I've been reading these posts for a long time, and am so excited to finally be asking advice for my own trip!
My family of 5 (me, husband, and our 3 boys (13,9,7)) are taking our first trip to Greece the second half of September! We'll have about two weeks, depending on costs of flights. We'd like to spend time on an island, then explore a little of the Peloponnese from one home base, and finish with a day or two in Athens. Our main goals are food, beautiful scenery, outdoors time on hikes and beaches, and enjoying local culture. While we'd like to see a few ancient sites, these boys are more about climbing on/over/through stuff than placidly strolling through a museum. We're more village than city people, with the caveat that none of us speak more than a word or two of Greek. We'd rather walk than drive, but will be renting a car.
For islands, I've looked at Naxos and Crete, but also wondered if something in the Ionians might be a good fit. I'm all ears for suggestions, as well as family hotel recommendations!
And on the Peloponnese... ideas for a home base? We've considered Koroni, since some of my husband's ancestors were from there, but wonder if it's worth it to drive all the way to the "pinky." We currently live in Texas, so are used to driving a lot of miles, but have also lived in New Zealand, meaning that we understand windy mountain roads are a whole different kind of driving!
Thanks in advance for your help!