Please sign in to post.
Rick Steves Holiday Sale: 20% Off Storewide

10-Day Greece Trip in Early June with Friends

Posted by on

Hello! I am planning a trip with four of my friends, and as you would imagine, it is hard to make everyone happy. We are in our early 20s and would like a nice mix of good nightlife, nature, history, and culture. With our limited timeline, I want to create a cost-effective trip that checks some of these boxes. We are hoping to make use of mostly buses to get around.

Here is what we have so far:

Day 1: Arrive in Athens. Acropolis + explore Plaka

Day 2: Athens: Acropolis Museum, Ancient Agora, Monastiraki

Day 3: Athens: Day trip to Delphi. ANEK ferry from Athens to Chania at 10 pm; arrival at 7 am, Day 4: Chania: Explore town + beach day (Stavros) + Manousakis in the evening (if this is possible)

Day 5: Chania: Bus to Knossos. Explore Knossos and walk around Heraklion. Take the bus from Heraklion bus station back to Chania,

Day 6: Chania: Bus to Xyloskalo to do the hike. Arrive at Agia Roumeli and take the ferry to Sougia. Bus from Sougia to Chania

Day 7: Ferry to Mykonos. Struggling to find the best option here. I was considering the 4-day Eurail Global Pass but then read that it is a scam. Are ferries something you wait to book until you’re there?

Day 8: Mykonos: Take a ferry to Delos. Explore Mykonos more and take a bus to Paradise Beach

Day 9: Take a ferry to Athens. Would love to go to Meteora, but don’t think we will have time to see it

Day 10: Fly home.

This is the very early stage of the plan. Any advice or criticism is greatly appreciated. Maybe I am delusional and this is too much. Either way, a trip to Greece is something we all seem to find exciting. Looking forward to your feedback!

Posted by
1632 posts

Perhaps you could give us some extra information. Something like when you plan to do this trip, when you arrive Athens where did your flight depart from. There is a big difference if you arrive after a tranAtlantic flight versus a flight from Europe.

Good call on taking the ferry from Agia Roumeli to Sougia. The trip along the south coast and the bus ride back to Chania is very scenic.
Day 5 presents a problem. The day trip to Heraklion is fine however on day 8 there is no ferry from Chania to Mykonos. You will have to travel by back to Heraklion to catch a ferry to Mykonos. It is probably a good idea to going to Heraklion for Knossos and then take the ferry the next day.

Posted by
2 posts

I stayed up researching and creating this itinerary yesterday. Nothing was booked yet, and we are just throwing things out there. We would be flying trans-Atlantic from JFK, arriving to Athens June 4th. I think it might be beneficial to swap day 5 and day 6 then so that way we can stay overnight in Heraklion to catch the ferry to Mykonos. A question I have is will we be fine taking our suitcases on the bus? We could do Milos (and take a ferry from Chania), ditching Mykonos, but I feel Delos is just too interesting to miss. Open to any edits/suggestions you recommend. To be completely honest, one of my friends' parents advised against Greece and to do a trip to Central Europe instead. Do you think this timeline is realistic for Greece?

Posted by
3367 posts

Looking at your itinerary, in Crete you'll mostly be visiting buses, bus stations, and bus stops, rather than the island itself. You won't have much time to spend in the places where the buses drop you off.

Day 7: Ferry to Mykonos. Struggling to find the best option here.

There are no ferries to Mykonos from Chania. Ferries depart from Heraklion.

I was considering the 4-day Eurail Global Pass but then read that it's
a scam.

Indeed, completely useless in 99% of cases, including yours, and a waste of money.

Are ferries something you wait to book until you're there?

Yes, you can buy your tickets at the port or at a ticket agency, for example, the day before your departure. If you're anxious about booking, buy your tickets on the ferry companies' websites a few days before departure. You'll get an e-ticket with a QR code to show at boarding.

Regarding Mykonos, I hope you've budgeted accordingly if you want to have a good time there:

https://youtu.be/dMpaksY4sTE

In Europe, the word Mykonos has been used for many years as a common term to describe an expensive place.
Also, be careful of restaurants that don't display their prices... you could be in for some unpleasant surprises.

https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/dk-oyster-mykonos-bill-prices-b2789248.html

If you're looking for a place for young people with a nightlife, also consider the island of Ios. Your wallet will thank you, and above all, you'll have just as much fun without being manipulated by tourism marketing.

https://www.visitgreece.gr/islands/cyclades/ios/

Add Reply

Please do not reply to violations of our Community Guidelines.