Greek Islands

[BastardtheCat]

I’ve never been and am desperate to go.

I love:

golden, sandy beaches and swimming in clear seas.

Exploring old cobblestoned streets, wandering into crafty artisan shops.

Tavernas, quiet bars and good food.

Somewhere where I can hop on a bus to see market day.

Where can I go?

Kefalonia
skiathos
corfu
halkadiki

Crete.

We stayed in Rethythmon which indeed had cobbled streets, sandy beaches, shops tavernas etc. We walked along the seafront promenade to the next little town for an amazing lunch.

We went off season, I think mid Oct. You can get a day ferry to other islands such as Santorini. The week we went though, the day ferries had stopped and the only option was a slow, overnight one.

Another day we got the bus to Heraklion to see Knossos and the museum. Fascinating if you are into history. Since returning, I've seen lots of recommendations for Chania- a town at the other end of the island.

I love Corfu as it is more green and verdant than some islands (like Kos which I found quite barren). Skiathos is nice too.

Paros specifically Naousa is lovely.

This. Rethymnon is one of my favourite places. It has a lovely old town, harbour and fortress. The beach also starts from the town too. Its halfway between Chania(also has a scenic old town to explore) and Heraklion. So is a great base to see lots.of Crete. Cretan hospitality/food is also amazing too!!

Paxos although the good beaches aren’t abundant.

Corfu is beautiful and green lots of little villages to wander through and a lovely old town . Rhodes is not green but has a stunning capital and Lindos is atmospheric. Paros is gorgeous but harder to get to . Lefkas is lovely , kefalonia too but less of the old towns because of an earthquake in 1953 . Crete has a lovely coastlines and lots of interesting places . Packs is stunning, very quiet and quaint but you fly into Corfu and get a ferry . Lots of beautiful islands do you research before you book .

Rhodes, Lindos.

Quite a few to choose from, each with different +/- ; personally we love Crete with our 3 kids. We have lots of fun walking around Chania and, as ther posts mention, we enjoyed Rethymnon as well. 2 airports so you can sometimes get some good value flights.

Crete is my favourite, so pretty and the buses make it easy to get around. The locals are so laid back and hospitable. I'd like to live there, actually! 🤔