Right, we've decided to go on holiday, and we'll probably go to Greece. But there's seemingly hundreds of little islands and I don't know anything about any of them. Which one(s?) should we visit?
― JimD (JimD), Monday, 4 October 2004 01:18 (twenty-one years ago)
isnt it a little late to go to the greek islands? i think basically the tourist infrastructure packs up around october. but then i guess you would have the place to yourself. i suppose the obvious first answer would be santorini - youve probably seen it in big "visit greece" tourist posters. whitewashed houses with blue roofs overlooking this big extinct volcano water cove thing, and pretty sunsets. and theres mykonos which is the gay/party/shopping island. and theres the minoan ruins on crete.. and the knights/crusades stuff on rhodes. ok, that wasnt much help i guess, but have fun! oh but if you go to the mainland, please go to mystra - the breakaway byzantine capital. its in the peloponnese
― phil-two (phil-two), Monday, 4 October 2004 01:36 (twenty-one years ago)
So, what would you enjoy in a greek island? A great swimming beach? Historic sites? Cheap hostels and raw ouzo? Quaint villages? No other tourists in sight? Connections to armageddon?
Your answers to these and other questions will condition the appropriate recommendations.
― Aimless (Aimless), Monday, 4 October 2004 04:08 (twenty-one years ago)
Ok, marks out of ten for importance:
A great swimming beach?
6
Historic sites?
8
Cheap hostels and raw ouzo?
5
Quaint villages?
8 (Sand dunes/salty air optional)
No other tourists in sight?
9
Connections to armageddon?
omgwtf? 10, if it's possible...
But yeah, it's hard to say what I'd want, cos I don't know what's available. I just want to know which people like, and why.
― JimD (JimD), Monday, 4 October 2004 07:51 (twenty-one years ago)
i should add that we aren't completely set on the greek islands. it was more a case of 'where can we go that's warm and nice and not terribly expensive?' following on the terrible weather the last few days.
another point to consider, this'll probably be a long weekend, rather than a longer trip. is greece too far away for that? are we better doing something in spain or portugal?
― colette (a2lette), Monday, 4 October 2004 08:48 (twenty-one years ago)
our trip was best part of a day to travel because you fly and then ferry to the island. if you fly in and stop then you could do a long weekend, which as a bonus limits the options.
― Jaunty Alan (Alan), Monday, 4 October 2004 09:00 (twenty-one years ago)
Connections to armageddon?
omgwtf? 10, if it's possible...The Book of Revelations was "transcribed" by St. John the Apostle while living in exile in a cave on the island of Patmos, off the coast of Turkey. If you go, you'll be in company with mostly pious Greek Orthodox tourists, not fat Germans in thongs. It rates high for quaintness, too. But it has been a 'tourist destination' since before tourism began.
― Aimless (Aimless), Monday, 4 October 2004 21:38 (twenty-one years ago)
four years pass...
My Greek island expereince is decades old, so it cannot be relied upon.
Back in the day, when I visited Skopelos (in September, be it noted), it had a very low incidence of tourists in ratio to its quaintness factor - which was fairly high. At the time, Skopelos had a reputation for disdaining tourists. It may have changed radically in the intervening years.
Alonissos, the next outlier island from Skopelos, was less quaint because its old village had been destroyed in an earthquake and the new village was nice enough but a cinderblock architecture sort of raw, new town. It had no classical ruins and has always been a backwater. Its attractions were: low tourist population, good rustic island food, friendly locals who had not yet been bludgeoned by tourist-fatigue.
If I were looking into off-path islands today, I would research Euboiea (the lengthy island just east of the mainland, north of Athens). It has classical ruins, a rep for good wine, isn't hard to get to, but hasn't ever hit it big as a tourist spot (unless you count Athenian tourists).
Another place I would look at would be Thasos, in the northern Aegean. It has a lot of history, but it's remote from Athens, and most tourists gravitate toward the Cyclades to the south, or closer to Turkey.
Lastly, I would consider Crete. It, too, is big enough that a lot of tourists could share the island with you, but you could just take a different fork in the road and stay away from Knossos or the obv tourist destinations and head into the hills. The Cretans are a whole 'nother tradition from the classical Magna Graeca. I can't imagine that tourism has ruined the Cretan hinterlands. Just remember you are in a very, very foreign place and be ready for that. Read up on Crete some ahead of time.
― Aimless, Sunday, 23 November 2008 20:14 (seventeen years ago)