Greek Pelion....Homebase? Nice Accommodation?
 

I would love the benefit of advice from people who know this area. Our large family of 20 (all adults) will have 3 days following our trip to the Zagori Villages and Meteora this June, and we want to maximize the little time we have left at the end of the trip at nice beaches/seaside towns.....which led me to the Pelion area as we will be diving. Am I correct?

We will be visiting Meteora on a Wednesday and most of the family will need to arrive in Athens at some point on Saturday to fly back to the US on Sunday. We can either arrange transportation to drive to Athens or we could fly.....no flights from Volos to Athens though, correct? Just Skiathos?

So my dilemma is whether it is best from a time perspective to stay on the mainland and then drive back to Athens, or should we go to Skiathos or Skopelos via ferry from Volos and then fly to Athens from Skiathos?

The next question would then be where to stay...we prefer to all be in the same *nice* hotel or vacation rental if possible, very close to the ocean.

I appreciate any advice, hotel recommendations and tips!

Standard advice for those holidaying on the islands is to get back to the mainland at least a day before your flight home. I have never heard of anyone doing it the other way round before. I think the best advice is to go directly back to Athens by road rather than relying on a ferry <i>and</i> a flight — it will be cheaper and quicker.

Most car hire companies do not allow to drop car wherever and when they allow, a heafty fee is involved, so if you hire cars, this might be something to consider. It has been a few years since I have been on Pelion, but I feel it is a different world from SKiathos and the islands and if you have a chance to explore it, go for it. It is more likely you may visit an island with an airport some time on the future, while this is not always the case with mainland locations where a car is more or less necessary to reach and explore.
In all my visits I was based on Portaria and Makrinitsa up on the mountain, so I can not help with specific sea side resort,but for what it worths, some of my friends rave about Agios Ioannins/Horefto area.
I hope someone else might help with more specific information.

It's also been a few years since I was in Pelion, but it made a lasting impression on us as it is a spectacular location. If I understood the question correctly, I would advise driving back to Athens from Pelion and not take ferries and go that way round. It's only about a three hour drive.
As for nice places to stay, we enjoyed the village of Mouresi because it was close to Ayios Ioannis town and beach but far enough away from the noise of the town, close to Damouchari and Milopotamos beach, which are also very beautiful. We stayed at the Old Silk Store but I am not sure if that is still in operation. The English owner was very nice and her place was gorgeous. There are several villages worth stopping at, eg the ones already mentioned, Makrinitsa and Portaria and many others.

Thank you all for your kind advice! Yes, I agree @Heimdall that normally we would do islands first and then mainland, but this particular trip is a "big fat greek reunion" with 42 of us coming from the states to meet some of our family for the first time, so that priority has informed the itinerary so far
(arrive Athens --> Corfu --> mtn village in the Zagori --> Meteora --> beach?? --> Athens)

The last part of the trip will *only* have 20 of us :) and we will have bus transport from Meteora to wherever. In my research so far, it seemed somewhat equal time and cost-wise to drive down the Pelion east coast (and back around again to Athens) as it would be to ferry from Volos to one of the Sporades islands and then fly back to Athens....if one was "better" than the other as far as splendor/activities/amenities I figured that might make up our minds, but every option seems amazing!

I have about 3-4 hours sunk into research trying to find the best village/area to stay in on the Pelion, but I am finding this area to be more sparse with nice options? Is there a resource to find nice vacation home rentals for this area? Ideally we are looking for views, within 10 minutes to water, walking distance (preferably) to tavernas, good location to other beaches/villages and nothing too tourist developed.

Thanks again for all of your help thus far! I feel that I am getting closer :)

The difference in options of drive vs. fly is that dropping your car on the East Coast will -- as others warned above -- involve a HEFTY fee. Why? Because Greece does not have the major networks of car fleets that constantly are interchanging, as in the US. An Athens agency, to retrieve a car from the other coast, might have to send another car with TWO drivers to get it... hence the major cost.

Thank you again for the help thus far. As an update, we have decided to stay on the Pelion mainland and will plan to drive back to Athens to maximize our time (we only have 3 days in Pelion).

Can you help me decide whether to stay on the Aegean side or on the gulf side? From what I gather, it looks as if the hiking and dramatic sea views are more on the Aegean coast, although there is less nice accommodation seaside....more villages in the hillside that you would need to drive down to the beach, which are lovely, but just a difference.

Seems that the gulf side may have more development as far as hotels and tavernas and has more flat terrain, but not as pretty water? Am I close?

We are looking for quiet, but yet walking distance to tavernas and beach if possible. There are some of us who want to simply relax on the beach, and others looking to hike and explore.....and there are 20 adults so it is proving difficult to find large enough accommodation!

The villages that look like the best options so far are Horefto, tsagarada, Mouresi and Agios Ioannis......Is Horto on the gulf side a nice location as well? What am I missing?