Travel Diaries – Greece

Hi friends! After almost two years since our wedding in November 2019, Ronak and I *finally* went on our honeymoon this August! Our original plan was to visit Italy, however after considering the increasing number of COVID cases there, we settled on Greece, and boy, am I glad we did! Greece is an incredibly beautiful country consisting of thousands of islands – a fun fact I actually didn’t really know until we visited!

USA to Greece Travel:

Most flight options we were seeing while booking from Philly went through Athens, but we were trying to skip that either on the way there or the way back and limit our time in Athens since we knew (and had been told a LOT) that we could cover Athens in just one day. Thankfully we were able to find a flight that took us directly to Santorini (JTR) without stopping in Athens! Our outbound flight flew through London, so we went from PHL — LHR — JTR. It felt like a long journey, but the first overnight leg was actually nice to get some shuteye, and when we landed it was morning in London, and our layover was a fairly short 4 hours (doesn’t feel that long when you factor in the de-boarding process, and getting to your next terminal in the obnoxiously large LHR airport). We reached Santorini around 6:30pm so we were still able to get to our hotel and go out to grab some food and explore around us before it got too late.

Our flight back to Philly was direct from Athens, which was great! Although the flight felt long at times, it was also nice to get it all over with in one leg. 🙂

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Honeymoon Itinerary:

I’ll be breaking down each island in individual posts so stayed tuned for those 🙂 However, below is an overall itinerary of our week in Greece! We spent 7 days and 8 nights in Greece, but it was a total of 9 days with all the travel time.

A week in Greece is definitely a good amount of time to cover a lot, in our opinion! We had heard Crete would require several days to sufficiently see, so we replaced that island with Paros for this trip, and so glad that we did! We loved Paros – it felt more like an island less traveled.

Saturday, August 14 – outbound flight from PHL –> JTR

Sunday, August 15 – Wednesday, August 18 – Santorini (3 nights)

Wednesday, August 18 – Friday, August 20 – Paros (2 nights)

Friday, August 20 – Sunday, August 22 – Mykonos (2 nights)

Sunday, August 22 – Monday, August 23 – Athens (1 night)

Monday, August 23 – inbound flight from ATH –> PHL

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Interisland Travel:

We took ferries from island to island, and although I still think that it’s probably the best form of transportation between islands, it was quite the experience…and this was something we didn’t see anyone sharing anywhere in our research while planning, so I really wanted to make sure and include this information for any future travelers!

For starters, each individual ferry you take is vastly different from the last one, even if it’s the same company. For example, our ferry from Santorini to Paros, and from Paros to Mykonos were both operated by Seajets, however the interiors and some of the processes on both felt very different. I was so pleasantly surprised with the first ferry – it was like a yacht inside with a full service cafe with drinks and food inside, and nice luxury-type seating. The second ferry was less certainly nice, but still had comfortable seating and was relatively clean. Our third and final ferry from Mykonos to Athens (and also the longest – a 4+ hour long journey that started at 6:30am), was the absolute worst. This ferry was operated by Blue Star Ferries, and we highly highly do not recommend – they had very clearly overbooked the ferry as hundreds of passengers were sleeping in sleeping bags on the floors of each floor. There were a few areas of nice seating but of course people had blocked off seats with their luggage to avoid sitting next to someone, so we got stuck in an area with only plastic tables and chairs. It honestly felt grungy, and while I was looking forward to being able to sleep for a few more hours after waking up at 5:00am to catch this 6:30am ferry, I didn’t get a minute of shuteye since it was so uncomfortable, I was super anxious the entire time and just wanted to get off the boat.

This doesn’t make a huge difference or wasn’t a big deal, but we just found it odd that when booking the tickets, you receive COVID documentation forms to fill out that they say is required to board – but, no one checks these, ever. Our passports and vaccine cards were only checked prior to boarding our first ferry – second and third ferry all they cared about was our ticket.

Additionally, there’s no form of communication by the port staff while waiting for the boat at the port. Our Santorini boat was over an hour late (mind you, they ask you to be at the port an hour prior to disembarkation time), and there was no communication to anyone about if the boat was even going to show up. When it finally arrived, it was literally a free-for-all of people running towards the boat with their luggage, trying to drag it all up the ramp they provide off the boat, while cars are also simultaneously trying to drive onto the boat (these ferries transport cars as well!). The entire boarding process feels like a whirlwind because they’re trying to shove people deboarding off the boat as quickly as possible and board new passengers on in the least amount of time – maybe like 15 minutes, tops. It’s almost as if the boat doesn’t even stop and you’re just tossed on 😉 jk, but really does feel a little chaotic.

Then, once you finally board, you’re in the car parking area of the boat which feels almost like a dark dungeon, where they have 1 or 2 little luggage shelf things you’re expected to find room to put your luggage on somewhere. It’s hot, humid, and smells like gasoline – which is why I’d highly recommend elder parents or grandparents to not travel via ferries. A lot of people opted to drag their luggage up to the seating areas with them, but we’d recommend not doing that with a larger bag as the stairways are pretty narrow and there’s a ton of pushing and shoving that happens.

Anyway, like I previously mentioned – once you’re finally seated it’s not so bad (at least on the first two Seajet ferries we took – not the Blue Star Ferry), and these ferries travel mad fast so it’s certainly the best option for island hopping!

TL:DR – Ferry Tips:

• Travel light – it’s you and only you that’s going to be dragging all your luggage on and off these ferries (while also being pushed and shoved) so our recommendation is to keep it at 1 rolling bag + 1 personal item per person
• This is also a general Greece travel tip but don’t bring nice luggage – it will get beat up
• The “business class” or “VIP” tickets on ferries are not really worth the price point (except maybe on Blue Star Ferries) – they’re generally on the top floor of the ferry, which when you think about it, more stairs to climb and come down. Also, in most cases, (like the Seajet boats), the “economy” tickets are actually really nice seats and have a little more room to walk around rather than being restricted to one area
• The ferries are almost never on time. However, don’t take too much advantage of this fact because on the off chance it is on time – it’s de-boarded, boarded, and out the port all within 20 minutes. So make sure you’re still there on time!
• Do some research on the exact boat and seat type you’re booking prior to booking it so you have an idea of what you’re signing up for – our boat from Mykonos to Athens (CC: Blue Star Ferries) was not at all what we were expecting, nor similar at all to our other ferry rides, so, in hindsight, we would have done more research on this to make sure we knew what we were signing up for
• Book early! We booked our ferry tickets just a couple weeks prior to our trip and I think they were already a little pricier than they may have been. Also ferries to Athens seem to always be booked so that’s how we ended up getting stuck on a crappy option (4.5 hour ride at 6:30am *eye roll*) but definitely don’t wait to buy your tickets as soon as your travel plans are decided!

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Cost of Travels to Greece

We scored pretty decent roundtrip tickets through Amex with points so that was a huge cost savings for us. Then, we also used the Amex travel portal to book all our hotels through and all of them were conveniently the 5X points hotels so we got a decent amount of points back because of that as well – just a helpful tip if you’re trying to get more travel points, be sure to check if your credit card rewards for booking through their travel portal!

Below is a high level breakdown of costs for both Ronak and I during our trip (with the caveat that this will defer for everyone, and is also dependent on the time of year you decide to visit!):

• RT flights from PHL – free (booked on points, but would’ve been ~$1,400)
• 3 Ferries – ~$280
• Lodging (4 hotels) – ~$2,900
• Santorini sunset boat tour – ~$330
• Taxis, transfers, food, drinks, tips, misc. in-person costs – ~$1,250

So our trip totaled to approximately $4,800 for the both of us. Keep in mind this excludes the $1,400 of what would-have-been flight prices.

I want to note that Ronak and I had a great time, and ate and drank when we want, but we also didn’t get carried away with anything crazy. Greece has a broad range of price points on each island – for example, Mykonos is certainly pricier than other islands. But, nonetheless, we enjoyed ourselves!

As a European country, some things are generally slightly pricier than we’re used to in the States. Water, for example, has to be bought everywhere since you can’t drink their local water there. Most places charged around €3 for a large bottle of water, but one bar we went to in Mykonos Town charged us €8. Just something to keep in mind. 🙂

My Top Greece Travel Recommendations:

If you are planning a trip to Greece soon, or any time in the future, I’d love to share some tips that we learned along the way on our journey! Some of these were shared with us prior to our travels and some were just learned the hard way haha

• Be prepared to walk – a lot. A lot of these islands are very (like, extremely) limited on taxis – Paros and Mykonos only have 30 taxis on the entire island! Which is mind-boggling considering the amount of tourism these places have. So unless you’re taking a private transfer to each place you’re visiting, which can add up to be very expensive, you’ll likely be walking. City buses are also a great option but really only worth it if you’re going to a further part of the island. Walking is also a great way to explore all the little areas and also have the flexibility to stop and go as you please.
• Be sure to invest in a good pair of walking sandals. I personally don’t recommend tennis shoes as it’s extremely hot in Greece and I think that would only add to making you more hot haha but…personal preference! I took 2 pairs of sandals and a pair of heels to wear in Greece, and I only ended up wearing these every single day and even in the evenings to dinner. I can’t say enough good things about them – they are extremely comfortable to wear for long periods of time!
• Do not take heels. I was one of those people that didn’t listen to all those before me and still took a pair of heels to Greece thinking I’d be the exception, but girlllll – do not pack heels unless it’s just for photos (which I ended up using them for). It’s way too dang hilly and the cobblestones there will not only mess up your heels, but also likely twist your ankle walking.
• Do not bring super nice/brand new luggage. You’re likely going to have to walk down a road with your luggage at least a few times and the rough roads there will beat up your luggage.
• Pack a good wide-brim hat – or buy one locally! This was honestly one of the best things I could’ve packed. There is literally almost no shade anywhere in Greece, and that Mediterranean sun ain’t no joke. It gets extremely hot and this hat saved my face from completely burning lol. But also note it’s also very windy near the water on some islands so just keep one hand on your hat to avoid it from flying away. 😉
• Keep a decent amount of cash with you. We traveled to Greece with €300 in cash, and we had to get more from ATMs twice while there. Taxis, city buses, and a lot of the private transfers only take cash.
• Use the city bus! We noticed that it was a consistent €1.8 per person to go pretty much anywhere on any island that the bus route would go, and this would usually be to all the main parts. Which isn’t bad considering a private shuttle was typically anywhere from €20-€40 one-way. Also the city buses aren’t what you’re probably thinking – they’re nice, sit-down coach buses that are clean and efficient.
• Bring tons of disposable masks. If you’re planning travel or reading this in COVID times, pack a lot of disposable masks (we loved these!). I’m all about the reusable masks but we were literally sweating through our masks every day and it was pretty gross, so we were going through at least 2, sometimes 3, masks per day, each. I felt that the disposable masks were just easier, but just something to keep in mind! I thought I overpacked those, but we ended up using every single one I packed.

I hope you found this overview about our Greece trip helpful and maybe even inspiring to plan a trip 🙂 I think we’d like to visit again some day, maybe after seeing other parts of Europe first! be sure to stay tuned for my island round-ups as well! let me know in the comments below if you’ve been to Greece, or if you are planning your trip there now! 🙂

xo,

gopi

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