Hello, all! I've came across this informative board doing research on a trip to Greece in September of 2024. I've read through many of the posts related to Greece and "think" I have a good idea of my potential itinerary based on responses that the group has given other travelers. That being said, I would appreciate feedback to a few questions from the collective group that I am kicking around in my head. My travel companion and I, are in our mid-50's, are somewhat active - tennis, walking, and running (1 mile). We are not super fit but we are in decent shape and don't mind walking and sight seeing. We have traveled to other parts of Europe, but never Greece. We like to explore the places we visit; shops, museums, hikes that are not too challenging (like Cinque Terra), relax and enjoy the views, dip our feet in the ocean (if possible in late September) and EAT. I am going to Greece to eat and hopefully eat well :-)
We are planning our visit to Greece around 21st Sept to 29th Sept. Our plan is to arrive in Athens on the 21st and fly to Naxos the same day. Spend 4-5 days in Naxos. Potentially on the 25th fly to Athens and depart Athens on the 29th Sept. We chose Naxos because most of what I have read on the board indicates that Crete is a much larger island and one could easily spend 2 weeks or more exploring Crete. I have no desire, at this point, to fully explore any island, but I would like to see the sites at a leisurely pace and soak up the culture as best one can in a relatively short time span. Given our limited time, 8 days or so, Naxos seemed like a nice mid size island that lends itself to exploring and potentially has enough to keep one busy for 4 days.
I spoke to someone I know that has visited Naxos and his comment was that 4 days in Naxos might lead to one getting bored. So I wanted to get the groups thoughts. Are there enough things to see and do in Naxos to keep one relatively busy for 4-5 days or so? I am wondering if day trips (leave in the morning and return late afternoon or so depending on ferries) to either Mykonos or Paros (seems like that is the closer island) make sense. Maybe spend 3 days exploring Naxos and then spend a day at either Paros or Mykonos. Is it feasible to make day trips to one those islands (I am not sure we want to try and see both)? Is one island better than another for a day trip? I understand Mykonos is quite pricey, which is okay.
From what I have read elsewhere 3-4 days in Athens seems to be sufficient. We will not have a car and will travel by bus, foot , taxi as needed. Any must see under-appreciated sites one should see in Naxos or Athens? I am not a tour type person, but am open to suggestions to tours as well. I am open to non-touristy restaurant recommendations the group might have as well. We are primarily looking for authentic Greek food at reasonable prices. I have read the comments about getting the price of fish before ordering.
Thanks in advance for any feedback or guidance!