Planning a trip is almost as fun as the trip itself. The more meticulously I plan a trip, the more I end up enjoying it.
This was the first trip my now-husband/then-boyfriend and I took together (way back in the day when we were just two 20-year-old babies). Being a couple of broke college students, we had a somewhat strict budget I wanted to try my best to respect.
For anyone doing the same, I highly recommend booking an apartment on Airbnb and taking ferries within Greece (ie, from Athens to islands) here’s the link to book ferries, they’re great value for money if you don’t get seasick.
Without further ado, here is a breakdown of our itinerary.
10 Day Greece Itinerary
Athens: Day 1 & 2
Upon arriving in Athens late afternoon of Day 1, we went straight to our Airbnb in Psyri. There was so much to do in this city, I was overwhelmed when I started planning this trip. If you’re travelling on a budget, I would highly recommend finding an apartment on Aibnb for the duration of your stay. There are tons of very nice and reasonably priced options.
I also highly recommend Athens’ city turbo pass. It’s a pass you can buy online or at the airport upon arrival and it includes free or reduced entry fees to a selection of museums and historical sites. I had about ten things I wanted to see on Day 2 and since I had bought the pass, I had the freedom to spend a bit of time in all the places I wanted to visit.
If you’re planning your own trip to Athens, or simply want to learn more about what there is to do, check out this full-length blog post on what we did, which restaurants we particularly enjoyed, as well as where we went for the best olive oil.
Koufonisia: Day 3 & 4
Early on Day 3 (and I mean really early) we took a ferry to Koufonisia. The ferries in Greece don’t keep to a reliable schedule. Most ferries start their journey in Athens so if you’re departing from the capital, your ride should be on-time. That being said, we got to the port thirty minutes before our ferry was scheduled to depart and that was cutting it way too close for comfort.
What we didn’t realize before arriving at the port was that you can’t print out the ferry tickets: much like with flying, you have to bring your purchase confirmation to a desk, which will then be switched out for the actual tickets. The lines at these desks can often be very long and, worst case scenario, there may not be a desk at all (something we experienced as we were leaving Koufonisia). It’s recommended to arrive an hour before the boat is scheduled to leave.
Blue Star ferries are the cheapest company and (in my opinion) offer very good value for money. The ships are huge, so there’s no need for assigned seating — there’s plenty of space. There’s a bistro where you can grab a snack and it’s slow enough to enjoy the ride from the deck. It’s also big enough so that you don’t feel any waves. Honestly, we may have just been lucky but the more-than-10-hour ride was as smooth as a high-speed train.
Koufonisia is a small island in the Cyclades. It’s really small, which was a welcome change after having walked around and seen so much in Athens. I also wrote an article for Koufonisia even though vacationing there is pretty straightforward.
Santorini: Days 5-7
Santorini: Incredible in its views and the number of tourists packed onto the island. There was a lot to do on this island so I wrote an entire blog post about it here.
After Koufonisia and 5 days of a steady diet of feta and gyros, the tourist bubble of Thera, Santorini’s capital, was more than welcoming. I didn’t even feel too guilty about getting my nutrients from a Mexican joint, Los Tres Amigos, and my alcohol from frozen margaritas. The sunsets and towns are as picturesque as everything you’ve seen on the internet. We stayed in Parissia to see the volcanic black sand beach before going to Thera and Oia. Like the rest of Greece, the bus system isn’t the best. All the busses go to Fira and since we were staying in Parissia, to go by bus, we would have had to take the bus from the port to Thera and then take another bus from Thera to Parissia. Bus tickets are under 3 euros bus here’s the link to the santorini bus website for additional information.
2 days was enough for Koufonisia, in my opinion, but I would have liked to stay longer in Santorini. It was a lot more expensive than the other places in this itinerary, but it was so beautiful — I could watch the sunset there every day and still want more!
Athens bis: Days 8 & 9
We stayed in Athens for a couple days before leaving. Since we had seen most of the cultural elements we had wanted to visit, we were free to shop and roam the city breezily. The Central Market is definitely worth checking out and I would also recommend walking around the flea markets in search of souvenirs. If there’s enough room in your luggage, I would recommend looking at carpets and olive oil.
Time to go (Day 10)
We had a 8 hour layover in Rome and at first, wanted to go into the city to explore but after more than a week of moving around, we were exhausted and just rested in the airport. Nothing exciting to report except the Italian airport food was pretty good and also a welcome change from feta and gyros.
