family holiday in Greece? Dd desperate for a real sandy beach, sea and sun

[violetbloom]

We want to take our dd overseas for the first time (we're very broke) this summer. Dd looks at pictures of clear blue sea and beaches all the time and so we wondered if Greece might be a good place to try.

Would anybody have any suggestions at all of anywhere with lovely sea and sands and guaranteed sunshine for a week in the summer holidays?

Anyone?

I think with Greece you have to pick your resort carefully if you want to get a sandy beach - many of them tend to be pebbly.

However, I'm not an expert, so no doubt someone will come along soon and tell you that I'm talking rubbish!

I am a big fan of greece. You can either choose to go the route of a resort which is definitely convenient etc. Or you can book it yourself. Personally, I LOVE the mainland and think if you're up for booking it by yourself, flying to kalamata and finding self catering there somewhere is amazing. It's beautiful, the beaches are fantastic and it's less expensive as it's not geared at foreign tourists as much.

holidaylettings.com has a great selection of self catering places in the area (Pelopanese).

We would definitely go self-catering because dd has an anaphylactic allergy to nuts and it makes life easier if I do all the cooking and food preparation myself. A sandy beach would be really wonderful for dd so thanks for pointing out that they aren't all sandy!

Pernera bay in Cyprus has beautiful sandy beaches and clear sea.

I absolutely love Greece but a lot of the beaches are pebbly. Lindos in Rhodes or sidari in Corfu are sandy. Pefkos and afandou in Rhodes also have nice beaches iirc.

Greece is nice but it is that bit further away than Spain or Italy. Spain has excellent sun and beaches and you don't need to put loo paper in the bin!
If you are broke there are loads of good deals either on the mainland or their islands. It totally isn't all about boozy brits either.Palma, valencia and Barcelona all have great beaches but loads of class.
Have only been to the Lido d Jesolo (sorry can't even spell it now )in Italy but it was really lovely -all beaches and plenty of Euro camp/Siblu etc if you want more of an experience.Also you can do a quick trip to Venice by getting the bus (we thought we were heading for a market) for pennies as compared to a the small fortune we paid the year after when we flew in.Really nice place and Spain and Italy are so good with kids.

We went to Kos and stayed in Mastihari, a nice little resort with a gorgeous sandy beach. Have a look www.mastihariuncovered.com

Try Skiathos, absolutely glorious sandy beaches (and loads of them - crystal clear waters and very safe), very pretty island and you can do day trips to Skiathos and Alonissos nearby and they are to die for- its where they filmed Mama Mia.

Kephalonia and Zante also have resorts with sandy beaches, so check them out too.

If it's your first overseas holiday with children I truly wouldn't choose Greece, and I say that as someone who loves Greece and has been to many islands.The accommodation is almost always a lower standard than Spain or Portugal which if you love Greece you will make allowances for.You might also struggle to self cater entirely as you won't have a lot of choice of shops in the smaller resorts.
The best beaches are, in my opinion, in the Algarve and it's a shorter flight.