Transportation questions - Greece - fly/ferry
 

Thanks, Fodorites, for some great info in the past. I've got a few transport questions for those of you experienced with greece.

We're heading over there in June/July.

1) Is it safe to book with Olympic Air (considering their financial difficulties and possible restructuring)? We've found decent prices (better than Aegean air), but don't want to lose our money if they go under.

2). Does Aegean have sales later in the closer it gets to summer? We snagged a great fare from Santorini back to Athens, but haven't found much better than Olympic

3). Is Sky Express still around? Their website shows no flights (even if I request something in the next few weeks) and they haven't returned any emails.

4.) Is there an overnight ferry from Athens/Pireaus to Samos in June?

Thanks for any help with these questions. I'm very much a planner (and want to have some back-ups in case something falls through).

RogerHopper

Regarding Olympic, your money will be safe with them if you book. Lastest news I can find is that they will probably be replaced by a slimmed-down airline which will enherit its routes, aircraft, etc. Slimmed-down, to me, means that it will cut some of its unprofitable routes and flights, but no one knows for sure at this point what will happen. The European Commission is forcing this action, but at the moment there is a lot of foot-dragging by the Greek government.

For what it's worth, this year I will be taking the ferry instead of booking my usual flight from Athens to Paros. If you have a choice between Olympic and Aegean, odds are that means you are going to Santorini or Mykonos. Were it me I would book with Aegean just for the certainty, but you could take a chance with Olympic and be prepared to take the ferry if things go wrong.

Ironically, I received my Olympic Airlines frequent flyer statement by email this morning. :-o

Looking back at your post, I see you are going to Samos. Regarding an overnight ferry, you will have to wait a few months for the timetables to be published. In the meantime, I just received my 2008 edition of <i>Greek Island Hopping</i>, and it shows an overnight ferry from Piraeus to Samos every day except Sunday. <b>These were last year's timetables, so must be taken with a grain of salt.</b> Nevertheless, this is a regular route, so you should be able to rely on an overnight ferry to that island.

Sky Express, as far as I know, is alive and well. Keep looking for their 2008 timetable.

Thanks Heimdall,

As luck would have it, the day I'm trying to go from Athens to Samos is a Sunday! alas... Plan B... maybe Olympic or Aegean for that portion.

We were hoping to overnight on the ferry, arriving in Samos on Monday morning while also saving some money on hotel at the same time.

Any ideas when Sky Express and/or the ferry companies put out the summer schedule?

Thanks.
Roger

Don't give up hopes just yet for an overnight ferry to Samos on Sunday. As I said, the <i>Greek Island Hopping</i> guidebook can only give previous year's sailings, and 2008 will be different. Over the winter ships change hands, are retired, and new ones enter the fleet. Most of the sailings from Piraeus to Samos were by Express Pegasus, which is owned by Hellenic Seaways, so you could check their website.

When will the ferry companies put out the summer schedule? Sometime in the spring, but I don't know exactly when. There are several different shipping lines operating ferries in the Aegean, and each releases its own timetable. Blue Star Ferries hs already released its timetable for the whole of 2008, but others wait until much later. To complicate matters, timetables change every couple weeks in the spring, as demand increases during the approach to high season. You just have to keep checking the websites.

Thanks again,

Who publishes the book you mentioned (Greek Island Hopping)?
I might like to pick up a copy.

I went today to find a few good Greece guidebooks, but most were published in 2006!

I'm looking for 2008 editions.

Thanks.

Roger

Thomas Cook publishes Greek Island Hopping and the 2008 edition just came out a few weeks ago. (A month after I bought the 2007 version, drat.) It's available on Amazon.

Thomas Cook (UK) puts it out (TC is the world's oldest tour co I think --&quot;cook's Tours&quot;??-- tho I don't think it does tours any more). it comes out in the Spring sometime.

I bought it from Amazon.com, and it just arrived in the mail a few days ago. See http://tinyurl.com/3b3dd8 if you are based in the US, or http://tinyurl.com/297mrg if you are in the UK.

That is the only guidebook to Greece that is published annually, as far as I know.