Greece itinerary: 7, 10 and 14 days, day by day, with the real ferry times

How many days for a Greece itinerary: 7, 10 or 14?

Count one ferry every two or three days, not every day. A crossing eats half a day once you add the trip to the port, the wait and the check-in at the other end. Below two nights, an island is a hotel and a harbour. Each route here moves in one direction, so you never sail back past an island you have already seen.

These routes are built for May to October, when every line runs. From November to March, read the off-season version first: fewer fast boats, closed hotels on the small islands, and no direct boat from Santorini to Crete. The best time to visit Greece goes through the months one by one.

Greece itinerary 7 days: Athens, Naxos and Santorini

One week means Athens plus two islands, and the pair that works is Naxos and Santorini: one direct ferry from Piraeus, then about an hour on a fast boat between them. You fly home from Santorini through Athens, which saves the long sail back.

Days 1 and 2: Athens, the Acropolis and Plaka

Land, drop your bags in the centre and spend the first evening in Plaka and Monastiraki, with the Acropolis lit up above you. On day 2, go up the Acropolis at opening time, before the heat and the cruise groups, then spend the afternoon in the Acropolis Museum at its foot. Our Athens guide has the rest of the city and the day trips if you add a night.

Day 3: ferry from Piraeus to Naxos

Take metro line 1 to Piraeus, about 40 minutes from the centre, and board the morning boat. The Seajets fast boats take about 3 h 10 to 3 h 25, the Blue Star ferry about 5 to 6 hours with a stop at Paros, for less money and a calmer ride when the wind is up. Times and fares are on the Athens to Naxos ferry page. In the evening, walk out to the Portara, the marble temple gate next to the port.

Day 4: Naxos Chora, a beach and the mountain villages

Naxos is the largest of the Cyclades and the one with the most to do on land. Spend the morning in the Kastro above Chora, then pick between the long sandy beaches south of town and an inland loop through Halki, Filoti and Apiranthos, villages of marble lanes on the slopes of Mount Zas. A car or scooter makes the villages easy, the bus covers the beaches.

Day 5: Naxos to Santorini and the Oia sunset

The fast boat to Santorini takes about 1 h 10, the Blue Star about 2 hours. Boats land at Athinios, below the cliff, about 25 minutes by road from Fira, so book a transfer or catch the bus that waits for each ferry. Keep the evening for Oia, and get there early: the sunset walls fill up an hour before.

Day 6: the Santorini volcano, Akrotiri and the caldera walk

Book the boat to the volcano and the hot springs for the morning, then visit the Bronze Age town of Akrotiri in the south. If you would rather walk, the path along the caldera rim from Fira to Oia is about 10 km and takes three to four hours. Start early, there is almost no shade. Our Santorini guide has the villages and beaches.

Day 7: fly Santorini to Athens and home

The flight to Athens takes about 45 to 55 minutes with Aegean or Sky Express, and lands at the same airport as your long-haul flight. Leave at least four hours between the two, or fly back the evening before if your flight home leaves early in the morning. Never plan a ferry on the day of an international flight: one late boat and the whole trip unravels.

Greece itinerary 10 days: Athens, Paros, Naxos and Santorini

Ten days is the same line from Piraeus with Paros added and one more night on each island. It is the route we would give anyone going to Greece for the first time: three islands with three different characters, and no crossing longer than about four hours. To slow down, drop Paros and give Naxos and Santorini four nights each.

Days 1 and 2: Athens

Same two days as the 7-day route: the old town on arrival, the Acropolis and its museum the next morning. With a spare evening, take a sunset trip to the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion, on the coast south of the city.

Day 3: Piraeus to Paros

The fast boats take about 2 h 35 to 2 h 40, the Blue Star about 4 hours, and Blue Star runs every day of the year. You land in Parikia, the main town. The Athens to Paros ferry page compares the boats.

Days 4 and 5: Naoussa, Lefkes and Antiparos

Spend day 4 in Naoussa, the harbour town in the north, and its beaches, then go up to Lefkes, the marble village in the hills. On day 5, cross to Antiparos, seven minutes away by ferry from Pounta, or join a boat day around Antiparos and Despotiko. The Paros guide covers the beaches and where the wind blows.

Days 6 and 7: Paros to Naxos

Paros to Naxos is under an hour, with several boats a day in season. Use day 7 for the villages of the interior, or for a boat day to the Small Cyclades (Koufonisia) and the Rina cave, the best day trip from Naxos.

Days 8 and 9: Naxos to Santorini

About 1 h 10 on a fast boat, 2 hours on the Blue Star. Day 8 for Fira, Firostefani and the sunset, day 9 for the volcano by boat and Akrotiri, or the caldera walk to Oia.

Day 10: fly home through Athens

Santorini to Athens by air, then your flight home. If your long-haul flight leaves before midday, swap the last Santorini night for a night near Athens airport.

Greece itinerary 10 days with Mykonos instead of Paros

For Mykonos, sail from Rafina, not Piraeus: the fast boats take about 2 h 15 to 2 h 45 and Rafina is about an hour by bus from central Athens (see the Athens to Mykonos ferry). From Mykonos, a boat to Paros or Naxos takes about 35 minutes to an hour, so the route becomes Athens, Mykonos (2 nights), Naxos (3), Santorini (2). Mykonos costs more and the beaches are busier: our Mykonos guide says when it is worth it.

2 weeks in Greece: Athens, Delphi, Meteora, the Cyclades and Crete

With two weeks, the mainland stops being a day trip. Rent a car in Athens for the first loop, drop it, then sail. The route ends in Crete, which has its own international flights in summer, so you never come back to Athens.

Days 1 and 2: Athens

The Acropolis, the museum and the old town, as above. Pick up the car on the morning of day 3, not at the airport on arrival: you do not need it in the centre, and parking is a headache.

Day 3: drive to Delphi

Delphi is about two and a half hours from Athens by road. Arrive by lunch, see the museum in the afternoon and sleep in the village, then walk the site at opening time the next morning, when the light on the valley is at its best and the coaches from Athens have not arrived yet. Without a car, the KTEL bus from Athens takes about 3 hours from the Liosion terminal.

Day 4: Delphi to Meteora

About three hours north to Kalambaka, the town below the rocks. Arrive for the sunset over the monasteries, which is the moment everyone comes for.

Day 5: the Meteora monasteries and back to Athens

Visit two or three monasteries in the morning (each one closes on a different weekday, so check before you go), then drive back to Athens, about four hours on the motorway. Sleep near Piraeus if the next morning's boat leaves early.

Days 6 to 8: Piraeus to Naxos

The same crossing as the 7-day route, about 3 h 10 fast or 5 to 6 hours on the Blue Star. Three nights give you Chora, a beach day and either the mountain villages or the boat to Koufonisia. Swap Naxos for Paros if you prefer a livelier evening.

Days 9 and 10: Santorini

Naxos to Santorini, then two full days on the caldera, at Oia, on the volcano and at Akrotiri.

Days 11 to 14: Santorini to Crete, Knossos and Chania

The fast boat from Santorini to Heraklion takes about 1 h 35 to 1 h 55 with Seajets or Minoan Lines, but only from late April or May to October. See the Crete to Santorini ferry page. Visit Knossos and the archaeological museum in Heraklion on day 12, then drive west to Chania, about two hours, for its Venetian harbour and the beaches of the west. Fly home from Chania or Heraklion. Our Crete guide helps you pick between the two.

Greece island hopping: ferry times between the islands

These are the crossings used in this page, with the company, the length and the months they run. Durations are typical, not exact: the same route can take an hour more on a boat that stops on the way, so check the day you want. Each linked page has the full timetable and the fares.

Two companies do most of the work. Blue Star Ferries runs the big, slower ships that sail every day of the year and keep going when the wind is up. Seajets runs the fast catamarans, about twice as quick and dearer, mostly from April to October. The overview of Greek ferries explains how to book and which port is which.

Best Greece itinerary for first-timers

The 10-day route above is the one to take on a first trip. It answers the two questions most first-timers get wrong. The first is Naxos or Mykonos. Mykonos is the name everyone knows, but Naxos has the long beaches, the villages and the food, for a lot less, and it sits on the direct line to Santorini. The second is how many islands. Three in ten days is the ceiling. Four means a ferry every other day and most of your holiday spent in ports.

Not sure which islands suit you? Our ranking of the best Greek islands sorts them by type of traveller, and the Greece trip planning guide covers budget, insurance and the steps before you book.

Cyclades island hopping itinerary: Milos, Santorini, Naxos and Paros

For a trip that is only islands, start with Milos and work east. Milos is out on the western edge of the Cyclades, so it fits at the start of a route, not in the middle. A good 10-day hop: Athens (1 night), Milos (3), Santorini (2), Naxos (2), Paros (2), then the boat back to Piraeus.

The trap is the arrival. The direct Blue Star from Piraeus leaves at 22:00 and lands at 02:35, so book a room that will let you check in in the middle of the night, or take the daytime fast boat, about 3 h 20 with stops at Serifos and Sifnos. Details on the Athens to Milos ferry page. Between Milos and Santorini, fast boats run in summer, under two hours, but the service is thinner than on the Paros and Naxos line. Book this leg first. The Milos guide and the Cyclades overview help you pick the islands, and the map of the Cyclades shows the lines between them. Ios sits between Naxos and Santorini and adds easily to the route (see the Santorini to Ios ferry).

Greece itinerary with Crete: Athens and a week on the island

Crete is big enough for a week on its own. The simple version: two nights in Athens, then the overnight ferry from Piraeus, which leaves around 21:00 and reaches Heraklion at about 06:15, so the cabin replaces a hotel night. ANEK sails to Chania overnight too. By air, Athens to Heraklion is about 50 to 55 minutes. All three options are compared on the Athens to Crete ferry page.

On the island, split the week in two. Three nights around Heraklion for Knossos, the museum and the east, then four in Chania for the old harbour, the Samaria Gorge (open from May to October) and the beaches of the west coast. You need a car: the Crete map has the drive times between the towns.

Ionian islands itinerary: Corfu, Kefalonia and Ithaca

The Ionian is on the other side of the country from the Cyclades, so do not try to combine both in one week. It is greener, wetter and better by car. Two ways in: fly from Athens to Corfu, about an hour to an hour and a quarter, or drive across the mainland to Igoumenitsa and take the ferry, about 1 h 10 to 1 h 20 with Kerkyra Lines or Kerkyra Seaways, every day of the year.

A week works as Corfu (4 nights, for the old town and the west coast) then Kefalonia (3), or Kefalonia with a day on Ithaca, a short crossing away (see the Kefalonia to Ithaca ferry). Corfu and Kefalonia are far apart, and the easy way between them is through the mainland or Athens, so check the connection before you book. The Corfu guide and the Ionian islands overview have the rest.

Greece mainland itinerary: Delphi, Meteora and Nafplio

The mainland is where most first itineraries cut corners, because the travel times are longer than they look. Here is what each stop really takes from Athens.

Meteora: no direct train, plan a night

There is no direct train to Kalambaka at the moment. You take an InterCity from Athens to Palaiofarsalos, about three hours, then a Hellenic Train bus to Kalambaka, about two more, with two buses a day each way. Miss the morning connection and the next one is in the evening. Count about six hours door to door and at least one night in Kalambaka. A return of the direct train has been announced, so check Hellenic Train before you book. The only same-day option is an organised tour of about 14 hours.

Delphi: a long day trip or a night in the village

The KTEL bus takes about 3 hours from the Liosion terminal in Athens, with a few departures a day, so a day trip by bus leaves you barely four hours on the site. Drive, take a tour, or sleep in Delphi and combine it with Meteora, which is about three hours further north by road.

Nafplio, Mycenae and Epidaurus: two nights in the Peloponnese

Nafplio is about 2 h 10 to 2 h 30 by KTEL bus from the Kifissos terminal, with a bus about every two hours, or about 1 h 45 by car. It is the prettiest town on the mainland and the base for Mycenae and the theatre of Epidaurus, both under an hour away by road. Two nights here replace the third island of the 10-day route nicely. The Peloponnese map shows the road loop from Athens.

Greece itinerary in winter and off season

From November to March, the island routes above still run on the main lines but not on the side ones. Blue Star keeps a daily boat from Piraeus to Paros, Naxos and Santorini, while the Seajets fast boats drop to about one sailing a week in November. Most small-island hotels close from mid-October, and Santorini to Crete stops altogether, so a Cyclades and Crete trip goes back through Athens and loses a day.

The winter route that works: Athens (3 nights), Nafplio (2), Delphi and Meteora (2), then Crete (3) by the overnight ferry or a flight. Crete and the mainland stay open all year, the museums are empty and the ruins are walkable at midday. Keep one island at most, on the Blue Star line.

Order of a Greece itinerary: Athens first or last, and the traps to avoid

Athens first, unless your flight home is early

Start in Athens: you get over the flight in a city where everything is open late, and you take the ferry rested. End on an island and fly home through Athens. Keep a last night in Athens only if your flight home leaves in the morning and your last island has no early flight.

Domestic flights go through Athens

Aegean and Sky Express fly from Athens to almost every island with an airport, in about 45 minutes to the Cyclades and about an hour to Corfu. What they do not do is link one island to another: island to island is by boat. A flight is worth it for the first leg out of Athens to a far island (Santorini, Crete, Corfu), or for the return, not in the middle of a route. Our Greek airports page lists them all.

The meltemi cancels fast boats in July and August

The north wind of high summer can keep catamarans in port for a day or more, while the big Blue Star ships keep sailing. In July and August, put one spare day between your last ferry and your flight home, and book the conventional ferry on the leg that matters most.

One-way routes, open-jaw flights

A flight into Athens and out of Crete or Santorini saves a full day of backtracking on any route over a week. Book the ferries once the flights are fixed, starting with the thinnest leg (Milos, Santorini to Crete), and buy travel insurance that covers missed connections if a ferry and a flight sit on the same day.

Where to stay on a Greece itinerary: one base per stop

On a route that moves every two or three nights, pick hotels close to the port or the bus station rather than the most remote view: you will be carrying your bags to the boat. These are the bases we would book on the routes above.