The three of us are visiting Greece for the first time; end of September to late October. We'd like to divide our time into three stops using AirBnBs and explore the areas around each. Driving or flying to stops is not a problem and we like to use tours. Some friends loved Chiana. and Nafplion. With Athens, would those make good bases? What are some not to miss activities in those areas?
Posted by
France Southwest - Occitanie
3944 posts
It’s impossible to help you if you don't specify your preferences and interests instead of just mentioning what some friends have liked. Otherwise, you’re just going to get dozens of "must-see" suggestions for Greece from people who happened to love this or that specific spot. Plus, many of those recommendations will be completely incompatible logistically when it comes to getting from one place to another.
I’m also assuming your trip will be around 3 weeks long.
Grab a guidebook or two, and take a look at a map of Greece.
You can also start by checking out the official website:
https://www.visitgreece.gr/
Chania is a city in Crete, the largest and southernmost island in Greece, it's practically its own country, you could spend 3 weeks there without seeing everything. And Keep in mind there are at least 100 other Greek islands you can visit.
Nafplio is in the Peloponnese on the mainland, in a region that is 70% mountainous where you could easily spend well over 10 days.
Posted by
NC
753 posts
Agree with @JoLui that more information would be helpful but for what it is worth our first trip to Greece went like this: grab a car in Athens, drive to Delphi, then on to Meteora, drive back to Piraeus and ferry to Sifnos, ferry to Milos, and flight back to visit Athens. It was an amazing trip and we fell in love with Greece! Crete is wonderful but deserves a dedicated trip.
Posted by
Detroit, MI
1219 posts
I was in all 3 places. Those are all good places. Are you thinking of Chania, on the island of Crete? You misspelled it. It is [xaˈɲa] in IPA symbols. If you go to Crete, give yourself at least 6 night there. I took an overnight ferry to Heraklion and from Chania. You may be able to take a plane to Crete. Heraklion is a good place even though some on this forum irrationally under-rate it. Chania has some good small museums and a bay with the outdoor seating of restaurants next to and I saw a lot of people just sitting. Its a good place but perhaps over-rated. The Lonely Planet, and the Rough Guides, series, both have a guide to Crete. Nafplio on the mainland has some museums and a venetian fortress you can climb to the top of, and you can take day trips from there. Athens has well known ancient ruins you need advance tickets for. I have not used AirBnB. It probably has good rentals. I have had good luck with most of the places I found on booking.com. Post a supposed itinerary and we can estimate whether it looks doable. I did not rent a car. Renting a car will significantly increase your costs.
Posted by
Nanaimo, BC, Canada
1690 posts
Given you have not provided sufficient information for us to just guess when you are arriving, where you are coming from, to Greece. I will would suggest you might want to visit Nafplio for your first couple of nights to get over jet lag and get into the abidance of Greece.
You can return to Athens and then fly to Chania Crete. It is a wonderful destination where you can sleep inside the remains of ancient city walls with a great old town and harbour area.
Return to Athens at he end of this trip to explore all the magnificent attractions there.
Being in Athens the night before your return flight is always a wise plan.
I can recommend Wanderlust tours in Chania. We no longer rent a car so Wandrlust gets us to highlights around Chania at a reasonable price.
Some images of my suggestions.
Chania
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72177720318408008/
Wanderlust
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72177720318394812/
Napfplio
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157632094108982/