We are hoping to go to Greece this year for about two weeks, with a lot of the time spent in Peloponnese, and maybe an island or two. We want to tour historical sites and nice towns, eat and drink and spend time at the beach and in the water. Will it be hot enough for the beaches in early to mid October? (for example, from Sept 26 - Oct 11)? I'm wondering if we should do an island first for beaches and then drive around Peloponnese and tour Athens later in the trip when it's a bit cooler? Or will we be OK with the beaches the whole time. We love one or two full beach days, but then dips in to the sea here and there as we're touring around. We also enjoy when the beaches and towns are still a bit lively (but not crowded). Will it be too quiet at that time? We had planned for September which I know would have been better but commitments got in the way.

We're very intrigued by the Peloponnese history and landscape, but maybe there is there a better place in Greece to go at that time of year for what we're looking for?

I would recommend your entire time in the Peloponnese.

It offers everything an island does and a lot more.

A lot easier to drive to than flying/ferry to an island.

It's filled with history and archeological sites, mountains, coastline, out of the way villages, back roads, and so much more.

The time you have will give you just a "taste" of what the Peloponnese has to offer but if you plan properly and have a good route/destinations researched you can see a lot of what most people miss by only thinking that Greece is just about islands.

The best guide is the Cadogan Guide as it's filled with more info than any other guide. While it was last published in 2010 it's still relevant.

An alternative would be the Bradt Guide, more up to date but no where near the info of the other guide.

If you are interested you can read my trip report of last fall (late Sept/early) October with also a link to my photos.

It's from another travel forum but should be OK here.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopi...loponnese.html

Thanks crazyh We are definitely leaning towards sticking with the Peloponnese. Your trip report is helpful. Did you spending any time at the beaches or swimming? I imagine the beaches on the Mani would have warm enough water at that time of year?

HI JSG:

I'm not really a beach person even though I love the coastline and seaside villages.

I did stop at some beach areas just to wander around but didn't spend any time on the beach or in the water.

However, from past experiences in other parts of Greece I did some beach time and took dips on several islands and a pebble beach on the back side of Nafplio.

From what I saw in the Peloponnese most beaches were almost deserted and some of the more remote ones were empty.

So if you like uncrowded beaches and still warm water you'll love most beaches there.

The first half of my trip to the Peloponnese the weather was very warm and a bit humid but the second half after a late afternoon thunderstorm where I was the weather turned much cooler but still comfortable for short sleeve shirts most of the time, even at night and probably good beach weather.

Obviously there is no guarantee what the weather will be like but from 10 trips to Greece in October the weather was great!

You could look at some stats on a weather page, but I agree with crazyh--explore the Peloponnese and there's tons of coastline to take advantage of. I swam near Kardamyli, but it was in late May--and there is a spring at this location that keeps the sea somewhat cool.
You might do some digging about beaches and then plan your loop accordingly. Gialova looks gorgeous for example.
I don;t think island versus mainland will make the difference but depth of seabed and seasonal luck.

Thanks for the advice yorkshire !

I agree, stick with the Peloponnese and Athens.

Actually some of Greece’s best beaches are in the Peloponnese, and weather will easily be warm enough to swim in October, or even later. Spend some time in the south, in Laconia and Messina, which have some beautiful seaside towns. When it’s windy on the islands it is usually calmer in the Peloponnese, and with no ferries to catch you don’t have to worry about autumn storms.

An eye opener for me was a visit to Ancient Messene, near Kalamata. This ancient site is not as well known as the ones near Nafplio, but it’s enormous and well restored. One day when I was there in mid September I had to wait for people to appear in order to give perspective to the huge stadium. I think there were only about another dozen visitors while we were there.

I'm another who was amazed at the Messina Archeological Site.

It's in a beautiful rural location, well, presented, neat, organized and amazing that so much is still left/standing.

Most "ruins" are just that ruins but Messina is as good as it gets for an archeological site and the best thing it's not well known and if you go in October you could be just one of a small handful of tourists.

I haven't been to Olympia but from most accounts Messina is better, less commercialize and far less tourists.

It's a must if you are in the area.

+1 for Ancient Messene.

We visited the Peloponnese in mid to late October 2019 when the daytime air temperatures were certainly still warm enough to tempt one to swim. We did not find time to try, though.

Voidokilia beach looks dreamy. There are many more, and according to this web site sea temperatures in much of the Peloponnese can range between 21C and 25C.

Vouliagmeni Beach near Athens remains one of my fondest if long-ago memories; recent reviews suggest it’s still clean and attractive. It’s open into November, if that gives you an idea.

https://seatemperature.info/peloponn...mperature.html

If you want another perspective, 2weeks in the Peloponnes area would have been too much for me. We visited in May, 12 days: 9 days islands and 2 days Peloponnes/ Athens. We should have allowed one more days in Peloponnes but depends how much history that you want to delve into. Many sights are fairly close, so you can do 2-4 per day unless you desire lengthy stays at each one. Really is remarkable.

I have no business replying to this as I haven't been to the islands and don't know about October beach weather

But we spent a week in Nafplio in April and had a fabulous time. There is so much to see within comfortable day trips (and you can obviously do the other beach-y areas). If you spent the entire time on the peninsula it also gives you the chance to return to Athens via Meteora; which is fabulous. (although adding some driving time)

We stayed at this hotel in Nafplio - really recommend it

https://www.nafplioagamemnon.gr/