Talk to me about Geeece

[Ikeasucks]

Island hopped Greece over 30 yrs ago and not been back since - ditched it for Turkey tbh. Treating son and his gf (22) and 19 yr old son to a family holiday first week in June.son has shown an interest in Greece. Looking for somewhere classy, beautiful but enough restaurants and bars for the young ones. Not too big an airport transfer. I’m looking online but there’s just so much to take in. Any input appreciated

Ok, well there are loads of islands but only a few have airports

Crete

Corfu
Zakynthos aka Zante
Kefalonia

Santorini
Mykonos

Skiathos

I would rule out Santorini and Mykonos (although they are iconic Greek islands) as they are very crowded and expensive especially Santorini which gets lots of cruises. I would also probably not pick Crete (although it’s lovely) because it’s large and you might have a long transfer, also doesn’t have that classic Greek island feel.

So your best bets are Skiathos, Corfu, Zakynthos or Kefalonia.

The last 3 are the Ionian islands west of Greece, they are all good options, pretty islands with lots of greenery and plenty of bars and restaurants in the main resort areas, but the buildings do have a more Italian look with red tiled roofs. If your DS wants the classic white and blue Greek look then Skiathos will fit the bill best. Skiathos town is quite buzzy and there are good beaches. You could also do a day trip to Skopelos which is where Mamma Mia was filmed.

HTH

Thank you, that’s really useful and have been looking at some of those you mentioned 🙂

I would look at Corfu there are some beautiful places to visit there.

If you do want the sugar box white buildings and blue dimes churches then you do need the Cyclades. You could fly into Santorini or Mykonos and take a ferry to Naxos or Paros. Both are beautiful, typically Greek and have plenty going on for the young ones especially Chora in Naxos and Naoussa on Paros.

Fly to corfu. Then ferry to paxos beautiful

I'm not a Greek expert, but just to add Rhodes also has plenty of flights from varying UK airports. If you live in London you can fly to Samos or Lemnos and maybe some others, which might be a bit quieter than some of those that get a lot of package holiday flights.

Oh yes forgot the Dodecanese! Whoops

Rhodes and Kos also have flights

Skiathos is great if you want to go to lots of different beaches but it's expensive.
If you can fly into Mykonos see if you can find somewhere in Naxos ( nearby island) it has fabulous beaches and it's a ferry hub so you could do some mini island hopping, I remember going to Santorini, Ios and I can't remember the others.

I'd agree that Skiathos ticks all the perfect Greek Island boxes. Especially if you stay in town. Great beaches. Sophisticated night life. Public transport. Short transfers

But it's very crowded in high season and there's a shortage of decent accommodation so it's expensive.

Kefalonia is my other favourite. Stunning scenery and better value.

Stoupa or surrounding area. Stoupa has great restaurants and is small with a fab beach. Fly into Kalamata.

Lindos in Rhodes.
Beautiful white washed town that’s pedestrian only. 2 really nice beaches, loads of restaurants & bars. Acropolis at the top of the hill for some history. A water park about 30mins away on a free shuttle bus. Can also get the bus into Rhodes town for the day.