Trip report: Athens, Naxos, Santorini
Hi All, just got back from a 10 day trip and wanted to let everyone know what we did and what we enjoyed!
Got into Athens in the afternoon and paid for a taxi, it was worth it since we were exhausted after an overnight flight with no sleep.
We stayed in Thissio and loved it! Close enough to the sights and far enough from the crowd that we had a great stay. Stayed at an Airbnb over a bar and had a great time.
Day 1: Athens
We hit as much as we could fit in one day since we had plans to drive to Delphi the next day. Started with the Ancient Agora, listened to Rick Steves tour on this and was informative for us without being too much.
Then we went to the Acropolis museum which was amazing! We listened to the shortened tour (1 hour) and really enjoyed it. Everything was in order and easy to comprehend, short blurbs with enough information. I think if you're a big history buff the 2 hour one would be fine. Stood in line even though we had bought tickets ahead of time so just be aware.
Our Acropolis window was 5-6 and it was an amazing time to enter (golden hour). Obviously it was still busy but we had no issues with the crowds being too much. Listened to Rick Steves tour for this as well and enjoyed our time so much.
Day 2:
Delphi day trip. Here we fucked up, I should've had us take a bus tour out there but wanted flexibility to explore other areas nearby so decided to rent a car. My fiance was a champ and drove which was ok, just a lot of classic mountain turns and Greek drivers like to pass when they can.
As I should've realized, most breakfast places were not open before 8am so we went to Dimou bakery and their bougatsa was the best we had and also our first exposure to the pastry. 15/10 would recommend they had great lattes and our whole order was under 15 euros.
By the time we got to Delphi it was hot and we were frustrated because we'd missed our window for tickets. It's a long drive from Athens. We tried listening to the audio tour provided but it was a lot of information and couldn't keep our attention. Also it's a hike, if you have any concerns with lots of stairs or steep uphill walking, be warned. We weren't sure what was at the top so we kept going and unless you're a sports fan, the track/stadium could've been skipped in my opinion.
Ended up leaving earlier than we expected to get home. The views were absolutely amazing around the temples and the mountains were gorgeous. Parking was hard to find when we got in and we ended up having to street park in Delphi. We got lunch at the museum cafe which was good but over priced as expected.
Day 3:
Ferry out to Naxos. We took the first one in the am and arrived around 12:30. We took Blue Star and upgraded for business class and it was well worth it. Nice and quiet with a killer view out the front.
Explored around Naxos town for a bit and ate lunch at To Elliniko which was good! They had the best Tirokafteri we had while in Greece.
Walked out to the temple of Apollo at golden hour again and once again it was gorgeous. Pretty much empty at that time and the water was gorgeous.
Dinner at dal Professore (made a reservation same day and didn't have any issues). Good food, killer view of the sunset, and set back a little from the main boardwalk area.
Day 4:
Beach day, we rented a car from a place in town and drove out to Alyko beach which was rocky and a bit loud due to the waves. Not a lot of free space to sit down and very isolated from the road.
We decided to then go up to Mikri Vigla which was more our speed. Absolutely great beach, nice sand and a bit calmer water. You could park much closer to the actual beach and it was basically empty while we were there.
Drove back afterwards with no issues parking. Ate dinner at the Taverna Naxos which was good fast service, large portion sizes and good drinks.
Day 5: We were supposed to do a sea kayaking thing but due to conditions on the southern end of the island, they changed the location to the north and we decided another beach day would be better.
Breakfast at Honey and Cinnamon which was great! The pancakes were amazing.
Drove out to Orkos beach. The beach was gorgeous with some open food places and a bathroom if needed.
Headed back and walked around the old marketplace area which was really cool.
Took a food tour and our guide was great. She was an archaeologist in between contracts and had some interesting insights. Food was good, got to see the Venetian castle and go into one of the homes still occupied by an old Venetian family! Dinner was also included!
Day 6:
Slow morning with a ferry to Santorini around 10am. We did SeaJets this time.
Breakfast and coffee at La Strada which was very nice, good service, good pancakes and coffee.
Getting off the ferry on Santorini was very stressful, they have you line up in the ship bay where they store the cars. It's a mad dash to get off. We scheduled a transfer through our hotel and would recommend that rather than the bus.
We stayed in Imerovigli which was much quieter than Fira. We had a killer view of Skaros rock.
Walked to Fira (20-40 minutes depending on the area) to reach the bus to go down to Akrotiri.
Went through the archaeological site and walked down to the red beach. The red beach is gorgeous and you can hike all the way down. Due to the rainy weather we decided it was ok to skip going down.
The bus does drop off on the red beach side which I didn't know. I had thought it would've been in town. It was going to be a trek to get to the other side so we just took the bus back to Fira and transferred to the bus to Imerovigli.
Ate at the White Lounge which had good food, quick service and provided blankets since the temp dropped.
Day 7:
Took a bus tour of Santorini this day which I would highly recommend. Included a wine tasting and free time on the black sand beach. It also included pickup from the hotel (at least the town) and drop off.
Breakfast before the tour was at Confetti which was very good. Expensive but good portion size and good coffee.
On the tour we got to hit all the spots but did realize Santorini is not the place for us. It had crowds already and Oia was a mess. All other areas were fine but just not worth the hassle of getting to the island. I think if we had done a catamaran maybe we would've thought it was interesting enough to stay longer but it was ok that we only did a day.
Ate dinner at Mama Lena's which was good, fast service, good portions.
Day 8
We ferried back to Athens this day. Just enjoyed our view from the hotel a while longer and then went down to the port. Also a hectic situation to get on but we settled in and just read and enjoyed the views.
Day 9:
We did another day trip with a rental car down the coast to see Lake Vouliagmeni. It was gorgeous but they didn't have signs for no sunscreen so I had already put some on before realizing my mistake. Ended up leaving after a while. Entrance fee was stupid expensive but we arrived before the loungers had filled up so it was worth it (10am).
Drove down to the Temple of Poseidon and listened to the tour there after a quick lunch. The weather was turning so we just headed home afterwards. The drive was gorgeous and there were many beaches to stop at if we had wanted to.
Day 10:
Our last day in Athens we went to the National Gardens for a stroll, then walked to the National Archaeological Museum. Listened to the Rick Steves tour here as well which hit the highlights and cut through the enormous amount of history there. Spent about 2 hours total there.
Ate at Mikomeria both for breakfast and lunch. Best greek yogurt bowl I'd had and a killer burger.
Due to the rain we kind of just rested afterwards. We went down to Monastiraki to do our shopping during a break in the rain and then ate at i Avli tis idylis since it was nearby.
Day 11:
Took an uber to the airport and went home!
Tips:
Google maps works, just be careful that you are centered properly.
Prepare for lots of after dinner digestive drinks and asking for the bill.
Sneakers in the city, sandals on the islands.
Santorini is actually overrated. Go if you want but it's not necessary and we wish we'd stayed on Naxos.
Take the tour, better to go somewhere with someone who knows the area then try and figure it out yourself.
Greek drivers are assertive, as either another driver or pedestrian, make the decision and stay with it, do not hesitate.
The sunscreen was amazing, I usually always burn but had no issues the whole time I was there. Buy a big bottle and just bring it with you.