Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Hi ladies! FH and I have decided we would like to go to Greece for our honeymoon, and we need a little guidance.

We were looking to stay 7 days, probably in June of 2006. We were thinking it would be a good idea to use an all inclusive resort like Club Med, so we dont have to worry about food, drinks etc. Club Med also has guided day trips that we would like to take. Neither one of us speaks a word of Greek, so we figured a resort would be easier to deal with as far as transportation, local outings and water sports.


Any recommendadtions as to which island, airlines, resort, useful travel books, good places to visit, wuld be very much appreciated!

TIA,
Rebecca

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

We didn't honeymoon in Greece, but I was there last July and just have a few tips for you. First, if you don't have to, DO NOT fly Olympic airlines. As one of my friends put it, It was like flying in a chicken coop!!! The flight attendants were rude and were SMOKING!! On the plane!! It was terrible.

I was there for work, a little over a week. We spent almost all of that time in Athens and it was HOT and Dusty!!!! I work for a ballet company and we performed at a theatre at the base of the acropolis--if you can, try to see something there--anything! Music, dance, theatre, whatever. It's really stunning and a great place to see a show. Very atmospheric. THe beach is a cab ride away. Unfortunately I didn't get to any of the islands, but I would've loved to have gone.

Have a great time!

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

DH and I were there last month for our honeymoon. I agree about Olympic airlines - the flight attendants WERE rude and people stand up in the aisles and talk very loud! On a 10 hour flight I need to sleep!

We went to Santorini, Crete, and Athens. Santorini was very pretty but very small so you wouldn't want to stay there for more then maybe 3 days. I didn't care for Crete - I thought it was very boring. Athens was cool - I wish we'd had more time there. We only had 2 nights and 1 day. It's not the nicest looking city but at least there's stuff to do.

We used a travel agent (American Express travel in Garden City) and she was great in arranging our transfers and everything else, but I wish she hadn't stuck us on Crete for 4 days!

ETA - you can see my honeymoon pictures in my wedding review.

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Thank you for the responses!

Ah, so THATS why olympic airlines is cheap! I saw some flights for 500.00. no wonder! I will look for a better airline.

Annie, your HM pics are AMAZING!!!! I'm convinced we chose the right place based on your pics.

rebecca

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Thanks! Santorini is definately a good place to take pictures I think some of my favorite pictures were the ones that I took there..... the colors and light/shadows make great pictures.

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

As a person who travels to Greece every summer for the past 25 years I can offer you some advice:

First off, it is a BEAUTIFUL country especially the Greek islands. I have been to Santorini, Corfu, Rhodes, and Kefalonia and they each island has their own beauty. Santorini is very romantic and beautiful and the beaches are nice, but I personally think the beaches in Rhodes and Corfu are more beautiful.

Olympic Airlines is not cheap-but if you book early enough you can get a good deal. I don't know where you saw RT airfare for $500 with Olympic, but I know that I usually pay $1100-$1300 RT every summer that I go.

Athens is a city and like any city (including NY) it is crowded and there is pollution. However, it has the Acropolis and that is a must see! Athens also has some beautiful hotels if you know where to go and stay and excellent restaurants (again if you know where to go).

I have never been to Crete but from what I hear from many people it is gorgeous and amazing. FH and I are going to go next time we go to Greece.

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

We just came back from our HM in Greece. We also went to Athens, Crete and Santorini. I posted links to pics on the review board.

I truly loved all 3 places we went. When we first got to Athens we felt a little lost but once we got the hang of the metro and the streets we were good to go and walked around sooo much.

After Athens, we were off to Crete. We rented a car at the airport and are soo glad we did. We got to do so much b/c we rented the car. I thought Crete was ABSOLUTELY beautiful. Our hotel was gorgeous, the beaches were beautiful. We went a beach called Elafonissis and the beach is to die for. The water is literally white...sooo clear. And the water super warm. (There are pics of this beach in my shutterfly album). We were close to a place called Platanias where there are many many cafes, shops and restuarants. There is Chania which is the center. Chania was also a lot of fun but the shops and restuarants were much more expensive than Platanias.

After Crete, we were off to Santorini. Santorini was also beautiful but bring your walking shoes if you plan to stay in Oia. When staying in Oia, you are literally on the side of a mountain. You must walk up and down the mountain to go to your hotel and to the center of town to get a bus or taxi. But it was well worth it. The sunsets are gorgeous. The water is gorgeous (a royal blue color like I've never seen before). It is very romantic. We also took a boat ride to see one of the volcanos and to swim in the hot springs. It was a lot of fun.

As for Olympic, the flight going to Greece was awful. But it wasn't Olympics fault it was a couple of passenger's fault (they were super obnoxious). But that can happen on any airline. For the return trip back the flight was empty so Peter and I were able to grab a row just for ourselves. It was great. The crew was very friendly to us going and coming back from Greece as well as on the Island flights.

If you have any questions, feel free to FM me.

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Marcela - what part of Crete did you stay on? We were on the East coast at Elounda. There was NOTHING to do there! We also had a car but just didn't feel like driving 2 hours to go do something. I don't know why our travel agent had us stay on that part of Crete. And we were there only 2 weeks before you, and the water was COLD! Well, not freezing, but too cold for me to swim! The hotel was a 5 star but I wouldn't have considered it that. The staff was awesome though.
The only thing we did on Crete was play golf on this teeny 9 hole golf course at the hotel next door. We could see when flying in and out how beautiful some of the island was, but it wasn't like that where we were

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

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Posted by Anniegrl

Marcela - what part of Crete did you stay on? We were on the East coast at Elounda. There was NOTHING to do there! We also had a car but just didn't feel like driving 2 hours to go do something. I don't know why our travel agent had us stay on that part of Crete. And we were there only 2 weeks before you, and the water was COLD! Well, not freezing, but too cold for me to swim! The hotel was a 5 star but I wouldn't have considered it that. The staff was awesome though.
The only thing we did on Crete was play golf on this teeny 9 hole golf course at the hotel next door. We could see when flying in and out how beautiful some of the island was, but it wasn't like that where we were

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We stayed in an area called Gerani which was the next town after Platanias. Off of the national road (not far from the Souda port). It was about 25 minutes from the airport. Platanias was full of things to do. The water by us in Gerani was cold (incl. the pool water but we went in it anyway), but when we went to Elafonissis the water was VERY warm and crystal clear.
I'm sorry that you did not enjoy Crete

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Ok - we were like about an hour from the airport. I was kind of bummed that we didn't have a better time in Crete too, but at least we go to see someplace we'd never been to before

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Thanks so much!

Junebride, I passed by a travel agency in Brooklyn that advertised the 500.00 flight to Greece. I am skeptical as well, I dont want to fly in the cargo area!

Marcela, I checked out your pics, you were a lovely bride! Was the Metro hard to figure out?

Two of my biggest concerns are:

1. We don't speak any Greek. We are planning on learning basic phrases, like please, thank you, where is the bathroom , how much is this, etc... Was the language barrier a problem for you?

2. Trasnportation. I dont think we should rent a car (even though I would like to), becuase we wont be able to read the street signs. We will have to stick to whatever public transportation and cabs are available. Is this expensive?

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Don't worry about those 2 things - LOTS of people speak English! We had absolutely no problems at all. And lots of the road signs are both in Greek AND in English! So easy! You drive on the right side of the road too, just like here.

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

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Posted by Anniegrl

Don't worry about those 2 things - LOTS of people speak English! We had absolutely no problems at all. And lots of the road signs are both in Greek AND in English! So easy! You drive on the right side of the road too, just like here.

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I was just going to say the same thing. Everyone we encountered spoke English and the signs were in both languages.

Re: Has anyone honeymooned in Greece?

Mostly everyone...especially in Athens and the islands speak english, so you won't have to worry about that.

Other islands that I would recommend are Mykonos and Paros...close to Santorini. The beaches in Mykonos are absolutely beautiful.