I am traveling to Athens in mid November and want to know the best itinerary for five days? I tend to travel last minute and make plans when I get there. How many days should I spend in Athens? Are the islands worth visiting this time of year and which ones? I am basically looking for the best way to spend my time.

I am not a big fan of Athens. It is very polluted, and you will find the islands much more beautiful, far less expensive, and a lot friendlier. I would spend one day in Athens to see the Acropolis and any other sights you want to take in, and then head out to one of the islands. On the Forums Home Page, click on "Past Hosted Forums" and you will find a great one hosted by Lea Lane in October on the Greek islands, which had many threads discussing where to go at this time of year. She highly recommended Crete and Santorini, among others. I believe she said temps would mostly be in the 60s F. Ferry service declines after October so you may need to check on that and you may need to fly instead. The upside is crowds are down and you may be able to get good deals at those hotels that are still open in Nov.

Second Lisa's take on Athens: see the Acropolis, the archaeology museum, and the Plaka - then, get outta there. We stayed on Naxos in mid-October; cool, not swimming weather, a couple of days of rain. Head for the islands...

Lisa's advice is excellent. Se the major sights of Athens and then leave.

Agree with previous posters that about 1 -2 days in Athens is enough. But given the time of year, and the amount of time to get to the islands you might consider some of the other sights on the Mainland instead. You can make a day trip to Delphi from Athens which is fabulous. You should be able to book a bus tour through your hotel after you arrive if you want. You might spend a day or two in Napflion which is a great base for sightseeing, and also ahs some terrific restaurants. You can see Mycenae, Tirins, the theater at Epidauraus and probably other ancient sites I'm forgetting, from there. <BR> <BR>If ancient ruins and archaeology interest you, I think the Pelopenesus is a better way to spend time in November than the Islands.

I'll be the lone dissenter and say there's tons of things to do in Athens, and as with any city, the amount of pollution varies day to day and by the seasons. However, it can be pretty awful so if mid November is a bad time for it (sorry, I don't know personally) it could be quite unpleasant. In addition to the Acropolis, the Plaka and the Museum I'd add Lycabettos, the Agora, the Temple of Zeus, the National Gardens, changing of the guard in Syntagma Square, the Tower of the Winds and the church of St. John of the Column, all or most of which you could do in 3 days. Three day trips I loved were to Delphi, Sounion, and the Monastery of Daphni. I posted in greater detail about all on Lea Lane's Past Hosted Forum on the Greek Isles.