Island Hopping in Greece

Greece is a country that is on a lot of people’s bucket lists due to how beautiful the islands are and how much history there is. I still remember the first time I saw photos of those stunning Santorini cliffs with the white and blue domes overlooking the ocean and thinking how incredible it would be to see it for myself one day!

I solo traveled to Greece in August (peak season) and attempted to do it on a moderate budget. In just over a week, I visited Athens, Santorini and Milos. Here are my tips to visiting these great places:

ATHENS

Athens is one of the oldest cities in the world and is everything you imagine it to be, with historical sites all around the city. I had heard horror stories from friends who had been here, but I really enjoyed my short stay. I had only planned on staying for two nights, as it was really just a stopover before heading to the islands, but I could’ve easily had stayed a couple of days longer to see more.

I stayed at the Acropolis Museum Boutique Hotel, which is only a short 10 minute walk up the hill to the Acropolis (a MUST DO obviously) and close to Plaka, the oldest suburb in the city. I thought this hotel was very affordable for a four star hotel, and cost around $150 NZD per night.

Getting around the city was pretty easy. I rented a lime scooter in the morning to get to the Acropolis and walked around Psyri later in the day, which is a very modern area full of shops like Zara, Starbucks, and must visit cafes and restaurants like Lukumades, O Thanasis and O Kostas.

SANTORINI

With its picturesque landscapes, Santorini is one of the most popular travel destinations in the world, and the busiest of the Greek Islands. This place looks exactly like a post card! I’m not a fan of big crowds, but despite the thousands of people visiting the island, you can still have moments to yourself if you’re willing to look for them.

I spent all of my time in Oia, the most popular town and home to those beautiful blue and white domes on the cliffside. Accommodation is SUPER EXPENSIVE in this part of the island, so those stunning 5-star hotel rooms with a pool were far out of my price range. I stayed at the more affordable Georgis Apartments, which was about a 30 minute walk to Oia, but I rented a quad bike to make getting around a little easier for about €40 per day (make sure you have an international drivers license!).

The owners of the apartment I stayed at provided a huge breakfast and dinner for the 3 days I was there, including some traditional Greek meals and snacks, so I was pretty spoiled when it came to food, but I did enjoy some gyros, souvlaki and frozen greek yogurt at a little place not far from the Oia carpark. I couldn’t believe how cheap the gyros were from all the restaurants. They were only about €2.80!

If there’s one thing you need to do while in Santorini, it’s to watch the sunset. I had heard stories of people travelling from all around the world to see the sun go down every day, but I didn’t realise how crowded it would actually be until I arrived at Oia Castle about an hour before sunset. I found myself standing in the third row, surrounded by thousands of people, watching the best show Santorini had to offer! It can be a little overwhelming and can take away from the beauty of the island, so if you want to really enjoy it, I recommend getting there a few hours early and getting a good spot.

As the sun was setting, I made my way back to the car park to find my quad bike and about 50 other vehicles I was parked next to with parking tickets! What a way to end my first day in Santorini! We were all parked in proper spaces, without any time limits or no parking signs around us, so I assumed this was a normal thing and was just a way for the government to make money at our expense. I didn’t know how to pay my fine until the day I was leaving Greece, so if you find yourself in a similar situation, just know that you can pay for parking tickets at any post office. Thankfully, there was one inside Athens International Airport.

If I was going to go back to Santorini, one thing I’d love to do that I didn’t do on this trip is to sail around the island on a catamaran. The views look amazing and there are heaps of tour companies to book with.

MILOS

By the time I got to Santorini, I was feeling a little exhausted and home sick, however arriving in Milos made me feel alive again. This island is only a few hours away from Santorini by ferry and was my favourite destination in Greece. Despite only spending 3 days here, I felt like it was enough time to explore most of the island as it’s quite small. When I arrived, I walked to my hotel, Christina Rooms, which only took about 15 minutes from the ferry port. The hotel is a small family run hotel and the lady behind the desk was nice enough to bring me a bowl of grapes fresh from the garden after I checked in.

I rented a quad bike for €60 for two days and immediately set off to see as much as I could before it got dark. My first stop was one of the best beaches i’ve ever been to: Sarakiniko. Forget the sand, this place is made out of white volcanic rock and some say it’s like walking on the moon. I spent a couple of hours here in the afternoon on my first day, but due to the extreme wind and rough seas, we were advised not to jump off the cliff or go swimming too far out, which was a little disappointing but I guess it just means I have to go back one day!

I got an early start the next morning to make the most of my day, visiting beaches all around the island. I started with Sarakiniko again, as it really was my favourite place I had been to in the Greek Islands and I wanted to experience the place without the crowds. I spent over an hour here again before making my way to the very bottom of the island to Tsigrado. This beach is pretty unique in that you’ve got to make your way down some ropes and a wooden ladder that’s set up between the volcanic cliffs. On the other side of Tsigrado is another beach, Fyriplaka, which seemed to be more family friendly and had kayaks to hire and water sports to play.

I grabbed some lunch by the ferry port at a popular restaurant called Yankos, which was recommended to me by the lady that ran the hotel I was staying at. I ordered a gyros for €2.90 (SO CHEAP!) and some sort of greek dessert that was drenched in honey. They also gave me a free bottle of water, which came in handy, as the tap water isn’t drinkable.

The last beach I visited was on the east of the island called Papafragas. You can get a great view of the Aegean Sea from the cliff by the carpark or take the stairs that are carved into the rocks down to the water where there are caves to explore. The sandy area at the bottom was very small and probably only suitable for 10 people or less.

GETTING AROUND

To go from island to island, I booked my ferry tickets online at FerryHopper. Despite having e-tickets for all of my trips, some of the ports couldn’t scan my ticket, so I had to get it printed at a ticketing office for a small fee (usually about a dollar). Two other Kiwi travellers and I nearly missed our ferry from Santorini to Milos because we were the only people who didn’t have printed tickets, so don’t be like us!

You’ll need an international drivers license to rent any sort of transportation in Greece. I rented quad bikes in the islands, but many tourists opt to use the buses in Santorini. Injuries on the roads are very common, so it’s not recommended hiring an ATV unless you have experience driving one.