Greece Itinerary Advice: Road trip + Crete
 

We have 10-11 days in Greece. After spending many hours with our Fodor's guidebook, here are the top sights we want to see:

- Athens (2 days)
- Delphi (1 day)
- Peloponnese (Corinth, Mycenae, Napflion, etc) (2 days)
- Meteora Monasteries (1 days)
- Crete, with a day trip to Santorini (4 days)

We will be starting in Athens. We want to go to Crete last because we plan to fly directly from Crete to our next destination. We are figuring out how to best get to all the sights in between. We don't want to fly, so we were planning to rent a car. It looks like Athens > Delphi> Peloponnese is a logical drive, and then we can take a ferry to Crete. BUT the monasteries seem to be 3-4 hours out of the way, so it would be quite a detour to get to them.

Any advice on how to sequence our destinations? Does our timing look right? It's a lot of different places, but we love road trips so the idea is to take scenic routes where possible, so the driving is part of the fun. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Meteora is totally out of your way, and about 260 km north of Athens.
Now including all the places you want to see in one itinerary could look like this :
Athens - Corinth - Nafplio then continue to Delphi via Rio/Antirio bridge, passing through Nafpaktos and Galaxidi and finally drive from Delphi to Meteora and back to Athens.

You could also skip Meteora and drive from Nafplio to Olympia and from there to Delphi.
The roads from Nafplio to Olympia and Delphi- Meteora are very scenic :)

I second what clausar said, but I really suggest you drop Meteora. OK, it's spectacular but it is out of the way and you only have a few days. If you want Byzantine, extend the Peloponnese circle to Mystras -- amazing place, and has some working churches. So do a loop from Athens via Corinth-Epidavros-Nafplion (include Mykines & Tiryns on the second day), then drive to Sparta-Mystras and back up north to Patra and the bridge. If you go along the west coast you can fit in Olympia as well, it's a great site. Then Delphi & back to Athens. Then Crete from Athens.

I would skip Santorini day trip, expensive and overrated, but then I am prejudiced.

OR: an alternative. Do Delphi as a day trip from Athens -- yest, it IS a must see.

Then the Peloponnese route: Corinth, Epidavros OR Mykines on the way to Nafplion, night in Nafplion, then a drive to Mystras, then to Gythio.

Night there, lovely place.

Take a ferry to Crete -- Kissamos -- via Kythira & Antikithyra (not everyday, you need to time the itinerary). Kithyra is lovely, but you won't have time to visit, but even looking on the way is good.

A night in Kissamos. Next day drive to Chania (best town on Crete), then to Heraklion via Phaistos on the way.

A night in/near Heraklion. Heraklion, the museum there & Knossos the next day.

If you insist on Santorini, do it on day 3.

Chill out on day 4, or instead have an extra day in Western Crete -- beaches at Balos (from Kissamos) or Elafonissi (ditto, and a great loop of a drive from Kissamos via Falasarna to there and back through Topolia gorge) are tropical and lovely, before setting off towards Chania & Heraklion.

I assume your onward flight is from Heraklion.

I totally agree with poster above.
If you would fly to Crete, you'd save valuable time. You can fly into Heraklion or Chania.I wouldn't do day trip to Santorini. Or fly to Santorini, spend a day and then ferry to Crete.

In my opinion, trying to do Santorini and Crete in 4 days including travel time is too much.
But if you are determined, I think HappyTrvlr has the best suggestion - fly to see Santorini for one day then ferry on to Crete.

Thank you! @magda_healey - thank you for the detailed suggestions, so helpful!

The monasteries look gorgeous, but we will probably skip them as per everyone's advice :(

We were not planning to see Santorini initially, but the guidebook said it is one of the most beautiful islands in the world...and everyone I know who's been to Greece stopped by Santorini and loved it. Is it really skippable?

I love the pictures of meteora, but I was not as impressed with them in person. I do not know why,but delphi is wonderful. I think a drink over looking the caldera on Santorini is one spectacular site. I would not miss that. Take the day away from meteora and go to santorini. I also feel that a trip to greece is not complete without being on the sea and a ferry ride fits the bill. Enjoy!

Also, Crete is great and has the best food.

Having just returned from a wonderful holiday in Greece, a few thoughts come to mind. Do not take the train into Athens - my husband had his wallet stolen, as it was very, very crowded. We stayed at Home Sweet Hotel nr Acropolis and loved it. However, we did not feel safe in Athens.

I have been to all the places mentioned and my favorites firstly are Santorini, Meteora, Delphi, Epidaurus; then Messini (sth), Nemea, Olympia; then Mycenae, Corinth, Sounion, Knossos & Phaestos. A wonderful hotel nr Napflion is Sunset hotel at Xiropigado that I like much more than Napflion.

Happy to give more details. Enjoy planning.

Magda's suggestion of a ferry from Gythio in the Peloponnese to Kissamos on Crete is a good one, but the ferry runs only once per week (on Thursdays). Your entire itinerary would hinge on that one ferry. Apart from that you would have to go back to Piraeus and take an overnight ferry, or fly from Athens to Chania or Heraklion.

Santorini is, indeed, a beautiful island, but do you really have time? If you do want to stop there it would probably work better to fly from Athens to Santorini, stay overnight, then go on to Crete by catamaran. Frankly I think you already have enough on your plate for 10-11 days in Greece. :-)

I second the fly-to-Santorini then Catamaran to Crete suggestion if you have to do Santorini. Yes, it IS special but it sometimes seems to me that everywhere in Greece is. It's been a while since I was in Athens but I didn't feel unsafe there at all, inclduing the metro, apart from pickpocket threat as in any crowded big city, esp. on buses and suchlike.

DO try to go west on Crete!

Good luck and I am sure you'd love it.

Athens has changed dramatically in the last year. The country is in upheaval, which is focused on Athens. A cursory look at news items in Athens will indicate the unrest and new measures being taken against those who look 'different'. This has included tourists unfortunately.

Susannah
There is no unrest in Athens... and no changes either in the last year.... i am an Athenian and i haven't noticed any dramatic changes at all.

What are these new measures against those who look different that you are referring to?

I went out of my way just to see the monasteries at Meteora! I loved them!

Hi Clausar

http://greece.greekreporter.com/2013...lice-beat-him/

One example.

This obviously is not going to effect many tourists but it did effect one.

We were told by our hotel to be very careful. We have been to Greece many times in the past 25 years but wouldn't return to Athens at the present time. We love Greece with its many great people, fantastic archaeological sites, and diversity of beautiful landscapes.

Susannah

I know this case, but i would never generalize and say that Athens is not safe because of that.
I live in Athens and i feel very safe,i use the metro every day, ( especially the blue line which you used as well ) nothing ever happened to me, nor to people i know.

Omonoia and a part near Athinas street were places with mostly illegal immigrants and drag addicts, but since October the police has started excessive controls in the centre of Athens and the situation has changed completely.

If you stayed near the Acropolis, you stayed in one normal residential area, don't see any reason why you felt unsafe.
Maybe because of the stolen wallet?

Clausar

I am sure you are correct that losing the wallet made us feel insecure in Athens but not the rest of Greece. However, we were warned by our hotel, the police and the embassy about the escalation of violence and crime in Athens at the present time.

<i>However, we were warned by our hotel, the police and the embassy about the escalation of violence and crime in Athens at the present time.</i>

That may be true, but any increase in crime will have been from a very low base, leaving Athens still safer than most other capital cities. Pickpocketing has become a problem in many European cities: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/PressCe..._Releases.html

The one isolated case of Athens police roughing up a tourist is regrettable, but as an American I recall many more serious cases in my own country.