Greek Island Hopping

Hey, I am planning to go around the Greek Islands with a friend in October for about 2 weeks.
Want to go to mykonos, ios and santorini, and maybe one more...
I dont really want to book anything at the moment or in the next couple of months because I dont have the money right now and not sure if i will, i have to see how much money im gonna have because im already going to be in europe and spending alot, still paying off the airfares and stuff atm...
Should i book before i go or just book the flight from london to athens (is that the best way to get there?) and figure it out as we go? i will have about 2 weeks there... so i dont want to get stuck anywhere and miss my plane home... but i dont know where to book through or anything and all the websites i have seen are so confusing...
anyone done this and have any advice or anything?
thanks!!

Onestorm,

In October you will be able to find places to stay (though do note that some places close early to laet October (hotels, tarvernas) - the time of year depends on the area or island.

Santorini will be fine and Crete will (though some small villages or resort areas On or By the Beach may be a bit ghost-townish!). Mykonos will still be alive into October.

If you are spending a little, well a bit, of money on places to stay...then the small and really charming/interesting/smart and desirable hotels can fill even in October (though we do not know if this will be less likely this year because of the world economic situation keeping more people from traveling) so these should be booked ahead. But yes, you will find somewhere to stay.

For transport between the islands check ferries available on www.gtp.gr (but Note: Greek ferry schedules can change and most importantly are often not publishes at all until, sometimes, 2 or even 1 month before the date you want to travel!).
Where there is a express Catamaran service (Hellenic Seaways run some of these www.hellenicseways.gr ) it is a good idea to book ahead, possibly even once you are here, as seating is limited and reserved seat-by-seat.

Other good resources for this trip - for Crete www.cretetravel.com ( also have an athens guide ) a good guide, for hotels in Santorini www.superbgreece.com and for rather unappealing look to the site but lists of hotels (sometimes helpful) the Greek tourist site (don't expect much) www.gnto.gr

Hope this helps

Happy travels.

Tellya (Aka! .... )

Island hopping round the Greek Islands is just a wonderful holiday.
Pareaus, close to Athens - is a great poort to pick up a ferry to just about anywhere.

There really is no need to book in advance for Pareaus. The ferries are in and out all the time and never full to the brim.

I agree, there's no need to book your ferry ahead of time, because you can just go down to the port of Athens that is actually called Piraeus and get your tickets there. The ferry we took to Santorini was leaving very early in the morning (had to be at the port at 6 am) and it stopped at Naxos and Ios before arriving in Santorini 9 hours later. So there's definitely a fery connection between Ios and Santorini, and I think you can get to Mykonos from Ios as well. If you want to save the time of the ferry ride, you could always try and check flights from London to either Mykonos or Santorini. Might be a bit pricier than flying to Athens and you'd also miss out on exploring the city for a day or two.
Concering the islands, I can only give you detailed information about Santorini, so just pm me know if you have any questions re. accommodation or what to do and see there.

Steff

i dont know how good ios will be in oct. if you are just going for a relaxing vacation it will be fine, but if you are going to party you must go in june july or aug (aug is the craziest), the biggest clubs are only open in aug. and in oct only one tenth of the bars will be open. it is a great place, but what makes it so great is the insane parties.