So, was Akrotiri open, and, if so, how much time did it take to see?

We rented a car on a Monday and Akrotiri is always closed on Mondays...so I don't know. Esperas said they thought that it was closed for restorations, but I can't confirm that since it would have been closed anyways on the day I was able to go.

What a great review thank you!!! Followed your reccomendations. Found some of the restaurants you recommended expensive for quality and quanity. Our favorite restaurant by far was senor zorba. The view and food/drinks were amazing.(try the fajitas or bbq ribs yum)I took a chance and ordered a margarita on the rocks. We liked it so much on our next visit we orded a pitcher. We were also told that koukoumavlos was the best so we had to try it. What a hype! Below average cuisine at outrages prices. We rented a car and drove to Akrotiri.We ate at a couple of fish tavernas that were very good (I wish I could remember the name)
We stayed at the Kavaliri in Fira. Clean, quaint, and friendly,
It sounds like the mystery food you had was halva. I thought that was a turkish thing.
Our favorite beack was Kamari.

Thanks for all the info beanweb! One question for you - Do all of these restaurants accept Visa or Mastercard, or are we better off having Euros handy for all meals?

My wife and I are heading to Athens, Santorini, and Naxos for 8 days in 2 weeks. We can't wait. We're staying at Nikos Villas in Oia, anyone stayed there before? We are going to get a room in Naxos when we get there, anyone have any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

Hi OtisB-

Most of the restaurants we ate at did indeed accept mastercard and visa. The only exceptions were the smaller tavernas (for instance...I believe Nikolas only accepts cash, as did the Nets). We did use cash for bars, the small picnics we purchased at Melenios, and tavernas but other than that charged most items.

Your trip sounds fabulous - you will have a wonderful time! I wish I had some advice to offer regarding Naxos, but we stuck to Athens and Santorini. Have you tried posting in a separate thread? I am sure there are Naxos experts who would chime in!

Happy planning and travelling - please post a report when you return...always fun to relive the memories. :)

Hi Janie --

Sounds like you also had a great trip - we will have to visit Akrotiri next time!

I looked up Halva, but so far the pictures I've found don't look like the cake we ate. The cake was really thin, looked like it had been soaked in something dark (and was still a bit wet), then was cut into about 30 TINY little squares. It was topped with cinammon and was very dark in color. It was very odd...and oddly good (if that means anything).

Janie7 -- do you have contact info for Kavaliri in Fira? We stayed there years ago and are planning another trip to Greece and would love to do a repeat visit. beanweb24, thanks so much for such a wonderful trip report. Have printed it out to reference as we make plans.

That sounds like my kinda trip! We haven't been to Greece yet and this is REALLY tempting.

how was the weather when you were there? We are debating going for our honeymoon - 5/30 -6/12/2006, and are concerned about it being cool. Thanks :)

During the day, we thought the weather was perfect - every day (except one) was sunny and roughly 75. It was warm enough a few days to sunbathe in our swimsuits...but I never got into our hotel's pool since it was unheated.

Evenings were cooler. I was glad I brought a sweater and light jacket for wearing...I still insisted on having dinner outside every night even though it was chilly. It was too beautiful to sit inside!

I'm going from Istanbul to Santorini in May. If I take a plane there'll be a very long layover of about 5 hours. I was thinking of flying to Athens and then taking ferry to Santorini. Is this a viable option or do you recommend just taking the layover?

The ferry from Athens to Santorini is a 7-hour journey. Add in the time it takes you to get from the Airport to the Ferry Port (This is assuming you can catch a ferry right away, which is not very likely). You do the math.

Check with www.gtp.gr to see when the ferries to Santorini leave Piraeus in relation to your dates of travel and your arrival in Athens from Istanbul.