Greek Island hopping April 30-May9, 2011

For 9 or 10 days, and whanting to relax, you could do 3 maybe 4 islands. You are also travelling a good distance by ferry, so just what may be a comfortable trip in a day may pick your islands, If I recall, there are two general ways to get to Santorini. Both require taking the ferry from Kusadasi to Samos, then you can either head towards to northern Cyclades, landing in either Paros or Mykonos, then south to Santorini, with Naxos and Ios along the way. You can also head south from Samos, towards Kos and Rhodes, then to Santorini. From Santorini, you could then either head up through the Cyclades (Ios, Naxos, Paros, Mykonos) or go westerly; Milos and Serifos. You could also fly to Athens from Santorini, saving some time. In the end, you need to pick an established Ferry route, then pick islands along the route, preferrably serviced by the same daily ferry. Otherwise, time can be lost due to connections or ferries that run only a few days a week.

"3 maybe 4 islands" in 10 days? And Athens too? Sorry, that's not very realistic, especially considering the time it takes to get between them with Santorini being the final destination before Athens. Since you're leaving the tour at Kusadasi, your first Greek island could be Samos since it's so close by. From Samos you'd either go south by ferry to Kos (via Patmos), or west to Mykonos, and then on to Santorini. It's likely that both these routes will require at least one overnight, more likely two, on the way to Santorini. You can also make your way south within Turkey by bus to Bodrum or Marmaris, then take a ferry across to Kos or Rhodes and continue on to Santorini on Tu,Th,Sat at 5pm from Rhodes or 8:30pm from Kos, arriving at Santorini around 2:00am. Again, expect at least one overnight somewhere along the way. Ferries from Turkey to Greek islands: http://www.feribot.net/feribot/?lang=en More ferry schedules will be added as the season progresses. http://www.gtp.gr

Ron, I'm not sure of the best route to Santorini from Turkey, but one suggestion would be to split your time between Santorini and Naxos (possibly with a day or so in Ios), as that provides a good progression towards Athens. You'll need to allow at least a half a day or so for travel between the islands (travel time, getting to and from hotels, checking-in, etc.) so that should allow a couple of days in each location. If you want to research the islands and other details about travel in Greece, you might want to have a look at This Website as it's a wealth of information. I took the RS Greece tour last year, and I'm sure you'll have a great time! Do you know yet who your Guide will be? One tip that applies to most of the islands - be prepared to use bottled water! It's readily available everywhere. I visited Naxos and Santorini after the tour ended, and used one of the Greek Travel Agencies suggested on the above website to arrange Hotels, Ferries and transfers on the islands. I was very pleased with the service and the trip went "like clockwork". Happy travels!

To clear up our plans. We end the RS Best of Turkey tour on April 30 then wish to make our way to Athens to Begin the RS Athens and Heart of Greece tour on May 9 at 18:00. Can we do this portion with no reservations for ferry and accommodations except maybe a flight from Santorini to Athens on May 9. Or are we better off using a agent to obtain reservations when we do finalize our time?

At that time of year you don't need to book ahead unless you want the privacy of a cabin. Just wait until you're on an island and go into any travel agency for assistance. For any long hauls I recommend the reserved Aircraft-style reclining seat. They're only a few euro more than basic economy tickets.

Ron, As your tour ends in Kusadasi, I'm not sure there's an "easy way" to reach Santorini. The method I'd probably use would be to take the Ferry to Samos and travel from there to Santorini via Aegean Air. Unfortunately it looks like the flights depart at 08:50 so it's unlikely you'd be able to get to the airport on the day the tour ends. You would have to spend one night on Samos. The flights go to Athens first and then Santorini. If you departed Samos at 08:50, you'd be touching down on Santorini at 11:20. Flights for May 1 are currently priced at €385.28 for two people, including all taxes and fees. For travel from Santorini to Athens, I'd probably travel by Ferry to Naxos (or other island) for a night or two and then to Athens / Piraeus. Although you should be able to buy tickets on Santorini, given the fact that you must be in Athens on May 9, I'd be more comfortable with the pre-booking the Ferry tickets (and perhaps Hotels). Cheers!

Depending on this year's schedule, there might actually be a direct flight from Samos to Santoirni available to you on www.skyexpress.gr. I'm just not sure when they open that route as their schedule for the upcoming season is still incomplete. Take note of their strict baggage allowances. Read the last paragraph of "Terms and Conditions".

The more we look at this maybe it is better to Travel to Athens or a more central Greek Island at first and then work our way back to Athens.

Ron, The route I suggested from Samos to Santorini is the easiest method and the travel time a very short 2H:50M, however as mentioned previously you'd probably have to spend a night on Samos due to flight departure times. The situation would likely be the same even if you wanted to travel first to Athens, as you'd still be facing limited flight departures from that part of Turkey. I checked Pegasus Air from Izmir to Athens, and they only appear to have flights a few days a week. You might contact the RS Tour department to see if they can offer any suggestions. Good luck!

Favorite islands: Santorini (3 nights), Rhodes (3 nights), Naxos (3 nights). We would choose these three. If extra night, spend it in Athens. Lots to see. Other islands we visted: Crete, Patmos, Samos, Mykonos

Jerry, please explain how Ron can see these 3 islands in 9 days if he starts out in Kusadasi. Is it a realistic itinerary? What about the travel time required?

Ron, To elaborate a bit on Paul & Lee's suggestions ... Since you're leaving the tour at Kusadasi, your first Greek island could be Samos since it's so close by. From Samos you'd either go south by ferry to Kos (via Patmos), or west to Mykonos, and then on to Santorini. It's likely that both these routes will require at least one overnight, more likely two, on the way to Santorini. This journey would give you the island hopping experience you're looking for. It's a short ferry from Kusadasi to Samos, which is a beautiful island. Spend one or two nights there, and then travel south (Patmos is another beautiful island worthy of a night or two) or west (to Mykonos, which has more night-time activity, if that's important to you, and spend two nights there). Take four or five days getting to Santorini. Then spend 3 or 4 days on Santorini, and fly back to Athens on May 9, to make sure you'll meet up with your tour. In early May you will need no advance ferry reservations. Once you arrive in Samos, visit a travel agency or ticket agent and figure out your route to Santorini. Have a target date for arrival on Santorini, and make your Santorini hotel reservations in advance. For your other stops, have a guidebook with you and call ahead the night before you arrive to arrange accommodations.