-mykonos.com
www.travel-to-santorini.com
Both have lots of info and link to many hotels.
Also try:
www.greekhotel.com
Also check out Matt Barrett's Greece travel website at www.greektravel.com
Since you are not going in the high season months of July and August it may be possible to go without reservations, but I like to have them just for peace of mind. Others may disagree. There are always people offering rooms of varying types (in houses, small hotels, etc) at the ports when the ferries arrive and that may be what your husband is thinking of. However with a small child in tow, if it were me I'd rather have something pinned down in advance.
Also try a search on this forum for other peoples' trip reports from their travels in Greece.
Have fun.
Jan 24th, 2005, 10:21 PM
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Your husband's right, you don't need reservations in May. What you will need is some preparation. If you plan to travel by ferry to the islands you'll be met at the docks by locals with rooms (domatia) to offer. This is a good way to find a cheap room, but sometimes they're not in a very desirable or relaxing location. Print out island maps and ask them to point to the location of their rooms ("poo speetee soo?"
, and if you don't like the location keep looking. Usually somewhere near the ferry dock is at least one business offering rooms. This can be very helpful to save time and anxiety.
Another suggestion is to take a bus or taxi to your village of choice and ask around. Most large villages also have room rental businesses. With a 4-year-old along this might get tedious, but if you're not going to have reservations you'll have to put up with some degree of uncertainty and have patience until you find what you want.
If you're flying to the islands the suggestion of taking a taxi or bus to your village of choice still applies.
The best beaches on Santorini are Perissa Beach and Kamari Beach, but the beaches don't have caldera views. I usually recommend the most beautiful village of Oia but the trek from the clifftops down to the water level for a small child would be too much. You can at least take the bus there to have a look around.
Fira is the main village on Santorini and has the widest selection of rooms, hotels, restaurants and shopping, but is also not a beachfront village. It's on the Caldera along with Oia, Firostephani and Imerovigli.
In Oia I can recommend the Lauda Apartments as a good deal on the Caldera. There are also several others in your price range there. Just take the bus or taxi to the bus square. There's a room rental office right there, or walk up into the main village square, then along the main path through the village and stop at the hotels and pensions to ask.
In Oia you can also go into Karvounis Tours just next to the main square and ask Markos to help you find what you need.
I'll be in Oia between May 12 and June 7. Markos will know where I am. Ask for Lee Marks. Let's meet for a drink!
, and if you don't like the location keep looking. Usually somewhere near the ferry dock is at least one business offering rooms. This can be very helpful to save time and anxiety.Another suggestion is to take a bus or taxi to your village of choice and ask around. Most large villages also have room rental businesses. With a 4-year-old along this might get tedious, but if you're not going to have reservations you'll have to put up with some degree of uncertainty and have patience until you find what you want.
If you're flying to the islands the suggestion of taking a taxi or bus to your village of choice still applies.
The best beaches on Santorini are Perissa Beach and Kamari Beach, but the beaches don't have caldera views. I usually recommend the most beautiful village of Oia but the trek from the clifftops down to the water level for a small child would be too much. You can at least take the bus there to have a look around.
Fira is the main village on Santorini and has the widest selection of rooms, hotels, restaurants and shopping, but is also not a beachfront village. It's on the Caldera along with Oia, Firostephani and Imerovigli.
In Oia I can recommend the Lauda Apartments as a good deal on the Caldera. There are also several others in your price range there. Just take the bus or taxi to the bus square. There's a room rental office right there, or walk up into the main village square, then along the main path through the village and stop at the hotels and pensions to ask.
In Oia you can also go into Karvounis Tours just next to the main square and ask Markos to help you find what you need.
I'll be in Oia between May 12 and June 7. Markos will know where I am. Ask for Lee Marks. Let's meet for a drink!
Jan 24th, 2005, 10:30 PM
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Yes, in May at nearly any port you will probably find plenty of people trying to rent you a room.
But what you need to decide is if the spontaneity is it really worth gambling on a few photos that hawkers might show you and then checking out the room to make sure it's as billed? It's fine for a couple, but how many back-and-forth trips would you like to make with a daughter who's been travelling for hours already?
It's still the slow season -- you'll find great bargains even if you book ahead.
A caldera view and a 4-year-old isn't a real good combination. Some caldera view places don't allow kids under 12 because of the steep stairs and drops.
Mykonos, even more so than Santorini, is a great couples or singles island.
Here's something that might help resolve the beach-caldera issue.
If this is your first trip to the islands, I'd still recommend Santorini, but add another island rather than Mykonos. For wonderful beaches, Naxos is tough to beat and your money will go farther than Mykonos. Paros or Milos are also options.
Just a suggestion: research Santorini hard and reserve a safe caldera room for a couple of days. If you really want to play it by ear, do that in Naxos or Paros and take more time there because the beaches and activities are more varied.
Here's a nice moderate place on Naxos. It's in an out of the way area with a 5-10 minute walk down a quiet lane to a gorgeous beach. In May last year, they charged 45E for a double and 52E for a triple -- including full breakfast. You're better off with a car, but that's a plus because it's a wonderful island to explore and you can get great rates. Even in Sept. last year we paid less than 30E per day.
http://www.lianosvillage.com/
Can't speak to the Samos/Lipsi option, although some say that the water off the eastern island can be some of the coolest -- and in May that could be a factor. But this could have been an aberration, perhaps other can help.
But what you need to decide is if the spontaneity is it really worth gambling on a few photos that hawkers might show you and then checking out the room to make sure it's as billed? It's fine for a couple, but how many back-and-forth trips would you like to make with a daughter who's been travelling for hours already?
It's still the slow season -- you'll find great bargains even if you book ahead.
A caldera view and a 4-year-old isn't a real good combination. Some caldera view places don't allow kids under 12 because of the steep stairs and drops.
Mykonos, even more so than Santorini, is a great couples or singles island.
Here's something that might help resolve the beach-caldera issue.
If this is your first trip to the islands, I'd still recommend Santorini, but add another island rather than Mykonos. For wonderful beaches, Naxos is tough to beat and your money will go farther than Mykonos. Paros or Milos are also options.
Just a suggestion: research Santorini hard and reserve a safe caldera room for a couple of days. If you really want to play it by ear, do that in Naxos or Paros and take more time there because the beaches and activities are more varied.
Here's a nice moderate place on Naxos. It's in an out of the way area with a 5-10 minute walk down a quiet lane to a gorgeous beach. In May last year, they charged 45E for a double and 52E for a triple -- including full breakfast. You're better off with a car, but that's a plus because it's a wonderful island to explore and you can get great rates. Even in Sept. last year we paid less than 30E per day.
http://www.lianosvillage.com/
Can't speak to the Samos/Lipsi option, although some say that the water off the eastern island can be some of the coolest -- and in May that could be a factor. But this could have been an aberration, perhaps other can help.
Jan 25th, 2005, 01:48 AM
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sglw - We will be spending a week this September on the island of Samos, in the village of Ormos, on the southern coastline. We will be staying in a self contained apartment, cooking our own breakfast, then lunch either in or out, and definately dinner & drinks out each night. We intend to visit smaller islands off the coast, having a BBQ lunch with others, and lots of diving/swimming.
We depart from Gatwick Airport, with a direct flight to Samos island. We booked our holiday through a company...www.laskarina.co.uk
The girls in the reservation section of Laskarina, are extremely helpful, and like to make sure that they book the right apartment & island, for YOUR NEEDS. On each island, the company has island directors, that will either assist when needed, or stay in the background, if not required, what more could you ask for.
We originally looked at Mykonos, and Santorini, Paros & Naxos, but to us, these islands, seemed to be too aligned to well trodden tourist track, so we opted, for Samos in late September.
Look at their website...this company targets islands that still have the traditional values, and wants their guests to experience a true greek island holiday. No I don't work for this company, but I am particularly impressed with their operation, and island holidays.
We depart from Gatwick Airport, with a direct flight to Samos island. We booked our holiday through a company...www.laskarina.co.uk
The girls in the reservation section of Laskarina, are extremely helpful, and like to make sure that they book the right apartment & island, for YOUR NEEDS. On each island, the company has island directors, that will either assist when needed, or stay in the background, if not required, what more could you ask for.
We originally looked at Mykonos, and Santorini, Paros & Naxos, but to us, these islands, seemed to be too aligned to well trodden tourist track, so we opted, for Samos in late September.
Look at their website...this company targets islands that still have the traditional values, and wants their guests to experience a true greek island holiday. No I don't work for this company, but I am particularly impressed with their operation, and island holidays.
Jan 25th, 2005, 03:01 AM
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Since "it is upto me to plan a trip to Greece" then remind your husband about WHO is doing the planning and tell him to butt out on the "no reservations" routine..UNLESS you want to spend valuable time sorting through a bunch of dockside offers..if that's what appeals to you then go ahead. Personally, I'd do the planning and decision-making NOW rather than later.
