Olympic vs Aegean
 

Has anyone found either of these 2 airlines preferable for inter island hopping? I see that Aegean is cheaper, but I can pick up Olympic tickets in NYC prior to my arrival. Please advise. Thanks

I used Olympic last year and it was fine. But apparently it seems to have some really bad reviews. I was in Santorini and shared a cab to the airport with an older couple. The woman asked -- "Which airline are you flying? I hope not Olympic." Of course I was flying Olympic and she explained that there had been a strike and her travel agent warned them that they should not fly Olympic. Fortunately my own experience was better. I do remember, though, that my flight from Rome to Athens was delayed, but since I didn't have a connecting flight, that worked out fine.

Although I haven't flown with Aegean yet, I've noticed that you can buy etickets from their website. I think that's a great advantage, especially considering how much cheaper their fares are.

As far as strikes are concerned, it's completely unpredictable. I wouldn't base my choice on that. With Greece gearing up for the Olympics this summer, my best guess is that neither of these Greek airlines is crazy enough to cause trouble anytime soon.

I used Olympic and it was great--no problems, no strikes, and good value. And if there is a strike, get your money back and take the ferry.

I flew on Aegean Air last week from Athens to Rome and had a great experience. I bought the ticket from their website and had no problems.

I'm greek and live in Greece. Olympic has a wider spectrum of destinations in Greece compared to Aegean. It also offers more flights per destination. As far as quality of flight is concerned both airlines are pretty much the same, however Aegean planes are newer and more pleasant. For a destination served by both airlines, I always prefer Aegean since it's way more reliable than Olympic.