Cruise vs Land

Honestly, you do not want to spend several days on Santorini. It has been ruined by mass tourism. We couldn’t wait to leave there. Mykonos was better than Santorini but still packed with tourists.
We enjoyed both of our visits to Paros and Rhodes.
Spending 11-12 hours on an island is not enjoyable. Spend at least two nights on each one, three is even better. We traveled to the islands by ferries, flew back to Athens from last island.

I feel like a broken record on this forum… But I will say it again. I would never take a cruise to Santorini or Mykonos. You arrive with several other ships, crowding all of the port cities and giving them the reputation of being miserable.

We had the most awesome time on both islands (three days each) because we stayed overnight. Here was our strategy (gleaned I am SURE from this forum!)

In Santorini
During the day when the cruise ships were in, we escaped one day with a lunch by the bay, followed by a sunset catamaran cruise where we had a nice meal and a glorious swim in the sea before returning to Oia where we had the place to ourselves, as the cruise crowds had evaporated. We ended the night with nightcap at cliffside caldera restaurant with new friends from the cruise. The mornings were sparkling and the shops open early to give you a chance to breakfast and shop before the crowds make their way to town.
The following day, we walked part of the Oia-Fira hike and had lunch at an authentic little spot, and were picked up there by a private guide we hired to take us to the other wonderful sites on the island…Akrotiri, the lighthouse, a couple of the little inland villages, ending on the far side of the island where we climbed to a rooftop restaurant for sunset cocktails set to classical music…our guide knew “the spot” we would never have found on our own. Again, when we got back, we had glistening Oia to ourselves and shared a bottle of wine in our pool with a caldera view.
It was all magical and I get frustrated when people bash Oia. BUT we would never have done any of this if we simply stopped on a cruise. First of all, just to get up the caldera to the island is a challenge I would never want to tackle.

In Mykonos:
Honestly, I am sure people would disagree, but I had a hard time finding anything I really wanted to “do” on Mykonos. We just decided to enjoy the beach. We found a hotel at the end of the boardwalk on Platis Gialos (Thalassa Boutique Hotel) which was absolutely lovely and had a nice onsite restaurant and plenty of other food choices along the boardwalk. We rented chairs and umbrellas and just planted ourselves there for a great three-day mid-trip break! The only thing I had really planned to see was Mykonos town, but when we took the bus in one morning, it was so crowded with (again) the cruise ship crowds, we only stayed long enough to see the windmills, have a drink and get out! Honestly, most of the stores had all the same things they sell in Santorini or (later) Athens….except for a great store with linen shirts. We all agreed we could’ve spent another day or two on the beach, but didn’t feel like we missed anything on Mykonos.

The ferries were quick and easy between islands. Do your research and always take the big ones vs the “vomit comet” fast ones,” then enjoy the ride with food, drinks and views. There are also frequent puddle jumper flights if you prefer to fly.

I am a researcher, and figuring all of this out took a LOT of planning, but in the end it was such lovely trip and I will keep telling people…if you just stop on a cruise or don’t have an alternate plan for the busy times, you will not enjoy these two spots. If you are set on a cruise, there may be better spots to stop.

Maybe I should finally post my whole trip report…

I travel both ways and I enjoy both ways. I find that all things being fairly equal price wise, I find cruising to be a bit less satisfying than a land based vacation in terms of really interacting with the local community and will pick land based.

I found that Santorini was extremely annoying as a cruise destination. Hundreds of people vying for the best photo ops in a tourist oriented area. I imagine it is a different experience in the evening, On the other hand Nafplio was a good port stop.

I think the conventional wisdom is to visit the islands first and then fly out of Athens at the end. Firstly because jet lag may go down a bit easier, and secondly because you wouldn’t want to risk missing your flight out due to any number of variables, such cancelled/delayed flights or ferries back to the mainland.

We flew into Athens and then immediately on to Santorini as it was the furthest out. Then a ferry to Mykonos, and long ferry back to Athens.

Appreciate the great feedback! I think someone posted elsewhere about the key to establish timing to avoid certain days of the week when cruise ships are in Santorini. I've skimmed Rick's book and he goes with Athens, Nafplio and Hydra as his top three, but also lists Olympia, Delphi, Mykonos and Santorini as worth-it destinations. A lot to digest (and figure out a map!).

I know people take Rick's recommends as Gospel, and his guide & website does give very good on-site advice about Athens landmarks, about top highlights in/around Nafplio, and some help on Delphi. I love love his free audio downloads, very generous help to newbies. However, his island r ecommend of Hydra may be influenced by the fact that his in-person tours are mainland -- and he can add Hydra as an "add-on" that can be done in a day (although that limits people to the harbor mainly), and then people can say (to themselves and others) yes, I went to a Greek island. His mention of Mykonos & Santorini are also nods to the "recognition value" -- mainly because of ballyhoo by cruises & package tours. S0... just take recommends with a grain of salt.

Extra points for you, both in thinking far ahead, and choosing excellent time of year! In late May, the rains are gone but the greenery is still lush, the days are long, the water (tho brisk) iis swimmable, everything's open but nothing's crowded yet (except Santorini of course -- but you can strategize to minimize). And as so many here will tell you, you do NOT have to cruise to see a lot... and if making arrangements is tedious for you, there are excellent Greece-based agencies that can fix up your wholle itinerary -- lodgings, transport, mini-tours etc -- yet let you do it independently, not tied to 30 other people. OR, like lots of us, you can totally D-I-Y, because you have time! I suggest a systematic approach such as:

• DECIDE LENGTH & TIMING - IF you can leave on a Friday AM (from Texas, right?) to Arrive ATH on a SAT before Noon -- and come back on the 2nd SUNDAY... you will have 14.5 days IN GReece -- and if you time it right, you can enjoy one Island briefly (2.5 days), a anearby island for 5 days, a 3rd destination (isle or Mainland) for about 3+ days, and 3-4 in Athens at the End. This requires choosing Islands in the same Group, Finding ferry skeds, and maybe a domestic flight back to ATH.
• PREPPING to DECIDE - To find out which destinations speak to you, means some research beyond RS, who doesn't really cover Islands. Your local Library has Guide books, check out an armful, and photocopy stuff that appeals. This equips you to get the most out of forums like this, because you've read up a bit -- and you won't be led astray by someone who raaaves about a place for undisclosed reasons (they stayed at a superluxe spa, or had an uncle there, or whatever). You have the Gift of Time

Finally, if those Cruises still have appeal, picture this. You're sitting in a cafe by the sea, as the sun sinks low. yo're enjoying a glass of wine, discussing where to dine. A little music is playing. Meanwhile, offshore is huge cruise ship, heading away. Its passengers were forced to leave the island 2 hours ago, on aa crowded launch. Now they are going to an indoor diningroom with hundreds of other people. You gv e a sigh of pity for them, and raise your glass.

Thanks, Janet, for your perspective and great advice. Have much respect for Rick, too, but I'm also looking at Fodor's, Lonely Planet and traveler feedback here, etc., for bright (and alternative) ideas. To your point -- my recent cruise out of Rome (Civitavecchia) was way overcrowded and there were near-fistfights over dining tables. The frenetic pace in and out of each port was nuts. I'm thankful we decided to go land, first, by booking everything from hotels and restaurants to trains and sights, for Rome, Florence, Pisa, Venice and back. Maybe I just answered my own question on cruise vs. land for Greece.

Good decision! And I notice you mainly mention online sources. One thing about actual guide BOOKs -- if they only mention the plusses, and none of the drawbacks -- people stop buying them. So they may be a little more honest. They tell you Santorini is super-crowded, they reveal that "shipwreck Beach" is not what it seems.

Another thing I've noticed. in recent editions of print guides that (mistakenly) try to compete with onlin. They add wads of color photos... and to make room, they slash background text. Mistake - pix are better on internet anyway. Also to compete, guides use space for latest restaurant/hotel info. Another mistake -- those are best/freshest from forums & onlline reviews

What can Guides (at least older ones) do BEST? They can tell you WHY you want to visit a place..., describe the ambience, character, unique local delights. That's why I treasure my BACK editions, tho I've been given new ones as thankyous for help. Lately, I recommend going onlilne for Back editions ( lilke 2010-12) of Rough Guide, Lonely planet, and the magical writing of the Cadogan Guides to Greece, Peloponnese, Greek Islands. From books like these I found a small beach on West coast of Pelops, where the ONE hotel didn't even have sunbeds (it's now quite upscale but still family owned), From a battered Lonely Planet Crete i was inspired to stumble down a steep hill, thru a herd of goats, to discover a roofless tiny chapel covered with blossoms, with a wall painting of St. George & the Dragon from the 1200s. You cant find that on the internet.

I’m just looking into this, but trying to determine the most time-efficient way to get from Santorini airport to a place to stay in Fira. I may check with several properties to see if they provide transportation or arrange it. Same question leaving — concerned about logistics flying from Santorini airport to Athens to make it in plenty of time for a flight back to Texas. Again, I’m researching/planning wayyyyyy ahead.

Maybe look into a smaller ship for cruising, companies like Azamara and Oceanic carrying less than 700 passengers, Windstar carries 150-300 depending on ship.

And I agree with Janet, good guidebooks do a great job of helping you weed out what you don't want to see and do, as well as what you do want.

I have been to Mykonos twice, both times on a cruise as well as Santorini, Crete and Corfu.

Had a great visit every time. I think a cruise is a great way to see places like Santorini, Mykonos and Corfu.
However, you need more days to do Crete.

It comes down to your goals. If you want to visit a place, see a couple highlights, and note that one in your diary, then repeat for6 other spots in a week, a cruise is great. To be honest, Santorini and Mykonos can be done in a day for most, then get out of there, and if you keep your expectations in check, the same for other islands.

For other islands it is a bit of a shame though, part of taking the time to travel to one of the lesser islands is just being there, enjoying nature or the beach, maybe a few ruins, a couple small towns, the food and wine. For that, you need days 3 or four nights. One thing about the islands, you really should not plan any one or two night stops, unless it is to transfer from one ferry route to another.

Want a slow pace?, skip the cruise, want a new island every day? Take the cruise.