Revised - Naxos and Santorini
 

Thanks so much to those who replied to my first post regarding the possibility of combining Naxos with Milos. Your input was incredibly helpful! After considering the feedback and the ferry schedules, we have decided instead to spend 6 nights on Naxos and 3 on Santorini. Our current itinerary is as follows:

May 28 - Arrive Athens
May 29 - Depart for Naxos (high speed ferry at 7:00 a.m., hopefully)
June 4 - Ferry to Santorini
June 7 - Ferry or fly back to Athens, stay for 3 nights (then 2 in Amsterdam for a layover, which I'm sure will be fun)

Although final ferry schedules have not been posted, at seems that these plans should not pose a problem since there appear to be 2 daily trips from Athens to Naxos, and at daily trips from Naxos to Santorini, correct?

We have seen many postings about lodging in Santorini. We are considering Esperas, Volcanos Villas, Aspaki, or Cheldinoia Villas. Anyone have experiences or opinions in relation to these?

Since we are staying in Naxos for 6 nights, we would really like to stay in a great place - comfortable, with a good sized room or suite, nice pool, good breakfast, helpful proprietors, a view of the sea, etc. Also, location close to Naxos town seems to make sense, since this will allow proximity to restaurants, ferries for day trips, etc. We do plan to rent a car on some days, to explore inner villages. We do not need kitchen facilities, as I hope to avoid cooking which I do so often at home! Glaros and Naxos Royal were recommended, and I also looked at Villa Marandi. Does anyone have experience with these, or another recommendation for lodging that would be very enjoyable? Our budget is pretty open.

Finally, for the last part of the trip in Athens, we hope to book Attolos Hotel, but also looked at Fresh Hotel. Anyone have an opinion on these places? My husband would like only 2 nights for the end of the trip, in Athens, but as I have never been to Greece and would like to tour some of the classical sites, I thought 3 would be better. Any thoughts about this?

Thanks again for your wonderful input!

Vanessa

Looks like a good itinerary to me.

There is a Hellenic Seaways highspeed and a Blue Star departing Piraeus around 0730 most mornings for Paros and Naxos. The highspeed is quicker, but the Blue Star, a modern conventional ferry, has become very popular on that route. It's cheaper than the highspeed, and you can sit on the outside deck, watching the world go by. The highspeed has aircraft type seating, and the windows are usually coated with spray. The highspeed takes about 3½ hrs and the Blue Star about 5 hrs to Naxos. If you are in a hurry to get to Naxos, take the highspeed - if you want to enjoy the view and don't mind it taking a little longer, go Blue Star.

Esperas is an excellent hotel with a great view of the sunset. Volcano's Villas have a good reputation. They are on the outskirts of the village on the road to Fira. Their view of the caldera is one of the best in Oia. Aspaki sits out on a promontory all by itself in the premier location in the heart of the village. The rooms are really unique and wonderful. Chelidonia is in well-situated just below the main village square. The owners have created a very charming environment. The view of the caldera is very good.

They're all different and are all worth your consideration.

Thank you Heimdall, sounds like the Blue Star will be best for us. It seems worth the extra time to enjoy the trip!

Brotherleelove, I appreciate your input on the Santorini accomodations. All sound wonderful, and it appears that we can't go wrong.

Do either of you you know about ferries between Naxos and Santorini? I realize the schedule won't be finalized for a while, but can we assume that there will be at least daily connections between these islands in June? I found a flight from Santorini to Athens for only $19 Euro, so I'm tempted to book it, but the dates hinge a bit on when we can get to Santorini. Thanks much!

Hi

Rather than wasting the first night in Athens why not check if there's a connecting flight to Santorini on the day you arrive. Then take ferries to Naxos and Athens.

Worldinabag, I see your point, but in order to use our frequent flyer miles, we are leaving California on the 27th, then flying to Newark, Brussels, and Milan, before arriving in Athens on the 28th (yikes!). We don't get into Athens until that evening, and with all the stops, I worry we wouldn't make a connecting flight.

The Blue Star you will take to Naxos goes on to Santorini, so you will probably just hop back on the same ship for the onward journey. Actually there are several Blue Stars - the Blue star Paros and Blue Star Naxos are usually the ones going the Piraeus-Paros-Naxos-Santorini route during summer. They are virtually identical ships, so it doesn't matter which sails on that day.

Other ferries also go from Naxos to Santorini, so you will have several choices. You may want to consider taking the highspeed (or flying) back to Athens from Santorini.

I've stayed at both the Fresh Hotel and the Attalos. They are very very different hotels. The Attalos is older and a very basic budget hotel, its main attractions being its price and its location. It's lobby is dark and tiny.

The Fresh Hotel has only been open for a couple years, has a modern decor, a bright light colorful lobby, modern bedding modern rooms. It also costs twice as much as the Attalos.

Both are decent hotels, and which you pick may depend on your budget. Personally, I am not fond of the Attalos, but do occasionally stay there. It's not wonderful, but it has never been a nightmare either. I do like the Fresh Hotel very much.

Another Athens hotel you may want to consider is the Adrian Hotel. I like staying there and always pick one of the rooms with an Acropolis view. Nothing beats being able to lie in bed at night gazing at the lit-up Acropolis. The Adrian Hotel, which is within the Plaka area, is very conveniently located for seeing the city and enjoying its pleasures.

As for how long to stay in Athens, it depends on how much you like to cram into doing on a single day. I like spreading things out so that I can also enjoy sitting in coffee shops and watching the world go by. I've travelled to Athens regularly for the last 25 years and I never get tired of it. For me, 2 days in Athens for a first time visitor is way too short.

Have fun!

In May and early June you won't have any trouble at all getting from Santorini to Naxos. There will be at least one daily ferry, probably the morning car ferry. So go ahead and book your Aegean flight with confidence that you won't be stranded.

Thanks for all of the great information!

In Naxos, we are considering:

Kavos Studios
Naxos Royal
Villa Marandi
Ammos Studios

Anyone have experiences or recommendations about these? We hope to be relatively close to town, but don't mind a 20-30 minute walk if necessary. Thank you!

I've just discovered that Blue Star Ferries have published the 2007 summer schedule on their website. As always, Greek ferry schedules are subject to change, but this should give you enough to plan on: http://tinyurl.com/y4gsfk. Click on the 02/03/2007 - 18/06/2007 banner at the top of the page.

Kavos, Ammos and Maranda are all nice hotels out near the western beaches. These beaches are all great beaches but they lack things like shopping and a variety of dining places as they are quite remote.
If all you want is beaches then they are fine. (Although Maranda appears to be in the middle of an isolated beach near a salt marsh)
Naxos Royal is in my opinion the most upscale hotel in Naxos. It is on St George beach, which is a pretty good beach and is within a 10 minute walk to all the activities and sights of Naxos town.
We like to spend the morning exploring antiquities and shopping and then hit the beach in the afternoon and then back to the hotel for a siesta so St George beach is our choice, hands down. You can still visit the great beaches on the west coast by taking a quick taxi ride or the local bus.

This is extremely helpful Stanbr, thanks very much! Will think about it and choose based on location, as that seems to be the most important factor.

We stayed at Kavos on Naxos. Our main interest was the beaches and it is near some of the best. We had a car and I think anyone would want one to stay there. I was a tiny car but it was new and we traveled the island with it. The rental fee was very inexpensive. This was in May, 2005. I could look up the company if you would like.

Kavos was fine for us. We had one of their larger rooms/ suites. Ours had a small kitchen. We just used the frig. which was great. When we were there Kavos was run by a very nice English lady. I think her name was Barbara. She arranged the car rental for us. A short drive from Kavos was a village with three or four tavernas right on the beach. We ate dinner there each night for a very reasonable fee (including the house wine.) It was a nice experience.

Kavos has a beautiful pool. I think it the type called an infinity pool. Adjacent to it is a lounge/bar/breakfast area. We were comfortable at Kavos. We would probably return there because of the proximity to the beach.

As for hotel in Naxos: we stayed at Villa Marandi. Was SO impressed and happy with our stay there. Owners/staff were amazing, very friendly and accomidating. SUPER breakfast ... fresh sqeezed juice, dates, yogurt, pastries, including the freshest eggs you can get from the chickens right over the hill. The room was huge and private patio fabulous. The beach was private and deserted...we enjoyed just hanging out ourselves . It is quiet and a more peaceful setting if that's what you're looking for. You'll need a car or very short cab ride to town. I really recommend a car to explore the island... it's a fabulous days drive and you can also seek out some of the deserted beaches & coves along the way ; )

Hotel is Santorini: We stayed at Volcano View Villas and left after 2 nights... it was nice & view spectacular but it's a big place and we weren't into the crowded pool scene. After not being able to ever find a place to sit to enjoy the view we left and went to Sun rocks. http://www.sunrocks.gr/ It was exactly what we were looking for... quiet, private, and easy to walk into town & such. We were spoiled after Villa Marandi so we found Sun Rocks to be simular in scene.

Have a great trip! We LOVE Greece and I am sure you will too.

Thanks GBC and Baemel, for your input! In Naxos, we are leaning toward Kavos - our first three nights are 'low season' at only 75 Euro, and it really does look beautiful. I see the point about being outside of town, but we will plan long walks and cab rides home, bike rides, and/or will use our rental car. In San Diego, we routinely walk 30 minutes downtown to go out at night, so... Marandi looks quite quite nice too, but perhaps the beach surrounding is not quite as pleasant? Baemel, Sunrocks looks wonderful! I have contacted them for more information. We are definitely looking for a smaller place, but are hoping for a pool too, plus views, and this seems perfect. Thank you!

Hi Vanessa21,
we're doing a similar trip to yours. Our trip starts in june 25 though and we're going to stay 2 nights in Athens, 8 nights in Naxos and 4 nights in Santorini.
We're on our honeymoon so our goal is to relax and enjoy the islands.
We're staying at Hotels Galini in Naxos and Ikies at Santorini, still looking for a place in Athens.
I'm excited about this trip!
Hope you have a great time, happy planning!

We stayed at the Kavos in July 2006. We loved this hotel. The accommodation was great. The pool area was fab and the view was amazing.