Greek Islands (small)
 

Three ladies, travelling from Vancouver, Canada to: Crete, Rhodes, Naxos...looking for recommendations for SMALL, BOUTIQUE, hotels in Chiana (Crete), Rhodes and Naxos. Not interested in big, fancy, smancy properties (we can get that here at home). We would like small, unique, close to the water if possible, mom & pop type accommodations)....any one have any suggestions?

Thank you.

Claudia

Claudia, you have not shared WHEN you are going. This is Vital .. not just the month, but the exact dates. If you want good help, you must give us all the details... including what your preferred budget range is, in Euros (here is the link to convert $ to € - http://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/ )

Also, it would help to know how much "luxe" you expect. "Boutique" hotels and "mom & pop" are not the same, except both will be under 20 rooms. "Boutique" often means they've bought modern furniture and wide-screen TV, and if really upscale may offer massage or steam room or such. "Mom & Pop" (which are my faves), are family-run, mom will cook u a nice breakfast, the daughter runs the desk, and an auntie in black dress mops the halls.

Chania, boutique equals Casa Delfino but it is not a mom and pop by any means.

Before worrying about hotels, first work out how you will travel between those three islands. Crete and Naxos are well connected by ferries, but even in high season there is only one ferry per week from Crete to Rhodes, and none from Naxos. To get to Rhodes on a specific day you may have to fly back through Athens.

We liked Pandora Suites in Chania, not luxurious but comfortable and central. Breakfast is served on the roof top terrace.

http://chania-pandorasuites.clickhere.gr/

Also really liked the Hotel Grotta in Naxos though it's about a 20 minute walk into the main town where all the cafes are. Run by a friendly Greek family.

http://www.hotelgrotta.gr/

Kay

In Chania, we stayed at the Suites Pandora. Great location and our room overlooked the harbor.

In season there are daily ferries from Piraeus (port of Athens) to Chania, Rhodes and Naxos, daily catamarans from Iraklio (Crete) to Naxos and from Rhodos to Patmos, 2 weekly ferries from Naxos to Patmos and from Iraklio to Rhodos, daily Sky Express flights from Iraklio (Crete) to Rhodos.

Good info from neckervd! Currently there is only one ferry per week (Prevelis) scheduled between Crete and Rhodes, leaving on Saturdays at 10:40 am, and taking 14 hours from departure at Heraklion. There may well be two ferries per week during high season, but the company publishes its timetables only a few weeks in advance.

Planning a trip to Crete and the Cyclades Islands (Santorini, Naxos, Paros, Mykonos etc) is easy, because there are several daily ferries from Athens (Piraeus and Rafina), and daily ferries between most of these islands. There are very few inter-island flights, the Sky Express between Heraklion and Rhodes an exception.

Planning a trip that includes two different island groups + Crete is more difficult, because there are few ferries or flights between the different groups. Rhodes is in the Dodecanese Island group in the eastern Aegean. When there aren't direct ferries between two islands it is usually possible to plan an itinerary via a third island, possibly spending a night there en route.

Claudia, before anyone can give you much help, as travelerjan wrote you need to tell us what month you are travelling and how many nights you have available for the trip. How long you spend on each island will depend partly upon ferry/flight connections.

If you want to avoid backtracking, and do the most time-efficient trip, your island sequence would be: NAXOS - SANTORINI - RHODES - ATHENS. And if your time is limited and your trip is very soon, booking will be a challenge.

The simplest logistically (tho not cheapest perhaps -- and hard to book if trip is soon):
• ASAP upon plane arrival (allow 2 hrs in between) FLY to NAXOS
• After __ days, FERRY (either Blue Star or Champion ferry) to SANTORINI -- a 2 hr journey, and chance to see Famed Caldera view on arrival
• After __ days, take 12:30 AM Blue Star Ferry (book an all-F 4-bunk cabin) and wake up @ 7:30 AM in RHODES
• After ___ Days, FLY back to ATH airport for __ days in ATHENS.

Where did Santorini come from? LOL

No answers re hotels are possible until you give more info as noted SportyMom23. You also need to give more info re things like, is a remote location for a hotel that requires you to rent a car OK or do you want to be within walking distance of nightlife etc. When are you planning to go and how much total time do you have to visit these 3 islands. The more info you give the more relevant responses can be.

Besides budget, the other issue I see is that there will be 3 of you. Finding a hotel with 3 beds in a room isn't that easy. So you might want to say a bit about how flexible the 3 of you are in terms of sharing beds or one having to sleep on a sofa.

Whoops! I slipped in Santorini just as a "connector island" and had a "brain freeze" about Chania. Working BOTh Crete AND Naxos is a challenge. There is ONE work-around;

• Ferry CHANIA for __ days, on last evening stay in HERAKLION.
• Ferry 8:40 daily "CHAMPION" ferry to NAXOS (arr. noonish) for __ Days
• Ferry to SANTORINI (for connection only -- 2 to 9 hours)
• Ferry 12:30 AM (o'night cabin); awake 7:30 AM in RHODES for __ days
• Either o'nite ferry or fly to ATH area, for __ days

I wouldn't count on Blue Star from Santorini to Rhodes, as the company seems to be discontinuing that route. Currently gtp.gr is showing it for a couple of weeks in June, and then once more in September:
https://gtp.gr/RoutesResults.asp?Sch...RSDO41,11531,6

Short of flying back to Athens for a connection to Rhodes, the only way I can see SportyMom23's itinerary to work is to start out at Naxos, take a ferry to Crete, then the Sky Express flight from Heraklion to Rhodes. All those legs have daily connections in summer. Of course the three ladies will most likely start and end their trip in Athens, so that means a flight or ferry to Naxos and then a flight back to Athens from Rhodes.

Thank you all for your information; very helpful. We have our agent working on the coordinatoes for Rhodes, Naxos & Crete...we are going first week of September; we will get a room with two beds and a cot, to accommodate three ladies. We are Rhodes (3 nights), Naxos (4 nights) Crete in Chiana (4 nights) and further south in Crete (3 nights) and 1 night in Athens at airport....we do not want to spend any time in Athens; been there; done that. We will be renting a car on the Island of Crete....thank you again....and re boutique hotels, meaning smaller unique hotels, as opposed to big, large hotels...not our preference at all. We have booked the Avalon Hotel on Rhodes, Liana Hotel on Naxos, and in Chiana (not sure yet), and southern Crete we have a hotel.

SportyMom23, I hope you are using a Greek based agent, e.g. https://www.fantasytravelofgreece.com or http://www.thesaurus.gr

Good luck, your sequence puzzles me, but perhaps you did not list your destinations in actual order. Liana is good choice in Naxos -- In Chania, I've been pleased with Hotel Palazzo (misnomer, not a palace, a small hotel with about ?? 15 rooms in a renovated Venetian mansion) but VERY well situated, with balconies on street & sea view & roof terrace as well. I don't know if they have rooms big enough for 3 however; are you ever good with a double + single booking?? Given your 3 far-apart destinations requiring expensive transport linkages, I'd think you're not too price-restricted.

I also echo Heimdall's concern: a Greece-based agent is best situated to handle last-minute glitches; another good one is Dolphin-Hellas.

Well, 2 weeks, 4 stops and so, not enough time in any location. To each his own I guess. You'll see the hotels, restaurants, bars perhaps and airports. Enjoy them.

Jan, the seequence puzzles me too, but I suppose they will do all by plane (although Rhodos dp 8.30 by Dodekanissos Seaways - Patmos ar 13.25, dp 19.35 by Hellenic Seaways - Naxos ar 22.15 would be possible every Thursday and Sunday)

sorry: every Sunday only (in September)