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September Itinerary - Thoughts and suggestions

Posted by on

Hello all!

I will be taking a solo vacation, travelling to Amsterdam for a few days, then will be arriving in Athens late at 12:30am. I'm staying at a hotel for the night. I was going to go to Athens and stay in the city for a night, but I've heard that I should really just skip it and just visit Athens my last day there.

9/2 Arrive at the airport
9/3 Fly to Mykonos, stay 2 nights
9/5 Travel to Santorini, stay 2 nights, take a tour of the Island/Volcano/hot springs
9/7 Travel back to Athens, stay the night
9/8 Fly back home to Oregon

My questions are what would be my best options for travelling between the islands? I'd like to take a ferry for the experience, however, I do not have a ton of travel time, so that makes it a bit tough. Should I stick with Mykonos then Santorini or the other way around?

Any thoughts or tips would be greatly appreciated!

Posted by
439 posts

Hi,

We are going to Greece in Oct, so I don't have the first hand experience, yet. What time does the flight get in on 9/2? If you have enough time that day, book a flight directly to Santorini, that will give you an extra night on the islands or two nights in Athens on your return. You can then take the ferry to Mykonos & Athens.

Thanks,

Mary

Posted by
3120 posts

Greetings from Cottage Grove, OR!

Your arrival time in Athens poses a unique problem. It'll be too late to see much in the city and although it's a long wait for a plane or ferry to either Santorini or Mykonos I recommend you tough it out at the airport that night, and if you choose the ferry option you can take the Airport Express Bus in the morning to Piraeus for the ferry to Santorini. Ferries take between 5-8 hours to reach Santorini. The faster 5-hour ferry to Santorini is on the smallest highspeed catamaran (SuperJet2), and seasickenss is a real possibility, so avoid it if possible. There is also a bus that will take you from the airport to Rafina where you can catch a morning ferry to Mykonos that only takes around 3 hours depending on the ferry. If you choose to travel by ferry you'll save valuable travel time by going to Mykonos first. http://www.gtp.gr

That said, flights to both Santorini and Mykonos take 30 minutes. Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air and Ryan Air all fly to both islands and there are still early-morning flights to both islands available on Sept. 2 for under $60 which is VERY cheap. http://tinyurl.com/q8q3t4u

With those fares flying makes the most sense, and you'll save the most time. You can fly in to one or the other island, take the ferry between them, then fly back to Athens for your last night or two. If you choose to fly book soon to make sure you get the great price.

Posted by
16893 posts

I can't imagine that reversing the order would make much difference, unless the flight or ferry schedules are simply offered at more convenient times of day. www.greekferries.gr is a good starting point (but allow a bit of wiggle room in case of changes) and most flights are operated by Olympic/Aegean airlines.

The airport hotel is very expensive, so I have been among those "toughing it out" in the airport. See also www.sleepinginairports.net.

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