Please tell me what beach hotels and islands you love in Greece!

[irritablehead1]

I'm in the rabbit warren of sorting holiday. I've lost all previous Mumsnset threads so can't find previous post about Greece.

Please can you hit me up for recommendations of hotels/islands with lovely beaches and great swimming. I've no idea about Greece.

Thanks so much

Paxos

Pileonsally, no not all bars and restaurants in Greece are like that! People use the bins provided for toilet paper and sanitary products. Your teens will need to get used to it, the plumbing is much narrower than in the UK and they must not flush anything except bodily waste. Or risk serious blockage and flooding.

I’ve seen disgusting toilets in the UK, so maybe it’s drunken Brits who are to blame.

Ikos Dassia in Corfu is nice. I’m not normally a fan of AI but this is decent.

Paxos is absolutely stubbing, small, unspoilt and crystal clear waters, accessible via Corfu. Of the the more popular islands, Kefalonia is my favourite.

Stunning I meant!

We went to Rhodes mid October and the weather was a mixed bag. Warm all week but a couple of days thunderstorms which was disappointing. The following week looked glorious all week. Just luck I think!

I've done all inclusive and self catering in Greece, I absolutely love eating out but we like a few drinks too so being based at an AI hotel is ideal. We eat out 4/5 evenings, have a few days out including lunch, and a few chill days eating/drinking by the pool so it's the best of both worlds for us. Last year we stayed at a self catering place with an on site taverna which was great too.

You can't beat Santorini..its beautiful

@MoniJitchell

Sorry to jump in with my own request - strongly considering an October holiday to Greece. From what I can see it seems the more southern islands are the best bet weather wise - makes sense. Anyone have any experience of the Greek Islands in Oct and happy to impart wisdom?

I went to Crete last October. The weather was mostly lovely. Much cheaper too.

Early June is pleasantly warm in Kefalonia, if you can get a weeks holiday across your son’s half term, it depends which airport you fly from and how many departures there are.

@jesusmaryjosephandtheweedonkey

Kefelonia has the most lovely beaches. It's a fantastic island. It's my favourite Greek island for just chilling out and eating great food.

Hello Jesus - where/which areas do you recommend on Kefalonia - not tooo quiet for our 11 year old, but great beach(es) and places to eat etc.

We are thinking half term, summer term.

Thanks

Skiathos is coming up top of the list too...

Will it be 'warm' first week in June in either Skiathos/Kefalonia?

Irritablehead1, are you thinking of this year, because you might struggle to find somewhere. Many people have carried over holidays from last year and lots places are booked up.

The Ikos hotels are a whole new level of fabulous.

So lovely to see people recommending places like Paxos and Halki. Absolute heaven.

Halkidiki was lovely, lots of lovely little islands to explore with small beaches and not rammed, even though we went in peak season before the pandemic. Clean, calm, lovely restaurants. More of a family/couple's holiday destination rather than a party place.
We stayed at Archodiko Toliadi. Quirky and clean guesthouse, very friendly staff.

I like Hydra but it isn’t really beachy -lovely old town though and car free, you can combine it with Spetse or Porto heli on the mainland really well

Temps can reach 27c during the days in June, in Kefalonia and Skiathos.

We loved Naxos, it seemed really authentic and less touristy than Mykonos which although pretty, is full of wannabe wags strutting about drinking champagne on the beach.

The beaches in Crete are magical. Falassarna, Balos, Kommos and Elafonisi are all absolutely stunning. All very different from one another too.

Naxos is lovely. Domestic flights only - I got the ferry from Athens there, then a ferry to Mykonos and a flight back to London from there. It’s low key touristy and very chill. There are some lovely beaches close enough to the main town. Lots of good eating spots to choose from. I didn’t find the wind to be an issue at all.

Stayed just outside of Chania in October just gone. Nice old town, the beaches weren’t as good as the ones in Naxos. But lots to see and plenty of places to eat.

Wyndham Grand Crete Mirabello Bay. Absolutely stunning with a private beach.

Should add Crete was 38degrees most days when we visited (July).

Another vote for Sani resort.

Love santorini also

If you go to Crete, you have to visit preveli beach. We stayed in plakias and found this amazing gem. I just wish we had got the boat round instead of clbing down the stairs/cliff and back up!

But it was amazing! A green/clear water river flows into the sea. I can't tell you how amazing the colour of it was. Jade green and crystal clear. And gorgeous wonder up the river inland.

This has stayed with me 20 years. I've been all over the world since then and this beach has stayed with me.