Greek Island Hopping

Aspiration

Myself and a friend are planning on going to Greece to go island hopping but we don't have a clue where to start. Have any of you been? Should we fly into Athens and then get a boat from there to the islands? Or do you think we'd be better off to fly to an island and start from there?

Thanks in advance!

Gordon

I guess it depends on the price of the flights. It's very easy to get boats from Athens to the islands and then to various islands from there. The Airport to the port is also fairly easy to get to. It takes a 10euro train and then a hop onto a smaller train. Probably taking just over an hour to get to it. The transport system has improved since the Olympics.

The best thing to do is to think about what kind of places you want to go to: nightlife, relaxation, history, beaches etc. Then you can check out the various islands and plot a course.

However, sometimes it's best to just go to a fairly busy island, go camping and meet people. They will then suggest good places to visit etc.

Personally my favourite is Paros as it has a good mix of party nightlife, some good beaches for windsurfing and is big enough to get away from it all. However there are some really beautiful, relaxing islands out there. Milos in particular is a relatively new island in terms of tourism but seems to have been the favourite in Summer 2005 from a number of varied friends/acquaintances of mine.

What are you looking for?

Aspiration

We're not looking for a typical sun holiday- you know, partying, drinking and getting twisted and all that. More relaxing holiday with alot of historical and cultural places to visit. Of course, bars and nightclubs are good but we don't want to go to tourist spots with bar strips and whatnot.

Is there some kinda of travel guide around that I can buy with information on the islands? And how long would you suggest we'd need?

Thanks for your help!

Gordon

Then there are a good few islands that will cater to your needs. Amorgos, Naxos, Milos etc. Even Patmos if you want a bit of Byron history and arent afraid of a long ferry ride.

I'm sure you'll find a good few books in a good bookshop like Waterstones for example. It'll be worth buying a book on the Greek islands for what you want, at least then you can get an idea of historic ties and good beaches as opposed to good clubs to go to. Deffo get a book in Ireland.

I reckon one week will do you a nice relaxing time in 2 islands. You can do more of course but it'll probably be a bit rushed. Two weeks if you want to fit more in, 10 days if you want to save. I say a week for two islands because the ferrys will generally go either in the morning or at night so you effectively lose half a day due to travelling malarky and finding a place to stay. But if it was me I'd go for 10 days and try to find at least three decent islands in your book and plot your course.

Let me know if there is anything you need to know from the Greek side of things, I live in Athens and work with Greeks, and Greeks love telling you where to go and what to do!

Zebra3

Buy or get a lend of the Rough Guide to Greece.

Should be plenty of stuff there to help you make your mind up.

Aspiration

That's great! Thanks a million for yer help!

comanche_cor

you can get flights only with budget to a few of the major island books

there is also a book you can get on greek island hopping by thomas cook, was on thomascook.co.uk - Greek Island Hopping 2006

http://www.thomascookpublishing.com/book.htm?book_id=30&series=Independent_Travellers

Jambo

Aspiration ,
I have been island hopping twice so far both for just over two weeks but the second time I sadly more or less took in the same route but I still has a great time.
If u havent already got flights try ryanair to gatwick/luton and easyjet then on ! .
Once u get to the airport if you decide to give filthy poluted but historic Athens a miss you can get a bus directly from the airport to piraeus ( a suburb of athens where 95% of the ferries leave from ) ferries a cheap and for a deck fare which by far is the best value you could travel for 12 or so hours for about 20euro. all the tickets can be bought of many vendors on the dockside and travel agents there. ( you can check out schedules on www.ferries.gr ) .

Once you arrive at the island(s) of your choice you will be greeted by many landlords/ladies offering usually very good apattments for 10-30 euro per night depending on location ( which you must check big time as sometimes they say they are near the centres but are a few miles walk ) oh and haggle loads for a good price ! .

if you can def take in IOS ( Ireland Over Seas ) but bring in a spare liver as the party life there has to be seen to be believed . also try santorini for the scenery and maybe naxos or paros .

Anything else that i can help u with dont be afraid to ask , but be sure you will enjoy a great holiday away from the whole package thing !!!

Ilovelucy

Last poster must disagree with you IOS is over priced for what it is, rough and a rip off. Naxos, Santorini and Paros are lovelyislands to visit that have a bit of history and also have a good nightlife. Santorini is expenisve to visit but the view as you arrive is worth the long ferry ride to there.

Aspiration

Thanks a million for the information and advice!

How much approximatley are the ferries from island to island?

And how much would we roughly be spending over?

Jambo

Aspiration, sorry about my delay in replying

How much approximatley are the ferries from island to island?
--Well for short hops on conventional ferries ( 1 to 3 hours ) your talking no more than €10 and for the high speed ferries you can usually double the cost .
If you were taking say a 10hr journey at night and decided not to take the deck fare from (€15-$20) you would be looking at approx €70 for a cabin.
But the deck is fine warm and plenty of benches to sleep on plus you can sleep in any of the common areas inside the ship should you decide not to party outside for some of the night!

And how much would we roughly be spending over?
-Last time I went with a bunch of lads for the puropose of boozing and I spent aroung 700€ for accom , ferries , food , booze , renting mopeds etc but not incl flights which were €260 with ryanair dub->luton rtn , and easyjet luton->athens

Aspiration

Ye're stars! Thanks to everyone for the info, I'll post more questions when I think of them!