“There’s no time to be bored in a place as beautiful as this.”
Hey everyone. My best friend and I recently went on the trip of a lifetime to Greece. It was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing, but I couldn’t be happier it happened. It was probably the best experience of my life and I think my bestie would say the same.
Since the trip, I have had a lot of people reach out to me with questions about traveling to Greece and I just think that is so amazing. I’m happy people are following their dreams and heading to such a beautiful place as well. Most of these people who reached out were bombarded with probably way more advice than they were asking for, which is usually how I do things but this is especially true in this case. I feel like I have a wealth of knowledge now that I really want to share.
There are a lot of things you should understand and consider before traveling to Greece so I thought I’d put them all in one place so I don’t attack anyone else with unsolicited information. So here it goes. This is what I learned when traveling to Greece and what I think you should know before you head out on your own adventure.
Don’t Skip Out On Athens
A lot of people when traveling to Greece go right to the Islands and I get why. I originally was more excited about the Islands than Athens too. However, I couldn’t believe how much I loved Athens. The city was bustling, the architecture was incredible and the food was amazing too.
Don’t even get me started on the Acropolis. It’s the citadel of Athens where some of the most famous temples of Ancient Greece still stand. It was a pretty intense walk in 40-degree weather to get to the top but totally worth it. These structures were some of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.
Everything was so cheap. Our hotel was only about $40 each, and so nice. We had a room with a balcony and a city view. Our hotel rooftop had an insane view of Athens complete with a hot tub and comfy patio chairs. Perfect for watching the sunset and trying to recover from jet lag. Also pretty much every restaurant there has a rooftop patio with a view of the Acropolis. We were trying so hard to find a restaurant with a patio online, when we finally found one and got to the patio we looked around and realized every other restaurant had one too. So we really didn’t need to spend so much time on google.
We found Athens to feel relatively safe as well. I felt safer here than in some other European cities I’ve been to. Of course, you have to be cautious and smart wherever you go in the world, but we never had any problems here. We just put our money in our fanny packs and kept them at the front of our chest and of course, stuck together at all times.
The Acropolis <3
Do Skip Mykonos and Santorini
Some people might come for me on this one but seriously, skip the big islands. We read this in a million blogs and we didn’t understand why people say this but Mykonos and Santorini are sooo busy. And they're not city busy like Athens, they’re crowded busy. It was hard to walk around sometimes because of how many people there were. They are also so much more expensive than the other islands. Don’t get me wrong though, I loved being in these places. I don’t regret going by any means, Mykonos and Santorini were extremely beautiful so I get why everyone wants to go there. I just think that every island has so much to share so you don’t need to hit both of these places to get what the Greek Islands have to offer. However, if you’re like us then you will probably read this blog and say “no way lady I’ll be going to Mykonos and Santorini” and I am the first to understand because I did it too. I would even recommend just doing one of the two and spending about a day there. Once you visit the less busy islands like Paros, Anti Paros, and Ios you’ll understand why I’m saying this.
Sure this view is pretty - But keep in mind we waited a half hour for this photo LOL
Bring A Carry-On - But Be Aware Planes Are Trying to Bump Carry-Ons
It’s no secret that the airports are crazy right now. There's a huge staffing shortage all over the world and an insane amount of travelers eager to get going after the pandemic. Our carry-ons were lifesavers on this trip. Moving around was way easier and we always knew where our bag was. A carry-on means it’s unlikely the airport can lose your luggage. On pretty much every flight you get a carry-on and a personal item so I brought a small carry-on suitcase and a backpack and that was more than enough room for all of my stuff. WARNING - As I said in the caption, planes are trying to bump carry-ons now. You’re not alone in not wanting to lose your luggage. Everyone brings carry-ons now, but the planes don’t have enough room to fit everyone's bags in the overhead compartments. What we noticed was people towards the back of the line started to get their bags bumped. The airline will check your carry-on for free, but this means you could lose your bag and you will have to wait for your carry-on after the flight. This kind of defeats the purpose of even bringing a carry-on. My advice to you would be don’t hang out towards the back of the line. I’ve always been the type of person to wait at the back so I could be on the plane for the least amount of time but after I saw that, you better believe I was one of the first on the bird every time.
Us "Packing Light"
Travel Light
I know everyone always says this but seriously people, travel light. It’s so hot there you only need bathing suits and light dresses. I never wore jean shorts and tank tops. The only shorts I ever wore were my biker shorts for travel days when we were on planes or ferries. We brought carry-ons for the 10 days we were there and we still over-packed somehow.
Don’t Bring Heels
Another thing we read in a million travel blogs but chose to ignore. Seriously don’t bring heels. As a huge heels enthusiast, I thought bloggers were being babies saying you won't be able to walk in them anywhere. I even brought thick heels because surely you could walk in those? The answer is no, I think you’d have to be a special kind of athlete to last an evening in heels that’s not followed by a hospital visit. Everything is all cobblestone, hills, sand, and barely any sidewalks if any. In Mykonos, we had to walk down and up the steepest hill, I think I've ever walked to get to the main town. It was all cobblestone and no sidewalks and cars, bikes and ATVs were constantly on your heels so - no heels. In Paros we had to walk a half hour up the beach to get to town so - no heels. In Ios we had another steep hill situation so again - no heels. In Santorini, my friend actually tried to wear the heels after we lugged them around for 10 days straight and I think it’s safe to say she instantly regretted it. Long story short, don’t bring heels you will regret it. Save that space in your carry-on for some souvenirs or just less stress on your back.
Just Forget About Hair Maintenance
We learned quickly that with the heat and the salt water, your hair will do what it wants. We brought a straightener and a curling wand and used them once. We didn’t even use the hair products we brought like hair spray, curling gel, or frizz cream. We just let the curls fly and we actually both loved how our hair looked most of the time. There was one time though when my hair broke a claw clip, hair tie, and brush within 15 minutes because of how insane the curls got. My friend literally had to yank my hair into a pony that barely would hold. But in those moments all that can really help you is prayers and not your olaplex number 3 moisturizer.
Embrace the Beach Wave LOL
Cabs Are A Waste Of Time And Money
The cabs absolutely rip you off in Greece. Public transportation is so easy to use and very cheap. Wherever you are always try to walk or take the bus over taking a cab. You can even rent a car or ATV to get around.
Fly To Your First Island Then Take The Ferry For Island Hopping.
We flew from Athens to Mykonos and this was such a great decision. The ferry from Athens to Mykonos was about 6 hours and would have wasted most of our day. For an extra $40 we flew and I really think it was worth it. Then when we did our island hopping we always took the ferry. They were cheap and fast. The longest ferry we took was about an hour.
If You Go To Santorini, Watch The Sunset From A Quiet Spot
So we all want to see that legendary Santorini sunset, that and the blue roofs are usually what bring tourists there. Well, you and literally HUNDREDS of other people have the exact same idea. We are so lucky that the receptionist of our hotel told us of a quiet place to watch the sunset. We went to the main town in Oia at about 3 pm to see the city and the blue roofs and the place was already packed with people getting ready for the sunset (which wasn’t until 8:20 pm). We had to wait in line to get a photo in front of the blue roofs at that time so I can only imagine what it would be like at sunset. The spot we watched the sunset was just outside of the main town and it was absolutely stunning. We bought our own alcohol and then headed up there. This location is just outside of town, in front of a water tower with a bunch of graffiti on it. Just ask a local where it is and they can direct you there. After the sunset everyone leaves Oia, so we headed back into town when it was dark and enjoyed the city and a nice dinner.
Have A Mob Mentality At All Times
We constantly laughed about this but it is so true. Right from the Toronto airport is when the chaos began. I think again it has to do with the lack of employees and the influx of travelers but literally, every form of transportation we took in both Canada and Greece was packed and kind of aggressive. There was a lot of pushing and butting in lines. At first, we were taken aback but then quickly realized we had to join the chaos. You are responsible for yourself and your travel partner on this trip and so is everyone else. You have to be assertive and watch out for each other. In Athens, we actually missed a flight partially because we weren’t pushy enough. After that, we were at the front of every line, and standing up for ourselves all the time. We would just laugh about the chaos most of the time, you really can’t let it bother you. I can’t wait for the next time I’m on the subway in Toronto because no one will be able to mess with me now lol
Show Up Early For Transportation - But Not Too Early…
As I mentioned before, we missed a flight and it sucked. We were their plenty early but the plane literally boarded early. We didn’t even know that was a thing. We had to sit there for 40 minutes looking at our plane outside and watching it take off because they simply said boarding was done. We tried to talk to the airline about what happened because it wasn’t really our fault but they gave us fake phone numbers and email addresses to try and contact. Needless to say, we didn’t get a refund lol. After that, we showed up everywhere honestly way too early and were at the front of every line. We showed up and waited at every gate for planes, ferries, and buses. The ferry ports and bus stations are pretty hectic in some spots so you definitely should show up early but maybe not 4 hours early like we did most of the time. Transportation is almost always delayed so those 4 hours turn into 6 really fast. For planes, I say be there 2 hours early and wait by your gate, for ferries you could probably do one hour but if you’re like us and terrified then 2 hours is the sweet spot lol and buses you should only need about 20 minutes.
The Club Scene Doesn’t Start Until At Least 2 am
We were absolutely shocked the first night we went out and realized we were about 2 hours early. We heard of this club that was supposed to be super fun in Paros and we went at about 12:30. The staff were so surprised to see us and said we should really come back later because no one would be there until MINIMUM 2 am… We were still way too jet-lagged for that so we didn’t have a proper outing until Ios but when we did let me tell you it was so much fun.
They may party too late but omg do they know how to have a good time
Save The Seafood For The Islands
The seafood is caught fresh and so delicious so in Athens stick to chicken souvlaki and save your seafood dishes for the islands.
Don’t Bring A Water Bottle
We were surprised to find out that you can't drink the water on the islands so you have to buy bottles of water constantly. This kinda sucked and was an added expense we weren’t expecting to have. I would say don’t worry about bringing your own water bottle because it’s just something you have to lug around and you have to buy bottled water anyways.
Buy Your Alcohol And Olive Oil At The Airport
I know everyone's concern with the carry-ons is how are they going to bring back wine and Greek olive oil??? Well don’t worry, they sell that at the airport and you can bring as much home as you want as long as you don’t have a connecting flight.
Shop in Athens, Not on The Islands
Athens has such cute shops and everything is very affordable. The islands are a bit pricier, especially Mykonos and Santorini so definitely shop in Athens.
Book A Redeye Flight To Greece
The overnight direct flight from Toronto to Athens was a game changer. We slept on the flight and woke up in Athens. We were still super tired and jet lagged our first two days but I can’t imagine how it would have been if we didn't get to sleep on the plane.
Don’t Stress Too Much About Where You’re Going To Eat
As I mentioned earlier, we spent so much time in Athens looking up where to eat. It was kind of stressful and a hassle to try and find and eat at all of the restaurants you “have to try in Greece.” We found out pretty quickly that the food everywhere was amazing. We would walk into any restaurant we thought looked nice and never had a bad experience. Our meals were all so delicious and we both still text each other and say “remember the meal we had at ___” for about every meal we had there lol.
The BEST Greek Salad Of All Time
10 Days Is Not Enough Time
We only went for 10 days and we felt so rushed. Everywhere we left we had a pit in our stomachs like we didn’t get to see enough. While I’m so grateful for the time we had and I wouldn’t replace it for anything, I think we both could have stayed for way longer. I would say do a minimum of 2 weeks. If you can do more please do.
Keep Your Money In Mind But Don’t Cheap Out
We are all trying to travel on a budget but at the end of the day, a little bit more goes a long way. If you’re deciding between two things and one is cheaper, there usually is a reason. Saving money is awesome but when you put your time, safety, or sanity in jeopardy it shows. We flew out of Santorini on our last day back to Athens at 12:30 am to save some money and it SUCKED. Remember when I said transportation gets delayed? Well, that happened. Our flight was super delayed and we didn't get to Athens until about 4 am and had to fly back home the next morning… We both felt terrible and it definitely wasn’t worth the $40 we probably saved. Or I can’t imagine taking the 6-hour ferry over the 45-minute plane ride to Mykonos. Again sometimes your peace of mind is worth more than your money. But at the same time, we got a bit carried away with money too. We once splurged about 70 euros buying cheap jewelry that broke within the hour. I also bought a charcuterie board made of olive tree wood for some reason. And don’t even get me started on the sun hats we spent way too much on and wore once… Another very long story short, be smart, not cheap lol.
Be Smart and Be Safe
We felt extremely safe in Greece. We never once were put in a bad situation and always had a lot of fun. HOWEVER as women, unfortunately, we have to be extra cautious no matter where we are. We never went anywhere alone (partially because we love each other's company) but also because that’s just how it has to be. We always trusted each other and our instincts. We made some amazing friends there which I think is one of the best parts of traveling but when meeting new people in a foreign country you need to be safe. I think as women we always get a natural gut instinct when we meet new people and we need to trust it. There were some people we chose not to meet up with again because we weren’t feeling it and that’s totally fine. If anything doesn’t feel right, then it probably isn’t. We constantly checked in with each other to make sure we were okay, having fun, and feeling safe and I’m so appreciative of my friend for this. Luckily we were always on the same page about everything so we never had any problems but if you’re traveling and your partner isn’t having fun, please don’t be that person. Leave with them. Trust your instincts and trust your friends, that’s the only way you’re gonna have the time of your life as we did.
Anyways, that’s enough ranting for me for now. Can you tell I’m passionate about the subject? I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited about a blog or have written something that felt so natural. I could go on for hours about this trip and I’m sure I will think of more tips after I post this so I might just have to make a part two. Whether you’re going to Greece, thinking about booking, or just dreaming I hope this blog helps.
The last piece of advice I will leave you with is that money will come and go and there's just way too much out there not to see. If you’re looking for your sign to book that flight, this is it. Life is too short ~ what’re you waiting for?
