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Spring 2025 to Greece, first time

Posted by (Northern Minnesota) on

Hi there, hope to pick the brains of you seasoned travelers. We are looking to a 8-9 day trip (10-11 days counting travel on each end) to Greece for our first trip there. Our thoughts are Athens 3 days (lots of folks recommend Athens at the end of the trip), Crete 3/4 days, and Santorini (or another island) for 2 days. I absolutely understand we won't be able to see everything in those locations in that amount of time. We have 2 travel options hoping to limit the amount of time our high school junior misses school. March 20-30, or April 11-21. The April dates coincide with Easter. So, my questions:

  1. March vs April Easter - will many of the historic sites, transport, etc be closed over Easter holiday
  2. Athens front end or back end
  3. Santorini, a different island, or skip the 3rd destination and spend more time in Athens and Crete

Thanks,
Jamie

Posted by
2172 posts

will many of the historic sites, transport, etc be closed over Easter
holiday

On Good Friday and Easter Saturday (April 18 and 19, 2025) most sites and museums will be open but may close earlier than usual.

On Easter Sunday (April 20, 2025) the sites and museums will be closed. The majority of stores, services and businesses will be closed on Easter Sunday and Monday.

There is high demand on ferries and domestic flights during this period. You must book well in advance.

Athens front end or back end

To optimize your stay, the best option is to take a flight to the first island as soon as you arrive in Greece and save the visit to Athens for the end of your stay.

Santorini, a different island, or skip the 3rd destination and spend
more time in Athens and Crete

Your 8-9 days could easily be spent just in Crete.

In such a short time, the more places you want to see, the less you will see them, you will only have a brief glimpse.
Furthermore, be aware that any trip from one place to another (Athens ↔ Island or from one Island to another island) takes a large part of the day. In your project this may affect 2 to 3 days of your vacation in addition to arrival and departure days

Posted by
23 posts

Thanks JoLui. Looks like March. Crete first, and Athens at the end.

Posted by
1196 posts

I was in Greece this past April, mid-to-late April and it was lovely.

I normally go late Sept/early Oct but decided on April this year.

Weather was great, far less tourists and off season prices.

March tends to be a very rainy month but you may luck out but no guarantees on the weather.

Easter for 2025 is April 20. You can still go in April but leave Greece before Greek Easter and still have a great time. If you adjust your schedule by a day it may work out better than late March.

Crete is the largest of the Greek Islands and would take weeks to fully experience. It's not worth staying on Santorini for just 2 days.

Spend your entire time on Crete.

Posted by
68 posts

We were just in Crete for 12 days,then spent 2 nights in Athens prior to flying home. This worked perfectly

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