DIY or RS tour

Oh, my! This type of question always opens a huge can of worms with independent travelers strongly telling you to do it yourself and those who love RS tours telling you to take a tour.

I travel both ways and my response is for you to really think about what is important to you while traveling and what sorts of experiences you want to have.

Independent travel: Your schedule is your own. You go where you want when you want. That does mean spending a little more time dealing with transportation and connections.
RS tour: Schedule is mixed. There is a set itinerary, but it includes portions of each day with “free time” where you still decide what you are seeing/doing. Transportation is efficient and point to point.

Independent Travel: You choose hotels and can pick ones that match budget or preferences.
RS tour: You stay in tour hotels, generally picked for location. Generally quite good.

Independent Tour: It is up to you to manage sightseeing. You can do day tours, hire guides, read guidebooks, use Rick’s App with guided walks, etc.
RS Tour: Quality guides that teach you about local language , culture and history. Still responsible for free time sightseeing.

Independent Tour: You are on your own socially. Some people prefer this because they feel it makes them connect more with locals. Some people just prefer no social interaction.
RS Tour: travel with a group of friendly people. Enjoy some shared experiences.

A RS tour is more expensive, but includes value-added experiences that don’t directly compare to independent travel.

In summary. Both are great ways to travel and you will have a great trip no matter how you go about it. You simply need to decide what is the best match for what you are looking for at this time. You could also consider combining the two. Travel independently for part of your 3 weeks and take a RS tour for part of the time as well.

Everything Carol above said is spot on. I have taken this tour and there’s really wasn’t any beach time to speak of (and the itinerary looks the same) If that’s a big concern of yours. The amount of history I learned from this tour was extraordinary. I had taken Greek history in college but I was amazed at how much I had forgotten. Seeing what I did remember come alive was awesome for me. On the other hand, we certainly couldn’t have duplicated the quality of the experiences offered on the tour by doing the same trip by ourselves. Having someone else provide transportation, lodging (always very nice on our tour) and the education that comes from friendly, well-trained and well-educated guides. Interactions with locals were plentiful while with the tour or when on our own. We take numerous tours and an equal number of self planned European trips. We love both equally.

It's up to you whether you prefer to organize a trip on your own or choose a tour operator, RS or other.

If you want to organize a 3 week stay by your own, it means a lot of research and decision-making, defining a budget, a timing, etc.

It means deciding where you will go, how long you will stay there. Look for possible means of transport. Find the best route(s) between these places. Find accommodation
(and if you don't rent a car it will be more complicated).

From experience I know that the more you advance in this research, the more you find new possibilities of places and routes.

So be prepared for many hours doing your homework.

If you're not ready for that, let RS do it for you.

About your questions:

1. Feasible doing most with public transportation?

It depends, but generally yes by plane, train and especially by bus.

2. Enough time allotted?

It depends!

3. Absolutely unmissable locations?

At least twenty, to be defined according to your preferences

4. Is end of March to beginning of April a good time. Do want to miss Easter, however

March is not the best season in terms of accommodation offers and weather. It's not even "low season" according to the Greek standards.
but you will have attractive rates and will not be disturbed by the crowds of tourists.

Easter Othodox is in mid-April

Most of the islands do not open up for tourism until after Easter. You would be better off in the mainland if you don’t want to change your time frame.

I have been to Greece twice and both times independently. I think transportation is more challenging than many other European destinations. If you go to the islands, you have to figure out the ferry schedules. There is limited train service in Greece so it is mostly buses. Sometimes they go where you want and sometimes they don’t. We have tended to use combination of buses and rental cars. People do travel in Greece entirely on public transportation but it takes more planning. So one thing to consider is whether that is something you enjoy or not.

Rick Steve’s Greece tour covers the Peloponnese which I think would be hard to replicate with public transportation. There certainly are other itineraries you could do easier on public transportation.

I do all my own planning and bookings and with the internet and guide books it's easy to do-it-yourself.

It does take time to do the research but I find it not only fun but educational.

Obviously a guided tour makes it easier but you are going by what someone else decides and not you.

First you need to decide what you want: islands or mainland.

Three weeks means at least 2 islands but probably three so you need to find islands that are close to each other and on the same ferry run. A bit more challenging but do-able.

Crete may be a great option as it's the largest of the Greek Islands and more than enough to keep you occupied for 3 weeks. However, it's best explored by rental car if you want find all those historic sites you like. Great food also!

The mainland may be easier to do-it-yourself, especially the the Peloponnese of the mainland. Again a car will give you the freedom to do and go where ever you want on your own pace and to stay longer to enjoy a particular village, area or historic site.

I go in early October so can't comment on March/April but you'll find less tourists and lower prices for accommodations off season.

I think a bit more research on your part to find islands or parts of the mainland that will work for you.

If public transportation is a must then it will involve more planning, flexibility and going by the schedule of the bus rather than yours. Taxis will be too expensive.

Check out this website for everything you need to know about Greece:

https://www.greecetravel.com/

Wow, all of you are amazing. I learned a lot already, so thank you so much.

If we went the RS route, are there cities we should plan on visiting before or after the tour that RS skips? What about Thessaloniki? Is it truly a foodie haven?

Should I wait until April to go instead of late March? Since it sounds as though the islands don't get going until after Easter, I think we will save them for another trip.

Thanks again for all your thinking on our behalf!

Bear in mind just because one travels to Greece off season doesn't mean Greece is shut down.

They'll always be shops, markets and tavernas open for locals which may give you a more "Greek" experience rather than a tourist experience.

Most archeological and historic sites will be open

Every day life goes on without the hordes of tourists and for many that's a plus!

There are too many "unmissable locations" to mention as Greece is filled with them whether on islands or the mainland.

You could do both, couldn't you? You have three weeks. Take the RS tour, and add extra time on either end on your own.

I do believe we will end up doing a combination - part RS and part DIY. Thanks again for all your insights.

Everyone is different and has different priorities. Not everyone likes to take the time involved to plan their own trips. I love trip planning and am willing to spend the time involved to research, etc. This is what I don't like about RS tours and other tours: They are very fast-paced. You notice the tour has primarily 1 and 2-night stays, which is very fast-paced. You really don't get to see a lot and have time for meandering and exploring. Make sure you actually stop in places and see the sites; some are just drive-bys. I have never taken a guided tour for my entire trip for these reasons. A few times we took a guided daytrip but some of the places were drive-bys. Not my cup of tea.

I think they are also expensive, but if you can afford it, and this is your style, go for it. For instance, the Athens and Heart of Greece tour is $3500 - $4000 per person EXCLUDING AIR for 2 weeks. Then you have the expenses for the DIY 3rd week. For cost comparison purposes, this past May we spent 2.5 weeks in Greece (Santorini, Naxos, Nafplio, and Athens). Our cost was roughly $9,000 for the two of us for RT airfare, hotels, meals, rental cars, some gifts for family, ferry from Santorini to Naxos, and airfare from Naxos to Athens, travel insurance and shared limo to/from our home to the airport. It's true we didn't have guides but I purchase guidebooks, read up on places online, and read some books prior to leaving for Greece.