I understand that sometime in January Agean Air offers promo fares among the islands. We want to travel from Istanbul to Athens and then Athens to Rhodes. Agean has just opened up this route at a price of 120e and total travel time of 7 hours 10 minutes. Based on previous years, how much less expensive will the promo fares be in January? When in January do they usually begin?
Will there be any promo fares Naxos to Athens?

There will be no promo fares Naxos to Athens because it is not served by Aegean. It has one flight per day on Olympus on a small plane (55 seats max) and is always filled far in advance.

Aegean's promo fares are not limited to January. They're offered periodically all year long, a couple of months before the dates offered.

I don't understand the travel time. It takes 1 hour to fly from Athens to Rhodes. I suppose if you fly from Athens to Thessaloniki first before catching a connecting flight to Rhodes it might take that long, buy why would you?

Sometimes Olympic will offer promo fares. Sign up for both airlines' email newsletters and you'll be notified when promo fares are offered.

As brotherleelove wrote, "Sometimes Olympic will offer promo fares." There will never be a promo fare to Naxos, though, for one simple reason: Naxos is a loss-making route, subsidized by the government. All fares are fixed at an agreed rate.

There are 24 subsidized "Public Service Obligation" routes in Greece, mostly to the islands. The PSO system provides air service to routes that would otherwise be economically unviable. Olympic Air is the only Greek airline with aircraft capable of landing on Naxos' short runway, so it always ends up with the contract.

Re the "total travel time of 7 hours 10 minutes", that must include a 5 hour layover in Athens between flights. Actual flight time is 1hr 15min from Istanbul to Athens, and 45min from Athens to Santorini.

When there is a promotional sale on airfare from Athens to Santorini, would someone please post a "heads up" notice on here?

Marlib1951-

Go to the Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air websites and sign up for their email newsletters. They will notify you when promo fares are released.

I just booked a flight from Athens to Chania in May for 27 euros (tax was 33 euros.) I don't think it was a promotion but quite reasonable.

Judy, sometimes flights booked so far in advance are either cancelled or changed, so keep an eye out on the airlilne's website for changes, especially if you're making a same-day connection. If you see that your flight's been changed send an email to the airline with your booking information with a request for the next convenient flight you see. Don't wait for them to reassign your ticket to another flight or it might not be the one you want/need.

I've now signed up for e-newsletters for Aegean and Olympic. We will await promo fares and flight schedules that don't require a 4 hour layover.
Since there's only one flight a day Naxos to Athens I am considering a ferry to Paros, enjoy some of the day there and then fly Paros to Athens. Apparently the flights Paros to Athens are seasonal and not yet posted. I understand there are several flights a day from Paros to Athens. Anybody have recent history on number of flights? Last year's time schedule.

Hi Robbie,

Together, Aegean and Olympic have 10 daily flights between Athens and Rhodes in summer, so it should be possible to find a flight that fits better with the one from Naxos. For example, the Olympic flight from Naxos arrives Athens at 9:45am, and there is an Olympic flight to Rhodes departing at 12:40pm — less than 3 hours layover. BTW, there is a second flight from Naxos on Saturdays, departing from there at 2pm.

I often fly in and out of Paros, and have a copy of last summer's timetable. Paros is another PSO route with a short runway. There are 3 daily flights in summer, the last leaving for Athens around 4pm. The two earlier flights departed Paros at 7:50am and 12:35pm respectively. It would be possible to catch a morning ferry from Naxos and have a few hours on Paros before the afternoon flight departure, but it's difficult to advise without knowing when your flight to Rhodes departs Athens. Seats from Paros to Athens are scarce as hen's teeth — due to weight restrictions the DH8-100 aircraft take take only 18-20 passengers, and many of the tickets are snapped up by locals.

If you aren't in a hurry, there is another alternative. Blue Star has daily ferries to Rhodes, stopping at Syros or Santorini on alternate days. From either island the ferry departs late evening, arriving at Rhodes early the next morning. Book a cabin and you can sleep while you travel, saving a night's hotel bill and expensive air fares.

Thanks Heimdall. A previous post showed my itinerary but I'll repeat it so my itinerary is clear.
We arrive in Istanbul (LA-Chicago-Istanbul) and spend 4 days in Istanbul. Then we fly to Rhodes by way of Athens (this was where I saw the 4 hour layover in Athens). After 4 days, we take Sky Express to Crete for 6 days. Then we take a fast cat to Santorini for 3 days followed by a ferry to Naxos, 4 days. Then we get to Athens and home. The only flight to Athens from Naxos leaves at 10 am and our international flight leaves the next morning, so no time to spend in Athens this trip. I like the idea of ferry to Paros and later flight to Athens.
So my questions are:
Later on will there be more flights Istanbul-Athens-Rhodes next May (24th) that consume less of the day?
And what's the best way to snap up one of the scarce Paros to Athens tickets for the late afternoon flight on June 10? (A travel agent you might recommend? e-newsletter notice?)???

Why not book a morning flight from Istanbul to Bodrum for one night and take the morning ferry across to Rhodes? This will give you the opportunity to see the famous Crusader's Castle as well as experience a different sort of Turkish destination before moving on to Greece.

I think BrotherLee has given you a SUPER idea!! Check it out!

Thanks for the clarification. Brotherleelove's suggestion makes more sense than flying to Athens and then on to an island just off the Turkish coast.

The only way you can snap up those Paros-Athens tickets is to keep checking the Olympic website and book as soon as they appear on the timetable. You are competing for only 18-20 tickets, so you have to get in quickly. Be aware that Olympic sometimes changes departure times when the website moves into the summer timetables — that has happened to me.

Another possibility, which would give you more time on Paros, would be to forget the flight and take an afternoon ferry from Paros to Piraeus. Last year there was a daily Blue Star leaving Paros at 7:15pm, arriving Piraeus at 11:25pm. There was also a Hellenic Seaways highspeed about 4-5 days/wk leaving at 7:25pm and arriving Piraeus at 9:45pm. Ferry tickets will be available right up until the day of departure.

I should also mention that domestic flights in Turkey are quite reasonably priced.

Heimdall, I call that the "dinner ferry." You get a RESERVED ECONOMY seat ... but you can sit out on deck and watch the sunset, then go find a light meal in one of several cafes... then when you want to read, sleep or doze, go inside to your reserved seat (when you book, ask for seats in a side section these are the smallest sections, no thru traffic, quietest).

I'm back at this again. Regarding getting to Rhodes. We're going late May, too early for the direct ferries from Bodrum to Rhodes - that begins June 1st. In May, the ferry Bodrum to Kos departs at 9:30 am, arriving Kos 10:20 and departing Kos to Rhodes 4:20 arriving 6:20. We'd have to take either a 6:30 am flight on Pegasus that arrives in Bodrum at 7:40 to catch the ferry or take a flight at 8 pm the night before and overnight in Bodrum. This routing through cheap ($123 pp) sounds tiring (we're in our 60s & 70s) or am I missing something.
Olympic just opened up a better air connection. We could leave Istanbul on a 10:30 am flight, layover an hour and depart for Rhodes at 1:30 pm. Cost is $229. How much would we save off this price if we got Aegean promo fares for this route? I'm inclined to just get the tickets since I'll be traveling in Asia from mid December to mid January and unable to book then.
As far as getting back to Athens to fly home, your suggestions are terrific Heimdall and Traveljan about flying out of Paros or taking a ferry from Paros-Piraeus. I sometimes get seasick, so I imagine the slow Blue Star ferry is more stable and has less motion than the high speed. Even if we had to take the high speed ferry, I can always dose up on dramamine and sleep.
Once in Piraeus, I guess we'd overnight there (suggestions?) and take a taxi (or ??) to the airport the following morning for our 11:45 am international flight home.

Hi again,

Aegean promo fares are demand driven, designed to fill seats on slow days and early morning/late night flights. When booking connecting flights you have to take whatever is on offer — there may be a promo fare on one leg, but not the other. Sometimes Olympic Air tickets are cheaper than Aegean Airlines', so check both websites.

Hellenic Seaways highspeed ferries are much larger than the flying cats and sea jets that people complain about. In most weather, there is little or no sensation of movement from inside the cabin, even at full speed. Seas are usually calm in late May. If there <i>is</i> a highspeed running from Paros to Piraeus that day, it may be worth taking simply due to its earlier arrival time. Tickets in highspeed business class (very comfortable) are about the same price as air fare from Paros to Athens.
http://www.hellenicseaways.gr/index.asp?a_id=236

You have more than one choice of where to stay upon return to Athens the night before your flight home. There are some good hotels in Piraeus, but the ones near the docks aren't among them. It doesn't take all that long to get from the docks to central Athens. If it doesn't break your budget, consider staying at the airport Sofitel. It's expensive, but only five minutes from the airline check-in counters.

Forgot to mention: go on the Sofitel website and you can make a nonrefundable booking at a reduced rate — still expensive, but a substantial savings.