A guide to Greek Island hopping, starting in Athens, through Naxos, Paros, Mykonos and Santorini. How to get there, where to stay, tips on what to do and how much to expect to spend✨
Getting there
Read on to see our journey through the Cyclades Islands. We flew into Athens, then onwards by ferry to Mykonos (3 nights), Naxos (3 nights), Paros (2 nights) and finally Santorini (3 nights) Then we flew direct with Ryanair home from Santorini. Here’s where you can fly for each of the islands we visited:
🏝Paros ‑ super authentic, quieter, cheaper
✈️Athens, Mykonos or Santorini and get a ferry
🏝Naxos: amazing beaches, great restaurants
✈️Fly direct to Naxos, transit in Athens or to Mykonos or Athens and get a ferry via @ferryhopper_com
🏝Santorini: Best sunsets, a bucketlist destination and doesn’t have to be expensive (stay in Fira cheaper)
✈️Fly direct to Santorini with @ryanair
🏝Mykonos: beautiful, windswept party island, expensive but Little Venice is a must see
✈️Fly to Mykonos
How to get to the islands by ferry
Ferryhopper is my go to app (tagged in the post), so easy to book, change, get eTickets and it’s fast, clean and comfy (I would recommend the aircraft seats even over business class).
Ferry from Athens to Paros/ Naxos takes about 5hours in the evening or 3hrs fast sailing early in the day, it costs ~€40 and there’s cafes, bars, paid WiFi and plugs to charge your electronics on board👌🏻
Mini Naxos guide
Naxos is the largest of the Cyclades islands and well worth a visit, with some gorgeous sandy beaches on offer.
🛥The ferry comes in to the main town of Chora, where there are plenty accommodation options.
🏘We stayed at Hotel Galaxy Naxos at Agios Georgios beach, 10mins walk from Chora, with its many cocktail bars and restaurants🍹(room 102 views 👌🏻)
🏖 The best beaches on the island are on the West Coast, stay near Agios Prokopios if you are looking to chill and swim in turquoise waters. It’s not far to travel (10‑15mins by car/bus/quad) and there’s still plenty places to eat and drink down that end. I’ll prob stay here next time😬
🏖The best beaches to visit are Agia Ana, Plaka, Hawaii beach and Aliki beach, if turquoise water is your thing😝
🌄The best sunset spots are Portara (Apollo’s Temple), the Castle in Chora or anywhere along the Chora waterfront or on the West Coast, @swing_cocktail_bar_naxos and @bossacafenaxos offer great sundowner spots🤩
🏘We stayed at Hotel Galaxy Naxos at Agios Georgios beach, 10mins walk from Chora, with its many cocktail bars and restaurants🍹(room 102 views 👌🏻)
🏄🏻♀️Head to @plakawatersports if you feel like a SUP, surf or kayak
🌯To eat, in Chora:
$ Head to @yasouvlakinaxos for cheap, delicious local food (€2.50 for a Souvlaki pita wrap)
$$ @scirocco_restaurant is a more upmarket local Greek restaurant- the fact it is full every night speak for itself. Try the moussaka or grilled tuna🤌🏻
🥙Near Agios Prokopios (West Coast):
$ @leftos_souvlaki_naxos for amazing souvlaki pita wraps
$ @plakawatersports for a chilled lunch with an insane view (try the club sandwich 🥪)
$$ Picassos on the beach offers great Mexican food
$$ Giannulis offers authentic food with lots of seafood options (thanks @jackieodo for the recos!)
For a front row seat at the beach, get lost on a quad bike and head to @earthbar_naxos 🌍
🛵Quad bike rental for a day starts at €28, scooter rental from €15 and bike rental €7 (We rented from Tony’s bike & car rental in Chora) I would definitely rent for at least one day to tour the island and see everything
🧗🏻♀️ There are many hiking trails located in the centre of the island. Check out the Seven Villages Hiking tour which takes 4 hours with @naxos_hiking
Mini Paros guide
Paros is an amazing, less visited Greek Island, near Naxos which can be accessed via ferry from Mykonos or Naxos.
🏞There are two main towns: Parakia and Naoussa, the ferry arrives into Parakia which is a bit more quiet than Naoussa. Naoussa is a 20 minute drive and buzzing with restaurants, cafes, bars. A short visit to Lefkes is also worthwhile, a town in the mountains located between the two.
🚘 Renting a car/ scooter/ quad is recommend to get around the island easily. We rented a car for €40, a quad/ scooter was €25 but you’ll need a license for those.
🌅 The best sunset spots
No. 1 is undoubtedly Agioi Anargyroi Monastery in Parikia (you’ll need a car/ to hike uphill to get there) panoramic sunset views overlooking Parakia
Waterfront bars/ cafes along the West Coast of Parakia all have great sunset views the view from Livadia hotel was amazing, right on the Waterfront, Bebop is a great spot too.
Upper Windmill, Parakia is also a nice spot to watch over as the sun goes down
In Naousa: any of the bars near Linardo / Methystra Bar/ Barbarossa
🍱
Parakia:
$$ Parea Local Cuisine (a Greek-European fusion and SO GOOD- book in advance @ )
$ The Little Green Rocket (Asian fusion)
$ Zen Cafe for amazing views and wraps/ sandwiches
Naousa:
$$ Taverna Glafkos
$$ ComeBack (beachside views and drinks)
$$ Meltemi (good food, swing seats)
Kosmos bar
Toca cocktail and kitchen bar
☕️ Best coffee in Greece: Coffee House/ Coffee Shop (34PX+3G Paros, Greece)
🏃🏻♀️To do
Wander the Old Town, Parakia
Bar hop in Naousa
Visit Moraitis winery
Kolympthres beach
Lageri beach
Consider a day trip to Antiparos which is just a short ferry ride from Pounta
Santorini mini guide
A breakdown of the different areas to stay and their highlights: Oía, Imergvili, Fira and Firostefani✨
✨Oía:
Most expensive
Arguably best views
Best sunset spot (it’s iconic)
Close to the amazing Amoudi Fishing village
✨Imergvili
Amazing views
Quieter
Great honeymoon spot
Incredible hotel options
✨Fira
Cheaper, things often half the price of Oía
Loads of dining options for all budgets
Lots of bars
Amazing views
Central bus station located here‑ great for getting around the island by local bus (€1.40 for 30 min bus to Oía)
✨Firostefani aka the “Crown of Fira”
Quieter than Fira
25 min walk to Fira
Good, affordable accommodation options (check out Manos Small World)
Cheaper restaurants
Secret sunset spot in Santorini
For a view from a cliff edge cave under the Oía castle, takes the steps down towards Ammoudi Fishing Village and spot the area to the left where there’s a dirt track running below the castle to a cave and gate‑ head here at sunset rather than the castle to enjoy sunset with a smaller crowd👋🏻
How much does food cost in Santorini?
A quick guide to eating for all budgets, and some recommendations
🥞Head to Vitrin in Oía for a €5 crepe overlooking the iconic view
🍛Dinner & wine in the Amoudi Fish Tavern in Amoudi Fishing village is an absolute treat, coming in at €40
🍹Sunset cocktails in Oía with appetisers will cost you €45 at Strogli (the view is amazing)
🥂Don’t miss wine tasting with a view at Santo wines: €45 for a flight of 12 white, rosé and red wines
🌯Get a famous souvlaki in Fira at Lucky’s for €2.50
🥟Grab some cheap bao at To Honaki in Firostefani for €8
🍣Craving sushi? Head to Ginger Fushion in Firostefani for mouth watering sushi for €16
Don’t miss the hike from Oía to Fira
The Hike from Oia to Fira is one of the top things to do in Santorini‑ the views are so rewarding. Here’s everything you need to know about the 10km hike 🏔
Sunrise & sunset spots in Santorini
The sun rises on the opposite side of the island that Fira & Oia are facing but as it moves higher in the sky it starts to create a golden glow across the sea of whitewashed houses and is so beautiful🤩 Plus, unlike sunset, there’s barely a soul in sight. The view from just around the corner from @volkan_ontherocks / in front of “Mythical Blue Luxury Suites” is breathtaking.
On the Oia side, Oia Castle gives a great vantage point, looking back over the whole town as the sun rises✨
Mini Mykonos guide
Highlights for us included:
✨The Old Windmills – go at sunrise to have them to yourself, or 20mins after sunset when most people have left but you still have the golden glow🤩
✨Sunset at Little Venice (@baosmykonos is a great spot, and it’s only €20 minimum spend as opposed to €60pp in Negrita)
✨Roaming the area around Matogiania
✨Wandering old port
✨A boat trip to see the town from the water (€2 sea bus)
✨Rhapsody Bar is an affordablespot overlooking Little Venice and the Mykonos Windmills
