Time in Greece

Hi Jessica - Since I spend several months per year on Santorini I am prejudiced - BUT - If you took the ferry from Athens to The Cyclades and spent afew days on Santorini and A few more on Mykonos I honestly believe you would love every minute!!
Corinth and Nafplio are wonderful but , to me, cannot compare to Sanorini and Mykonos.

Greg

You will have to settle between yourselves which itinerary you will choose. You cannot do both.... unless you plan VERY efficiently.

You will be able to do the Peloponnese thing VERY easily, by renting a car at the Airport ... the road to Corinth is a modern 4-lane highway, (NO athens driving), and about 90 easy-driving minutes to Corinth/Ancient Corinth. After Corinth, another great spot just 1/4 mile off the highway before the Nafplio turn-off is Ancient Nemea -- the sister site to Olympia, it has a stadium, temple, museum, etc.. but NO tour crowds! You could see it in 45 minutes. In Nafplio you can enjoy the Old Town (fabulous World Heritage Site). It has castles, fortress, history! and you can cool off afterwards at the cute pebbly town beach, or nearby is terrif little beach at Asine. On another day, you can do a "ruin-a-thon" to Mycenae, then Tiryns, then Epidaurus ... THEN a beach.

IF you planned well, you COULD do the above in 3 days/nights, and still possibly see Santorini, if you're willing to "pop" for airfare both ways. Return car to airport, book in advance the next flight via Aegean Air or Olympic Air to Santorini for 2 nights. To be SAFE, fly back in late afternoon the day before your return flight to the US. There are 2 places to stay near the airport that won't break the bank -- Peris Hotel and St Thomas B & B. Both would pick you up at the airport, and Peris will drive u back if your flight is not too early. Peris is about €50 with continental, St. Th is a bit over €100, but has a pool and buffet breakfast.

For the best use of your time split it between Santorini and the mainland so you can see as much as possible. Unless you want to go to Mykonos for the nightlife, shopping and sunbathing don't bother. There's not much else to see or do there. Go to Santorini directly upon arrival and save the mainland for the end of your trip so you don't have to scramble back at the last minute for your flight home. This is a much more efficient use of your precious time.

Mykonos is pretty expensive but if you want a place that has white washed buildings and at every turn you could literally get lost in Mykonos then I would suggest it. Santorini is nice but wasn't all that great for the beaches because the sandy beaches are made up of volcanic sand. You could maybe look into Naxos or Paros. I loved both of those places but then again any place you choose in Greece will be great.

Accept right now that a week in Greece is like two bites of an absolutely wonderful meal, a great experience but will only make you want more. If Athens is where you are flying back to the states from, save that for last, and two nights may be enough to see the ancient sites and the museum. From there, you could do Corinth as a day trip from Athens if you allow a bit more time (it is only a couple hours outside of Athens by both train and bus) but after a long three weeks in Europe, kicking back on a beach should get priority. For that, you could do a couple nights in Mykonos and a couple in Santorini; or you might just pick some less dramatic island like Naxos or Paros to just lounge on the beach. Regardless, with only a week, you will find some way to get back on your next trip. We did a quick week out of three and a half, two trips later we were back for 3 weeks in just Greece.