Hi All,
We (2) are heading to Greece end of May and first couple of weeks of June for 19 nights total (not incl. travel). We are in our mid-40's (getting up there!) We would like to do the following:
1/ Arrive Athens late evening. Spend 3 nights/2 days there.
2/ Travel to Naxos or Paros (suggestions?) for 4 nights.
3/ Then to Santorini for 4 nights.
4/ Off to Crete for 7 nights.
5/ Back to Athens for 1 night before return flight.
Does anyone have suggestions for travel methods between islands? Does the number of days at each sound reasonable? Would you reverse the order to:
Athens/Crete/Santorini/Naxos(Paros) to take advantage of progressively warmer weather into June or is there not a significant difference?
Thank you for any suggestions you could offer. I will read all the previous posts for hotel suggestions.
Thanks again.

Sounds good to me. I like the idea of going to Crete first. The nice thing about your timing is that it won't be crowded yet where you plan to go, so unless you intend to make fixed reservations everywhere you can just take it one stop at a time, and stay as long as you like before moving on.

I prefer Paros over Naxos. For me there's more to see and do.

Flying is of course less of a hassle and much faster so why not fly to Chania, Crete, make your way to Heraklion and take the highspeed ferry from there to Santorini, then on to Paros or Naxos by ferry before returning to Athens? Aegean Airlines has very cheap tickets right now.

http://www.aegean-air.gr/aegeanen/home/

I also like the idea of starting in Crete. Doing the longest leg of your trip first, and the shortest last, makes good sense. There is nothing wrong with doing it the other way round, though.

The difference in temperature between Paros/Naxos and Crete that time of year is not significant - maybe a couple degrees F. Crete is only about 200km (125mi) further south, after all.

Flying between Athens and Crete will save you a long ferry ride. The rest of your trip will be by ferry, although you could fly from Paros or Naxos back to Athens. Since you plan to spend a day in Athens before your flight home, the ferry would be just as convenient, IMO.

Two things to consider in your planning: the last weekend of May is a public holiday weekend, so ferries and flights leaving Athens on Fri and Sat will be heavily booked; the highspeed from Crete to Santorini doesn't sail on Jun 6th.

Your planned stops and times on each Island are ideal.
With respect to Naxos or Paros, both Islands have their own champions and whichever you choose you will enjoy either one. We have been to Paros 3 times and Naxos 6 times and I can say Naxos has better beaches for sure. Naxos town is larger and has more interesting features including a Venetian section with Kastro and a winding old market area and of course the Portera and the beautiful mountain villages.
You might try typing in Naxos vs Paros in the search spot on this page. There are 7 entries there that provide opinions from people who have been to both.

I also prefer Paros to Naxos. Naoussa, the village at the north of the island is beautiful and the main town of Parikia is lovely.
Maybe i am biased as i live here, although Tom Hanks and Billy Zane perhaps agree with me.