We will start our May-June trip in Greece, 1 week. Our thought was
Minimal I know. I know that some will say that this is too short for Athens, which may be. We have not put islands in.
Is there a better choice for 3 start days than Athens?
Why Thessaloniki? It would not have been my first thought with very limited time.
Hey Paul,
For a week's trip, Why don't you do:
Athens - 3 Days
Peloponnesian region of Greece - 3 days and base yourself in Nafplio.
or do
Santorini - 3 days with a day trip to Mykonos.
Thessaloniki is not as appealing as the locations I have mentioned.
"Santorini - 3 days with a day trip to Mykonos" is not possible The ferry schedules don't allow for that.
Well, mostly Thessalonika because of several books we have read, including those by Alan Furst and the wonderful "Birds without wings", about the period of separation of Greece and Turkey.
That Alan Furst about the eve of WW II and the escapees, I love it, but it has NOTHING to do with today's Thessaloniki ... a big busy trafficky, concrete city, hard to find the feeeling of the past, most people who choose it on a first trip are scholars of Alexander & Phililp II, to see the royal tombs at VErgina but I doon't think that's you. U haven't done enough research that's all.
I agree with others that with only 6 days, you can get "the most Greek bang for your buck" by combining Athens & the Argolid area, specifically NAFPLIO. It's considered THE most beautiful Old Town in Greece, gorgeous golden Venetian architecture, on a peninsula, surrounded by the sea, so feels like an island, in the middle of THE most historic area in GReece (Iliad-Odyssey Land), and ALSO has gorgeous beaches, plus nightlife, vineyard... AND it's only 2.5 hours away on the most modern highway in GReece. Do this first, then come BACK to Athens & it will mean much more to you.,.. and besides, with 3 days in GReece, you'll be more savvy about handling the big city & its famous landmarks will mean much more. This superb noncommercial website gives ALL info about Nafplio & surrroundings - http://www.visitnafplio.com/ a WEALTH of info and reliable, NOT puffery.
Here are 2 wonderful Albums to show you the beauties of Nafplio area AND the historic central Athens Landmarks:
NAFPLIO - http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/sets/72157632094108982/
ATHENS - http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/sets/72157632121475515/
This tested Itinerary, is travel-efficient, minimizes transit, avoids backtrack, maximizes time enjoying. Use This MAP http://euro-map.com/karty-grecii/peloponnes/podrobnaya-turisticheskaya-karta-peloponnesa.jpg It is GOLD! Shows all roads right from Airport to Peloponnese & Nafplio AND back, all u need to plan. Click & it gets huuuge, & navigate using sidebars.
FIRST - try to get a flight that's nonstop from N. America AIRCAn, Delta, USAIR -- yes it will cost more, but these are the ONLY flights that land between 9 - 10:30 AM on 1st day. When your visit is so cruelly short, you must spend more $$ to add precious hours.
• DAY 1 - Arrive 9:30? Drink strong coffee, Rent car & be out of Airport by 11 am - 4-lane highway, NO stops until after the Corinth Canal. About 15 miles on, Jump off & go 5 miles for 60 mins to visit ANCIENT NEMEA, an Olympics "wanna-be" was a Sacred games site, stadium, theatre, the works! Arrive Nafplio, by 3 pm? take nap to recover from ttrip, then wander town, enjoy sunset! I think the sunsets at seafront cafes are better than any in Greece.
• DAY 2 - Up early to MYCENAE to beat the bus tours... then back to NAFPLIO... go up on Acronafplia? Walk around the "point" at sea level to Town BEach ... Don't miss small superb Nafplio Arch. museum on square. Enjoy nightlife!
• DAY 3 - check out, drive up backroad of PALAMIDI (the FOrtress atop Gibraltar-lke rock behind town), take amazing pix. Then drive EAST across " THUMB" of Peloponnese to ANCIENT EPIDAURUS. Lots of ruins but mainly its the stunning ancient THEATRE (read about it!!), afterwards, go on to the COAST. Stop for late lunch, a last dip in the sea, then drive N. to ISTHMUS. You can stop to see & photograph the Canal (SOO deep SOO skinny!). then drive to Airport to drop car. Bus or Metro to Central ATh hotel.
• DAYS 4-5-6 -- ATHENS Sightseeing. Get to Acropolis by 8 AM, and you'll beat the tour crowds... Read R Steves website here for good overview, and DOWNLOAD his FREE step-by-step audio guides to Acropollis, Ancient Agora, AND Nat. Arch Museum.
Janet: Thanks. We're not locked into Thessalonika, so I will look at your links to get some other thoughts.
We're actually going to be in Europe for about 3 weeks. We head from Greece to Croatia. Then maybe Trieste/Ljubljana. Greece is just the first leg. We do like arriving early, and do just as you suggest - have a coffee, do a walk, acclimate to the time zone - we have been to Europe every other year for the past 15 or so.
See Paul, what a difference it makes to provide full information! It really helps to know the extent of your trip, and reasons for choices. We "regulars" are experienced regarding Greece but we are not mind-readers, it wastes time on both sides if we have to guess and provide alternate scenarios.
Thanks, Janet. The Greece part is just one separable section. We are now trying to decide if train or air from Greece to Zagreb makes the most sense. We also need to decide if there is a boat trip from Trieste/Pula to Greece at the end.
Do you even find a train to Zagreb? Greece has almost NO train service... only regular long trip is Athens - Thessaloniki. Have you ever consulted that useful website, Rome2Rio, which will compare ALL available forms of transport between 2 places. A flight from ATH airport to Zagreb airport is 2 hrs 10o minutes, a train takes 33 hours.
Yeah, 33 hours on a train sounds like hell. No decisions have been made at this point. We are simply exploring options. We always balance speed with experience. Yes, the plane is doubtless the best choice. Trains are good for shorter trips.
Thanks for the suggestion of Rome2rio, which I don't believe that I have ever looked at.
Paul, sounds like you need to study a guidebook pronto (if your Sioux Fall library hasn't closed because of the Polar Vortex) ... it's not a good idea to tackle Greece loosey-Goosey, because getting around to do/see what you want is NOT as easy as in European countries like England France & GErmany, where most of the highlights are within a few hours' train travel on extensive networks. Getting around in Greece is Complicated, and transit can eat up precious time, if you only have a week. Don't try to research by phone-swipes... you'll regret it when you get there.
There are no ferries between Greece and Croatia. When I last checked, there are ferries to and from:
The easiest way to get from Greece to Croatia is to fly, although you could have an adventure and go overland from Greece through Albania and Montenegro. There also are direct flights between Athens and Tirana, Albania. And direct flights between Tirana and Venice. I'm not sure of your entire itinerary but hopefully that will help.
Janet: Thanks for that suggestion. We will get the RS Greece toot sweet. It's time to get serious - we will probably leave between May 21-25.
