SHARE TRAVEL NEWS: How to Travel to the beautiful Greek Islands

Share by Eleni N. Gage

First-timers often describe their trip to “the Greek Islands,” as if they were one monolithic entity, easily popped into and out of and in between, like boutiques in a mall. It’s only once a visitor gets to know the country that the magnitude and diversity of the archipelagos becomes clear. The truth is that there are over 200 inhabited islands in Greece—and over 6,000 isles of varying sizes all together. Of the islands with residents, each has its own character, from the whitewashed cave homes of the Cyclades to the lush, green Italianate Ionians, to the Dodecanese capped with Crusader castles.

Island Overview
For the most part, the islands are divided into six main island groups, plus a significant stand-alone, Crete. It’s easier to travel between islands within one group than to archipelago-hop, although that can be done. (For example, if you want to go between Mykonos and Santorini in the Cyclades, there are multiple ferry and hydrofoil options in high season, but to get from Santorini to Corfu, in the Ionian, you’ll need to fly or sail into Athens, then fly to Corfu.) See our handy tip sheet below to find the island(s) that sound best for your next vacation.

Getting Around Greece
By Air: Twenty-five islands have their own airports, all served from Athens by Olympic Airways and Aegean Airways, two domestic carriers that have merged. Eight are international airports that are also served by charters and European carriers such as British Airways, Air France, and EasyJet in summer. Although many of the islands have several flights a day in high season, the planes fill up quickly; aim to book four months ahead. Every single domestic flight is under an hour from Athens (keep in mind that the land mass of Greece is slightly smaller in size to the state of Alabama)...... keep reading .... http://tandl.me/2j5GP6W