Advice for extending trip

We plan on taking a 7 day Greek Isle cruise next summer and want to extend our stay by 3-4 days as I don't want to come to Europe for just a week.

Our ship will disembark in Athens. We are looking for a recommended island or place to go as we don't want to extend in Athens. With your options, please indicate the best way to get there. i.e. ferry, boat or do we need to fly, etc.

Looking forward to some good options.

thanks

If you only want to stay for 3-4 days, I would recommend flying to your destination, unless you like to spend a long time in ferries.

We have used the following two Greek agencies in the past to arrange for local travel and hotels at very good prices:

https://www.fantasytravelofgreece.com/

https://www.dolphin-hellas.gr/

You might enjoy a combination trip to Mykonos and Santorini with a couple of days at each island. Or maybe a road trip to Delphi and Meteora.

You really need to do some research on your own.

There are many island possibilities. We happen to enjoy Naxos and Sifnos. Santorini is amazing. It is a very different place one the day trippers and the cruisers have left for the day. Same with Mykonos.

iF you are disembarking in Pireus I would not bother flying. Take a morning ferry, perhaps a fast ferry if you want to experience the islands. This is how we typically visit the islands...just hop on a ferry. Depending where you go, and whether tou fly home from Athens, you may want to consider flying back.

So many options. I agree with iancal consider a ferry from Pireus or possibly consider going to an area you’ve never visited outside of Greece. When I checked a few months ago, Athens had a direct flight to Israel for a good price. I found many tours there for 4 days.

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When we visit Greece we typically do open jaw air. Last time we flew into Athens, worked our way through a few islands. Spent a week in Crete and snagged a low cost flight to Paris in order to catch the return portion of our open jaw. We have also done the opposite...fly into Istanbul and home from Athens.

So many possibilities. You reLly need to do some research based on your time and your preferences.

One thing we learned on our trips to the Greek Islands.....pack ligh and travel with carry only. Lugging a bunch of big, heavy suitcases is a downer in the ferries.

 

One thing we learned on our trips to the Greek Islands.....pack ligh and travel with carry only. Lugging a bunch of big, heavy suitcases is a downer in the ferries.

The best advice you could get. When traveling on land in Europe make sure you can carry your own luggage. Makes ferries and trains so much easier.

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Be careful with ferry schedules. The ferries to Santorini and Mykonos depart Piraeus before 7:30 am. They take between 5 and 7 hours depending on the ferry line. I would strongly advice a first timer to use one of the local travel agencies I mentioned above.

Check it out:

http://www.go-ferry.com/

Thank you all. I have a lot of work to do!! Will be planning an amazing trip.

There is a book that we access from our local library. It is A compendium of Greek ferries and timetables. I cannot remember the name.

It provides schedules and options within, and between groups of islands. We found it very helpful for planning out a rough schedule.

Here is another thought. IF your cruise has a stop on an island prior to returning to Athens, look into disembarking on that island. Why motor back to Athens and then turn around and head back out? That last stop may be the ideal place to start your add on trip! Subject of course to the cruise line. Being in the same country should make things more straightforward when it comes to disembarking.

OR......forget the cruise. pack a carry and simply island hop instead.

There is a book that we access from our local library. It is A compendium of Greek ferries and timetables. I cannot remember the name.

 

It provides schedules and options within, and between groups of islands. We found it very helpful for planning out a rough schedule.

 

OR......forget the cruise. pack a carry and simply island hop instead.

Ferry schedules change from year to year, especially in the summer. So, if you can find the book use it for "rough" planning only. Use the internet or local agency for current info.

This book is published every year. And it is expensive as I recall. Looked up the price on the Internet. Our library only had hard copy...we had to wait in line for a month on the hold list until we were able to get the most recent edition,

There will no doubt be changes but it is particularly good in understanding ferry routes. We used it to plan visits to three or four islands in such a way as to minimize our travel time and avoid having to change ferries to get to our destination.