We are considering flying from Izmir to Athens at end of tour, and spending a few days in Athens before returning home. We will have had a couple days in Istanbul before the start of tour. Understanding this is mostly personal preference, how tired were you at end of tour and do you think physical or "museum fatigue" would take away from the enjoyment of Athens highlights? Or take away from savoring our experiences in Turkey? Ideally we will take a full tour of Greece in the future, but you never know...
Posted by
Salem, Oregon, USA
3666 posts
I had considered doing that after my Best of Turkey tour, but found (at that time) there was only one direct flight to Athens per day from Izmir and it left very late in the day. I was worried if it was canceled I would have to wait another full day to make the flight. As I live on the west coast USA I was also looking at limited options for coming home even from Athens, so I chose to fly from Izmir to Amsterdam (stay overnight) then onward home.
I haven't been to Athens so I can't speak to whether a few days would be worthwhile there. Some people on my tour went to Samos (by ferry) for a few days and then came home. I wasn't exhausted at the end of the Best of Turkey tour, but I was glad I focused just on one country. But as you say, totally up to you!
PS check your tour materials to see if they offer a pre-tour Foodie tour. If so, do it. It was one of my favorite things.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15943 posts
How many is a few? What month? Is it going to be very hot? Athens, for me, is museums with A/C and archaeological sights with little shade. If you have at least 3 full days in Athens, maybe it's worthwhile. Look at airline schedules. You may have to fly to Istanbul or ferry to Samos to connect to Athens, using up a good part of a day. It may also be more complicated to fly open-jaw into Istanbul and out of Athens.
BUT Istanbul has lots of sights. A couple of days pre-tour is not a lot, especially if you're jetlagged at the start. The tour doesn't spend much time in the city. There's plenty to see and do to fill another 3 days easily.
I don't remember spending a lot of time in museums on the tour, certainly not toward the end of it. Nor do I remember being worn out physically at the end of the tour.
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
9955 posts
I spent a few days in Athens after being a 14 day tour of Turkey immediately followed by a 7 day cruise from Istanbul to Athens. I enjoyed my time there. I felt it was unique enough compared to Turkey that I didn't suffer too much from "ruins fatigue." There are also many interesting daytrips out of Athens.
I will warn you that I found flights back to the US from Athens tend to leave very early in the morning because they involve making a connections elsewhere. I think I spent three nights at the Acropolis View Hotel (highly recommend) and the final night at an airport hotel due to the early flight.