Greek Islands

Island hopping in Greece, what a dream.

Mykonos

Since the ferry was closed due to a strike we took a quick 40 minute flight from Athens to Mykonos a day earlier than expected. We were able to get a cheaper flight than a ferry and didn't have to sit on the boat for 5 hours. Winning!

Travel Tip: If you see cheap flights for the islands take them. The ferry in general is a pain and may  be the same cost as a flight if you get them early enough or in some cases last minute.

Everyone was getting ready for the peak season, re-painting all of the walls white and prepping their shops. The island almost completely shuts down during the slow months, with most restaurants and hotels closing altogether. The busy season really ramps up start of May and lasts till mid October. It was exactly as you see in the pictures. White walls, vibrant pink flowers and lots and lots of wine and olives.

Mykonos is considered a party island during the busy season, but we didn't get to do much of that. Instead we filled our time with cards and got a scooter to adventure around the island. The islands were a bit dryer than anticipated. Most of the time you only see the white walls in the photos, but never see what is around it. Almost everything else on the island is bare rock, dirt and a few scraggly plants. Tooting around the island we could really see how small it was. In general there are a few little towns here and there, but a majority of the land is private and wide open with large villas dotting the hillsides. Our first taste of island Mediterranean food was delicious. Most of the good restaurants sell fresh seafood from around the island including squid, octopus, sea bream, mussels, prawns, lobster, mackerel, swordfish, sardines, anchovies and scorpion fish.

Santorini

Santorini was our second stop and it was the wow factor. We stayed in a hotel for little to nothing in the town called Kamari, but was right on the beach rather than up on the cliffs. This island was much larger than Mykonos with many towns to drive through or back roads to get lost in.

We found a great 2 hour hike up the cliffs right next to our hotel that we climbed a few times. The trail took us to a 17th century chapel and cave with underground water supply. Above that it continued to the top of the mountain to the ancient town of Thera which dates back to 900 B.C. The top was 1200 ft elevation in just over a mile distance so it was very steep. Since the only thing I have been lifting is wine bottles and cheese it was nice to get a little cardio in.

The other days we rented a car and went to the town of Oia, which is the town of the iconic photos you see on the massive cliff edges. We walked around and had one of our most memorable dinners of the trip. The views were something like I have never seen.

Another day we drove to the far southwest corner of the island and visited red beach, which was pretty to look at, but not nice to lay down. The journey to the beach was memorable when we took a few wrong turns and ended up going up off road on goat paths instead. As you can see our little car was better suited for the paved road life. We learned that today Santorini is what remains of an ancient volcano which erupted around 1600 B.C. and is thought to be one of the largest eruptions in human history. Today when you sit and sip wine on the cliff edges over the sea you are actually on the rim of a volcano looking into the caldera now filled with water.

Travel tip: Travel to southern Europe in April/May or September/October. Even during this time we had high 70s and hotel prices increase quite a bit in May and even more in June.  Beat the summer heat, avoid the crowds and save some too! 

Crete

Crete was our last stop in the islands. It much bigger than the other islands and is more a locals island. You can drive for hours and visit small beach towns along the the north coast. We stayed in the town of Rythmenos. It is known for its large 17th century castle walls created to defend the city from Ottoman pirates.  While we were there we walked around town and the beach, but in all honesty we were a bit lazy. We had rented a car from the airport since our hotel was just over an hour away and decided it would be cheaper than a taxi both ways. During our few days on in Rythmenos we only drove short distances and wish we had gone farther to various places around the island. We have realized that for us planning out our next day ahead of time is important so we don't become complacent just relaxing.

Travel Tip: If you have a free day unplanned and don't know what to do, look for a national or state park on the map and just go there! If it is designated as a special place then its probably worth a visit just for the views or a hike, and the journey getting there will be fun too.

Libby's Favorite Meal: In Thera / Oia Santorini  of the cliffs looking at the views. Dip mix and grilled Octopus
Libby's Favorite Memory: Driving along the coast in Santorini on our way home from one of our best meals yet.

Jesse's favorite meal : Same meal as Libby. It really was a special spot, watching the sunset, the food was fantastic, they had craft beer, which I had a Vulcan Santorini blonde ale. Perfect
Jesse's favorite activity: The hikes, flying the drone and and driving around the island