Greece - May 2008

I agree, 11 days is just enough to touch the basics surface of any country, let alone two or three.
You are going in May, so it may not be quite "beach weather" , but you may be lucky and hit some nice weather.
I would only give Athens two days, I didn't like it much, big dirty city to me, but of course, it has its treasures. Two days is enough.
I have not been to Delhpi, but I would go, it sound great for two days or so,,
I have done Mykonos and Paros. I would return to Mykonos, and although we loved Paros, it is really about the beaches , so I don't know if I would go again.
I have not done Santorini, but I will, and I will give it at least 4 days,,, the views, the history, the archelogical sites, the views, LOL
If you really want to sqeeze in another country consider Turkey or Italy, are you able to fly open jaws ( into Athens and then out of another city?) that would make it easier.

Places I've visited if you would like more info. Keep in mind these were visited on two trips with 16-18 days each trip:

Second trip: Extensive Athens/Vouliagmeni/Sounion; Nafplion/Epidavros/Mycenae/Ancient Corinth/Corinth/Delphi

First trip: Athens/Santorini/Mykonos/Delos/Paros/AntiParos.

I would recommend you spend the 11 days in Greece. We are planning our third trip in June. We are spending another two weeks in Greece and one week in Italy. Whatever you decide have a great trip! :)

Sarah,
11 days will be nice little trip to Greece. Delphi and Olympia are important sites but keep in mind this is not Rome. The Greeks didn't have concrete to use so most of their ruins are in ruins... very little still standing. I remember what a vast site olympia was but you will be spending the whole time looking at columns laying on the ground. Delphi is better but a day trip at best. If I were you I would head to the islands.

Go to the islands of Santorini, Mykonos, and Crete after spending 2-4 days in Athens. Get your fill of museums in athens and then get out of the smog and put on some shorts and go have a great time on the islands!

Minimum 3 nights on any one island. If you have 11 days forget every other country.

Hello Sarah. I agree with the others: stay in Greece. The ancient sites in Greece, other than in Athens, were destroyed, and most of the parts of the buildings were hulled away, there is little there to see now. I was in Greece in 2005. For 11 days in Greece, I recommend : Athens = 2 days. (National Archaeological Museum, and the Benaki museum). A day trip to Delphi from Athens. Fly from Athens to an island in the Aegean Sea (I prefer the Cyclades islands). Be at that island for 3 whole days. Ride in a boat to an other island, and be at that island for 2 whole days. Travel back to Athens. The next day fly to the U.S.A. That is a total of 11 days.
If you heard people say that Greece is the best country in Europe to go to, I think they were thinking that they liked relaxing at an island of Greece, eating fresh fruit and vegetables, and being intoxicated by white wine while gazing at the Mediteranean Sea. A person needs to be at the islands for a minimum of 5 days.

Hey Sarah,
I agree with what the others have posted. You should stay in Greece the entire 11 days. I am also going to Europe in late May / early June. I am planning a three week trip and two of those weeks will be in Greece. I plan to spend a couple of days in Athens, then go to Crete, Santorini, Naxos, and Mykonos. I have found Matt Barrett's website www.greektravel.com very useful for planning.

My wife & I have travelled to Greece twice - 2 weeks in June 2005 and 2 weeks in June 2006. As the previous replies have said, we haven't scratched the surface. We can't wait to return!

I was stationed (U. S. Air Force) on the island of Crete in 1969-70 and always wanted to return. In 2005, we spent 2 1/2 days in Athens, 6 days on Crete, and 3 days on Santorini. In 2006, we spent 2 days in Athens, 8 days on Crete and then 3 days going to Delphi & Meteora.

As you can tell I love Crete and want to go back again. We could easily spend another 2 weeks on the mainland and not travel to any of the islands.

The bottom line is this: Spend all of your time in Greece. It is a wonderful country with wonderful people.

Jeff Blair
Wharton, TX

Sarah, I have been to Greece three times, although it was in the early '90s. It is one of the most beautiful places I have been (the islands). I agree with the others to stay in Greece only. I also agree that you should only spend 2 nights in Athens, either at the beginning or end of your trip. Santorini is a must. And if at all possible arrive by boat! You may want to fly into Athens and immediately fly to an island or take a ferry to an island, depending on how far away the island is, because you are going to have to return to Athens for the flight home. I have found Frommers books to be very good in giving information on how to get to and from various locations. If you end up on an island that is quite far from Athens, be sure there is an airport on that island. I have an artist friend who now lives in Greece and one of her friends is a guide in Athens. If you're interested, let me know.

I am going to Greece in April for my second trip, the first time we went in 2003. I strongly disagree with the person who said Paros is all about the beaches. In fact, I encourage you to get away from the port cities and visit the interiors of your islands of choice. If you like to walk, think about taking a bus to one village and walking to the next, get the bus back again. We hiked the Byzantine Road on Paros for most of a day. It was completely thrilling to be on such an ancient road that is still in use by shephards and locals traveling across their isle. We packed a picniclunch and under the most beautiful sky spent a marvelous time, walking through the countryside. At the end, we ran out of energy before reaching the sea, but managed to get the son of a restauranter to drive us back to Paros town for $10.

Sarah, yes...please remember this is not Rome. Not even close. It's better. It's authentic. Visit Greece first - then go to Rome. Savor Greece first then go see the copies in Rome. :) Then move on to Florence to see original and wonderful Italian art.

I would disagree, too, with whoever said Paros is all about the beaches. We were there in September, so maybe it's a little different, but to me, Paros was all about relaxation. Our first island was Paros, and we spent much of our time walking around Paros town and Naoussa, playing cards and cribbage while having Mythos at the tavernas and just sitting and watching the sea. It was probably one of the most relaxing places I've ever been.

Sarah...we are also heading to Greece in MAy, and as mentioned you have to ck out Matt Barrett's Greek Travel website...it seems to be very helpful.extremely thorough and filled with lots of little tidbits..plus you can email him for info as well. We are booking are trip on our own, landing in Athens, spend 1 or 2 nights and then our to Santorini making our way back towards Sifnos, (Matt's favorite Island) SInce it is not prime time, we are going to book most things as we go.
We are so looking fwd to the adventure....

I loved Athens and Crete Island.The view of the sea is amazing. Also we wanted to go on Corinth channel , but it was closed in February.
I also would suggest some of the most popular islands. One of them would be Rhodos. Never been there, but I read some guidebooks about it.