Greece?

BMoreBride6 · March 2013

Are we absolutely nuts to be considering Greece?

Jells2dot0 · March 2013

Why do you ask that? There are people that consider all kinds of destinations around the world. Are you concerned about budget? Time of year? Political things?

BMoreBride6 · March 2013

Well we are getting married in November and I heard many of the resorts all but shut down that time of year, but I'd consider putting the trip off in order to get a beautiful trip...but every time I bring it up people look at me like I'm crazy and say, "are you sure you want to go to Greece with all the current issues?". has be second guessing : /

nextrightthing · March 2013

No, Greece is amazing. I know there have been economic/political issues there, but I haven't heard of anything that would make it dangerous.
If you are wanting an island trip, you may want to ut it off until the summer.

BMoreBride6 · March 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_greece-11?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:07ca88df-659b-4be7-9e6b-43318e2f9a49Post:c92462ff-aad6-4467-843b-7a90becd0b95">Re: Greece?</a>:
[QUOTE]No, Greece is amazing. I know there have been economic/political issues there, but I haven't heard of anything that would make it dangerous. If you are wanting an island trip, you may want to ut it off until the summer.
Posted by nextrightthing[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>thank you! What months and islands would you say would be the best? We want the options of lounging around a beach/pool but also the chance to explore and be active.

</div>

hoffse · March 2013

Yeah I think now is absolutely the time to go to Greece - the economy over there is so troubled that prices are apparently quite reasonable. But it's totally fine politically.

Have you considered doing a Med cruise? They're not terribly expensive, and you can island hop - everything I read says 2 days in Athens is plenty (see the acropolis, the forum, and the rest is a POS), but the islands are incredible. I haven't been there, though, so I can't give you first-hand experience. I just love reading travel blogs, and most of them say the same thing.

freebread03 · March 2013

You do realize Greece is in Europe and not the Middle East correct? It's a safe country to travel to. Greece is beautiful but the beaches and islands will be dead in the winter. We were there last May and it wasn't crowded yet, and I went in July a few years ago and it was crowded. Very busy between June and September because the beaches are beautiful then.

BMoreBride6 · March 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_greece-11?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:07ca88df-659b-4be7-9e6b-43318e2f9a49Post:eb95545c-f54f-43be-83e3-772ae403c2dd">Re:Greece?</a>:
[QUOTE]You do realize Greece is in Europe and not the Middle East correct? It's a safe country to travel to.
[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>You mean it doesn't border Palestine?
<div>
</div></div>

BMoreBride6 · March 2013

Jokes aside, is May an okay month to visit the islands?

nextrightthing · March 2013

I went to Greece in June, July, and August, and the weather was complete perfection (albiet hot and dry, but cooler in the evenings). I'm not sure about May. I was there for a study abroad program and visited less touristy places....didn't get to see Santorini or Mykonos, which I'm sure are amazing even if they might be touristy.

I stayed for a long time in Thessaloniki, which is a beautiful city that I enjoyed much more than Athens. Near Thessaloniki is a beach/resort area called Halkidiki which would be a fun honeymoon spot.

I stayed for a week on the island of Skopelos and loved it. Beautiful beaches and very non-touristy. Authentic. I also visited (closer to Athens) Hydra and Poros.

msaputra · March 2013

We went in May and it was a bit chilly - some days were fine and some days were a bit on the colder side. If you can go later in May closer to early June that would be perfect.

Also, some of the restaurants we wanted to try were still closed when we came in early May, and didn't open until mid May.

freebread03 · March 2013

All jokes aside, May is a fine time to visit, but keep in mind the beaches won't be as warm, and many of the restaurants/beach bars will probably still be closed. Athens will be much cooler in May (when I was there in July it was fairly warm and crowded). We were in Samos last May (I think around May 20) and it was beautiful and we did go to the beach (found a basically private beach just a short walk away from Vathi), but there wasn't much to do at night. Sort of the same for the Turkish coastline too-it was great weather but just wasn't as much going on. If you're willing to pay a little more, I'd go in July. Or, if you're really on a budget, consider a black sea resort in Bulgaria.

buriostegui · March 2013

We are going to Greece for our honeymoon in July for 10 nights we are staying in Athens, Santorini, and Mykonos I can't freaking wait I have heard the summer time is crowded but hot and were ok with that I recommend you look up Hellenic Holidays they booked the whole trip for us except flights they are based in NY and we live in Chicago but Petro (the owner) was very helpful and knows what he's talking about:)

MrsGandthebeag · March 2013

We stopped in Athens as part of our med cruise on our HM, and to be honest, it was a huge dissapointment. We were so looking forward to it and it was a let down. It was dirty and the ruins are all roped off. You can't get too close or touch anything. Our guide was sucky and it was super hot. I would love to go to Mikonos and Santorini though. If you go to Greece, I'd recommend sticking to the islands. We did stop in Crete on the cruise and just went to the beach which wasn't that exciting. I don't know what Hoffse is talking about with those cruises being cheap. Ours was $1500 per person for a week.

hoffse · March 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_greece-11?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:07ca88df-659b-4be7-9e6b-43318e2f9a49Post:78ea7fba-8ff6-4038-9d35-33e955974b83">Re: Greece?</a>:
[QUOTE]We stopped in Athens as part of our med cruise on our HM, and to be honest, it was a huge dissapointment. We were so looking forward to it and it was a let down. It was dirty and the ruins are all roped off. You can't get too close or touch anything. Our guide was sucky and it was super hot. I would love to go to Mikonos and Santorini though. If you go to Greece, I'd recommend sticking to the islands. We did stop in Crete on the cruise and just went to the beach which wasn't that exciting. I don't know what Hoffse is talking about with those cruises being cheap. Ours was $1500 per person for a week.
Posted by MrsGandthebeag[/QUOTE]

<div>You can get can get cabins on vacationstogo for less than you would pay in hotel costs - plus it includes your meals and transportation in between islands. That's what I meant by "not terribly expensive." </div><div>
</div><div>And they are a good bit less than $1500/person on Vacationstogo if you are willing to be flexible with dates. It sounds liike OP's dates are flexible.</div>

BvLzCRNA · March 2013

I've been to Greece and its amazing. I would say June/July would be the best months to go. If you go, Santorini is a must. It's one of the most beautiful places on earth.

lovelyheather · March 2013

I spent two weeks in Greece as part of a college class and absolutely loved it. We spent most of the time in Athens, with a couple day trips (Aegina, Delphi, and a couple places I am forgetting).

We went in May and it was HOT. I think it was unseasonably hot that year, I'm pretty sure most of the trip was in the 90s. I don't think that is the usual May weather.

It kind of bums me out that PPs are hating on Athens. I loved Athens. I might be a bit of an exception since I was a history of art major focused on classical Greek sculpture and architecture. Oh and we had some amazing connections through our class. The ruins (the Parthenon) that are roped off, yeah, I've been inside them! We got to check out the Acropolis museum before it opened (my trip was in 2007, the museum opened in 2009). There are so many museums in Athens, plus the Acropolis, plus the Olympic stadiums fro 1896 and 2004. It is basically art history heaven.

Oh and the history of the Parthenon is kind of amazing. In addition to being a temple to Athena, it also spent time as a church, a mosque, and an ammunitions/explosives storage unit. The original restoration also put many pieces of the columns in wrong spots and that had to be redone AND the restoration caused more trouble because the pins they used to hold pieces together eroded and expanded which cause the marble to crack.

Okay shutting up now! Seriously I could talk for hours about just the Parthenon. I haven't even gotten started on the sculptural architecture or Lord Elgin.

CALEO · March 2013

We're doing Greece on our honeymoon. We'll be there at the end of sept which is the tail end of their season.

B2Z728 · March 2013

I went to Greece about 7 years ago in May after my spring college semester ended. It was warm, but not really warm enough where we wanted to lay on the beach for awhile. It was cooler at night.

We went to Mykonos, Naxos, and Santorini. Mykonos and Santorini are beautiful places with so many wonderful things to do. I'd definitely recommend going to those two islands. Naxos was a great experience too, but much less touristy which was a nice change from the other two islands. It was also much cheaper. We spent a week in Greece, with a few days on each island. We island hopped using the ferries which was fun, but a little chaotic.

thecatm · March 2013

We're doing Greece on our honeymoon as well...going to Santorini, Mykonos and Athens. We're going the beginning of September which should still be beautiful. I have a close friend that is from there and still has a summer home there and visits every August, she says thats her favorite month to go!

hoffse · March 2013

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_honeymoon_greece-11?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:11Discussion:07ca88df-659b-4be7-9e6b-43318e2f9a49Post:5670eea5-1748-4bbb-882e-0db4cc0ce5a4">Re: Greece?</a>:
[QUOTE]I spent two weeks in Greece as part of a college class and absolutely loved it. We spent most of the time in Athens, with a couple day trips (Aegina, Delphi, and a couple places I am forgetting). We went in May and it was HOT. I think it was unseasonably hot that year, I'm pretty sure most of the trip was in the 90s. I don't think that is the usual May weather. It kind of bums me out that PPs are hating on Athens. I loved Athens. I might be a bit of an exception since I was a history of art major focused on classical Greek sculpture and architecture. Oh and we had some amazing connections through our class. The ruins (the Parthenon) that are roped off, yeah, I've been inside them! We got to check out the Acropolis museum before it opened (my trip was in 2007, the museum opened in 2009). There are so many museums in Athens, plus the Acropolis, plus the Olympic stadiums fro 1896 and 2004. It is basically art history heaven. Oh and the history of the Parthenon is kind of amazing. In addition to being a temple to Athena, it also spent time as a church, a mosque, and an ammunitions/explosives storage unit. The original restoration also put many pieces of the columns in wrong spots and that had to be redone AND the restoration caused more trouble because the pins they used to hold pieces together eroded and expanded which cause the marble to crack. Okay shutting up now! Seriously I could talk for hours about just the Parthenon. <strong>I haven't even gotten started on the sculptural architecture or Lord Elgin. </strong>
Posted by lovelyheather[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Lol Lord Elgin is a sore point, no? Art history major here as well. The problem with Athens (from what I read of course, I haven't been there) is that unless you are an art nerd and can get into those places, it might not be the place OP should allocate the majority of her time to. Most of the travel blogs I read just don't like it and feel like 2 days is more than sufficient to "see the sites." Now I'm more like you and would prefer a few extra days - a but if OP is thinking Greek sun, beach, and a ruin or two if it's convenient, she might want to look more toward the islands :)</div><div>
</div><div>OP, I do have to admit though - the Minoan ruins on Crete are among my top 3 bucket list destinations. I would do almost anything to see those wall paintings.... :)</div>

nextrightthing · March 2013

I am a non-history fan who still enjoyed Athens.

I would say, though, that a couple days is more than enough for a honeymoon if what you are interested in is a relaxed beach honeymoon.

Keep in mind that Greek culture is very, very different from ours. Everyone is much less relaxed and things don't always go according to plan.

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