Greek Islands ..how did you book it? Help
 

I have been considering a package deal (Athens, Mykonos & Santorini) but am not totally happy with the hotels they offer (on the beach in Santorini @ Hotel Sunshine or Alexandra?) and have found little info on them. I am considering trying to book the trip seperately....How did you book your trip? All online? an agent? packages or seperate? Air fare seems to be the toughest to get....then there's the ferry. Must I book this all ahead? We're planning for late May early June.

I always get my airfare through an agent because they always seem to get me the best rate when compared to online resources. I then would buy the DK (Dorling Kindersley) Travel Guide to the Greek Islands. I also would pick up "Independent Travellers Greek Island Hopping 2003: The Budget Travel Guide
Thomas Cook Publishing" I was thumbing through this book and it looked great. It had the latest ferry info. Then there's always www.ferries.gr
If available at your local bookstore, I would take notes from (not buy!) Frommer's Greek Islands and get hotel recommendations. I would compare the hotel recommendations against postings that you find here.
It's a lot of work, but I love doing the research and putting it all together!

We booked through Fantasy Travel, located in Athens. They were recommended to us by the concierge at the hotel we were reserving with in Athens; I can't believe we did this, w/o knowing the hotel or Fantasy Travel, but it worked out very well, and I have heard many good things about FT since then. Our hotels were lovely in Mykonos and Santorini; ferries to the islands, transfers, and flight from Sant. back to Athens were included in the pkg. Look up Fantasy Travel on google.
Have fun!

http://www.fantasytravelofGreece.com/

Heartily recommend!

You certainly do not have to buy a package to Greece although I do agree that often travel agents can get the best airfares.Between guidebooks and the internet you can find your hotels and as far the ferries go there is no need to book ahead especially that time of year.

thanks for the good info. I think I'll try to put this together myself so we get to stay where we want. Thanks again!

I am thinking the same thing. Going in June & already have my air fare & want to book my own hotels. But am worried about the ferry. Is it really not a problem to wait & buy on the islands in mid June?

jb, unless you're going to the Ionians, finding somewhere to stay "on the hoof" isn't really a problem.

The Ionians are a little different, because of the relatively poor ferry connections. They don't get a lot of "passing trade" and so property owners need to contract out to package operators in order to guarantee themselves an income. But even there, in June it shouldn't be too much of a problem finding something. Peak season is July and August.

Hi grandmere: did you just fly into Athens then and then book the rest of your trip through the travel agency just then and go?

jb29 where did you get your airfare? Best I can find is about $780 pp.

I too am worried about the transfers/ferries to Myknonos & Santorini and would like to book it ahead. Anyone know aprox. prices for travel between islands? I have looked on many sites but nothing price wise.

We spent May, 2002 in Greece. The flights from Athens to Rhodes and then Rhodes to Crete we booked before we left online. This was during Easter in Greece and the flight to Rhodes was booked solid. The ferry would have taken too long - 24 hours? Accommodations were booked in Rhodes (online) and Crete (my sister's time share). From Crete, the plan was to take the ferry Crete to Santorini, Santorini to Mykonos, Mykonos to Athens. The difficulty with the ferry is you don't really know the schedule until you get there. Depending on the weather, it also may not run. Fortunately, the hydrofoil in Crete had just started up, otherwise we would have arrived in Santorini at midnight (only one ferry). We discovered once we got to Santorini that we could not take a ferry directly to Mykonos, so we ended up going to Naxos and then to Mykonos. It worked out fine. As soon as you land on the islands, you are bombarded with people showing you books with photographs of their rooms. Accommodation will not be a problem. We did not use a travel agent for any of this. As you can see, it helps if you can be flexible and roll with the little snags that come along.

Thanks Zoe...
That's what we figured...the more reserach I do it seems too complicated to plan it all out in advance so I think we're best if we completly wing-it. We're felxible just don't want to get stuck spending more time on vacation trying to figure out how to get to next desitnation rather than enjoying our trip. Overall was it a pain or fairly simple to just plan as you go?

Our only constraints will be time (9days) and staying on somewhat of a budget. I am just trying to get an idea of what ferries/flights cost between Mykonos, Santorini & Athens. How expensive were overall travel costs?

You really don't need to worry about ferries or hotels in late May and early June. Several ferries depart every day from Piraeus and Rafini to Mykonos, and overnight ferries depart from Piraeus to Santorini. You will be met at each port by mobs of people trying to get you to stay in their hotel. Location is important - both islands have steep hills, and the walk between hotel and town center could be strenuous. You can bargain for a discount if you arrive without reservations, and be as selective as you want. The rep will drive you to the hotel (he doesn't want you to get away) but there are no obligations if you don't like what you see.

As for prices, they change every year, but two years ago a ticket cost about 16 euros to Mykonos, and 20 euros to Santorini. Catamarans cost twice that price, and flights about three times as much. There are no fast boats directly from Piraeus to Santorini.

Heimdall?great info! Thanks. We are going to be adventurous and not book and hotels besides Santorini which will be our end stop and a flight back from there to Athens. We figure it gives us more time since the flight is only 50 min rather than save time for ferry travel plus we won't have to worry if the ferry is late or cancelled. I really want to stay on the cliff witha patio there so to make sure we get it I'm going to go ahead with a reservation. What area would you suggest is good to stay in Mykonos that is in walking distance to action but not in the thick of it? Any other good suggestions for isalnds to stop between? We would like to goto Rhodes but won't have the time since it's a bit further out.

I have only been to Mykonos once, and obtained a room in a hotel about 1/2 mile from the middle of town. What the lady at the port didn't tell me was the hotel was straight up the hill behind the harbour. I decided to stay anyway, and got beautiful views, lots of exercise, and a quiet room. If you aren't in the mood for exercise, choose a room in the labyrinth of passageways around the old port, or near the three windmills.

When on Mykonos don't miss a day trip to the island of Delos.

Paros or Naxos would be a good choice for another island to visit. Both are on the main ferry route between Mykonos and Santorini, and have lots to see inland.

baemel

prices are higher this year from Athens to Mykonos.

From March '03:-

Car ferry - Piraeus to Mykonos
Economy - 20.90
A Class - 31.00

Car ferry - Rafina to Mykonos
Economy - 14.70
A Class - 29.30

Catamaran - Rafina to Mykonos
Price - 29.30

Hope that helps.

T.