Bern_Lor

We are treating ourselves to about 15 days in Greece from Sept. 23 to Oct. 8.
So far we have narrowed the trip down to Santorini 4 nts (volcano view villas), Paros (or Naxos)3 nts (no hotel picked yet), Crete 5 nts (Chania area) and Athens (Attalos hotel)3 nts. We will likely rent a car on Crete, any other suggestions? re Paros or Naxos, must see sights, beaches etc? We both enjoy historical sights, hiking, beaches, music and Food!

Cicerone

There is a very good series of walking guides to many destintaions in Europe published by Sunflower Books. I first read about them on this site. I have used their books for the Amalfi coast and Florence and found them to be very useful and helpful. Their website is http://www.sunflowerbooks.co.uk/walking_titles.htm. They rate hikes by difficulty and time it takes to complete all or each section, and give good directions on how to reach each walk by public transport. I see that they have guides for Crete as well as other Greek islands and areas, and that the Crete books have suggested car trips. You might want to take a look.

I assume your itineary includes at least a few day trips by ferry, better yet would be a few day cruise.

Edward2005

Lipsi is a cute little island with hardly any tourism. You'll have the beaches nearly all to yourselves, even in high season. No hotels on the island, but families rent rooms to visitors. This is a great way to get intimate with Greece.

All this was the case when I last visited in 1992, but from what I've read it hasn't changed much.

stanbr

My wife and I celebrated our 25th anniversary on Naxos. As a matter of fact we will be returning this June for our 30th.
It's a large Island that has a good number of tourists but is not overrun like some of the more popular islands.
The tourist attractions and antiquities tend to be very well done with lots of accommodation and eating opportunities.
Lots to do in the main town, nightlife if you want it and great beches. We like to walk into town and do marketing in the morning and spend a couple of hours each afternoon on St George beach part of the main town. It's well worth renting a car on Naxos and visiting some of the interior towns and antiquities.

We also stayed at Attilos in Athens. Probably the best value near the Acropolis. Be sure to spend time on the rooftop bar. Aa great view of the acropolis.

Bern_Lor

Thanks all for the feedback. We are starting to narrow down the options to specific towns and hotels. Any comments on hotels in Crete?? We are considering Chania for a couple of nights and Agios Nikolaos for a couple nights. Also Paros towns and hotel recommendations.

Thanks.. the planning is part of the fun isn't it!!!

e_t

Do you have to go to Agios Nikolaos since it's quite far away from Chania. I think you need to concentrate in area near Chania, or perhapsgo to Rethymnon. In fact I like Rethymnon better than Chania. Plakias on the southern coast is not far from Rethymnon. DO the Samaria gorge if you go at the right season. Hope this helps.

Vera

I think it sounds like a good trip, although 4 nights in Santorini might be one too many. Crete is fabulous. We stayed seven days and drove back and forth across the island every day seeing sites(Minoan) and sights(mountains and beaches). We split the week with half on the east side as you are planning, but we went farther east to the little town of Sitia. Mostly you can't go wrong. And also, on those dates you can just book as you go unless that makes you extremely nervous. Crete doesn't "shut down" like the smaller islands do in the winter, and the water is very warm all year, particularly on the south . Be careful that the ferry schedules are not abbreviated during your stay.
Vera

welovedonegal

bern_lor: the attalos hotel is very central in athens and the view of the acropylis from the little roof top bar is excellent. but it is a very basic hotel and fine for just a bed for the night. we stayed there and that was all we wanted as we were out all day.

on crete shop around for car hire. you can usually strike a bargain.

as someone else said here, the journey from chania to agios nikalaous is quite long (about six hours or thereabouts).

elounda is a place you could consider, very nice little unspoiled village on the north east of the island.

another lovely little village with a pretty harbour is sissi which is only a few miles from elounda. the best beach in that area is the archealogical beach - any local will tell you how to get there. not many tourists, lots of greeks at the weekends though. huge sandy beach. you pay about 10 euro for two sundbeds and an umbrella.

unlike another poster here, i would not suggest the samaria gorge unless you are super fit, have really strong hiking boots, can stand the extreme heat there and want to be herded in like sheep amongst dozens of tourists. awful! (but some people loved going there).

in iraklio, the capital, you should dine at least one night in loukoulos (spelling may be wrong). it is a beautiful restaurant in the centre of the city. excellent food, wine, service, and setting and reasonable too.

santorini is supposed to be beautiful and you can take a boat from crete to it. not for people with vertigo however.

another thing you might need to know. when you are driving on the roads, locals will come up behind you and beep their horns. they are simply asking you to move in to the side to let them pass and are not being rude, it is just the way there.

have a lovely holiday.

Grandmere1

We stayed at VVV on Santorini, also, and the view from your private terrace will be beyond spectacular!

I have not hiked the Samaria gorge, but contrary to what an above poster said, I know lots of people who are not "super fit" who have hiked it, 11 mi, all downhill. If you like hiking, I imagine you would enjoy it. And by the end of September, it should not be very hot on Crete.

We much preferred the western part of Crete to the eastern, east of Rethymnon. Elounda is a pretty little spot, but Ag. Nik, IMO, is a touristy resort town that becomes noisy at night. Western Crete is much more the "pure Cretan" experience. One comparison: the music you hear in and around Chania and Rethymnon is Cretan; the music in Ag Nik is American rock and roll blasting out of the cafes.

It should not take 6 hours to get from Chania to Ag. Nik; Chania is 95 mi. west of Iraklion, and from Irak. to Ag. Nik is another 135 mi.

The water in Souda Bay (around Chania) was ok for swimming in mid-May, but not warm. They do say, however, that swimming is possible on the southern coast most of the year. Crete, at that point, is closer to Africa than it is to Athens.

Santorini is a gorgeous island, and Crete is wonderful with diverse landscapes, sites, and ways to spend your time. Have a super trip!

Bern_Lor

Excellent help all. We are now down to picking hotels and cities. Can we base our entire stay in Crete in Chania, or would anyone suggest a secondary location (maybe not as far away as Ag.Nik?) We are in very good health and are very much looking forward to hiking Samaria Gorge and perhaps even climing Mt. Ginglos(sp?)
We really want to see Sifnos instead of Paros but the travel agent (Fantasy Travel) claims that the ferry only operates a couple of days a week in Sept. Are there any other options that aren't too expensive (private charters?) from Santorini to Sifnos (then of course we need to get off Sifnos somehow) So many choices and decisions !!!

Ozarksbill

I'm no expert, but I do think you might consider a hotel in Iraklion for a base, take a ship to Santorini, car to Chania and Rethymnon. I agree that four nights in Santorini would be a bit much but then you are real hikers. My memory of Chania is a relaxed Sunday afternoon lunch with everyone out strolling. En route is the village of Myrtia with a Kazanzaki museum...we had lunch in Mohos.

I take it you have already seen Knossis? Everyone going to Crete surely should see these ancient ruins. You mention Athens and of course there is much to see in that part of Greece.

Good luck...Bill [email protected]