Trip to Greece planning help?

Parent Cafe
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No idea if this is allowed, but if it is, can I ask for suggestions for a trip to Greece next year?

My S22 will be spending a seven week term in Thessaloniki Greece. Students at his school do a term long project, so he’ll be working on something, and likely can’t spend a ton, if any, time with us.

However, his term abroad happens to also be right before my 50th birthday and my S25’s HS graduation. So we were thinking we could do a family trip for the three of us not already there (husband, S25, me) to Greece, and spend some time in Thessaloniki with S22. Conveniently, S25 has spring break while S22 is in Greece.

So we figured we could take probably 10 days, although realistically two of those are flying in and out days. And the downside is that we’d essentially be flying back to the US on Easter Sunday (which is fine for us, but it means the last few days of our trip places that observe may be closed).

We like to see things and no one has been to Greece (I’m the only one who has been to any European country other than England and France) and I don’t think we need to spend very many days in Thessaloniki.

So what do we do? Stay in Greece? Go to Italy for a few days? See what and where? I am overwhelmed by options. Normally I just buy a Rick Steve’s book, and do what he suggests for however many days I have (this was perfect for me with five days in Paris, five days in Iceland, and a week in London) but Rick doesn’t have a book that covers Thessaloniki. Do I just hire a travel agent? I’ve never done that before - how do they charge and how do I find one who will be knowledgeable enough about things to help me out?

We are saving for this trip, so it doesn’t need to be totally budget penny pinching, but we are frugal people and neither should it be too spendy.

I have plenty of time (until April!) and yet, I am so overwhelmed by options that I don’t know where to begin.

Thoughts?

(And mods please feel free to close or delete if this isn’t appropriate! Thank you and I’m sorry for the work if that’s the case!)

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It’s fine. And I changed the thread title

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Thank you!

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Sounds like a great trip! I don’t know Thessaloniki, but I’d want to spend at least a couple of days in Athens, doing the Acropolis, walking the old city etc. When I was there for a conference about 10 years ago, the group took a day cruise to three of the closer islands, which was touristy but a lovely experience.

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This is one of those infrequent years when Orthodox Easter falls on the same day as regular Easter, but orthodox Easter is the unofficial beginning of the fun season in Greece so that’s not a bad thing!

Greece is my absolute favorite destination, I’ve been going since I could afford to travel on my own and now go frequently with husband and kids. I’ve been to a dozen+ islands and all over the mainland and cannot recommend it enough. The food is A+ and the culture (obviously!) as well. Prices are relatively reasonable too.

My quick advice:

Don’t miss Athens. It’s having a major renaissance right now, the Acropolis Museum is a marvel, and the food and hospitality is great. I spent a while there last summer and I’d say Athens has officially arrived as a great city.

On the Peloponnese, a road trip that includes the isthmus of Corinth, Nafplio and Monemvasia is spectacular.

Island-wise, the time of year may limit you a bit but you will find some action in the Cyclades - try Paros or Naxos if you’re not up for Mykonos or Santorini. Crete and Hydra would be other island options.

The Halkidiki Peninsula is close to Thessaloniki and is beautiful with many amazing hotels and resorts.

Hope you get lots of other great suggestions!

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Adding because I forgot: the roads and infrastructure particularly around Athens are very good. ATH airport is modern and very efficient. Renting a car there is a good idea if you’re doing any sort of moving around, and signs are abundant and in English - not at all intimidating.

The Olympics gave them a good boost in infrastructure and it’s serving them well now that it’s such a popular destination.

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If you don’t get a lot of suggestions here, try the TripAdvisor forums. People over there are also usually helpful. My parents and I have often gone there for advice for itinerary planning.

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Thank you so much @stradmom , @admmda and @ClassicMom98!

I think Athens is definitely going to be on the list and the road trip idea seems really promising. I don’t realistically know how much time we’ll have to do things, so I need to really think about how to lay out our trip to maximize our time - both with the boy and spent exploring. Realistically, I’ll probably need to wait until a good bit closer to make any concrete plans, but I think as I’m looking at the end of summer (and a sort of dismal and depressing recent past in terms of vacations) I just want something fun to look forward to!

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Greece was one of my favorite trips ever! But just like all trips there may never be time to cram it all in. I would try to make it to Athens of course just for the iconic tourist spots but honestly you’ll have a great time if you never make it out of town. Take advantage of your “instant tour guide son” who has already scouted the area out. I’m sure he’ll have lots of great suggestions.

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I’ve been to Greece three times. I enjoyed the “must see” tourist spots in Athens. I went to a yoga retreat on the island of Santorini–loved it. I also went to Kalamata (where you get the amazing olives) when my daughter had an international competition. While there, we took trips to Sparta and also to Olympia. The Greek people were incredibly friendly and the food was amazing.

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