Greece cheap Hotels

THE GREEK ISLANDS

Everyone wants to visit the Greek Islands at some point in their lives, right? I mean, how could you resist the urge to want to watch one of Santorini’s famous sunsets and visit the beautiful beaches of the lesser known island of Milos?

Many people are under the impression that it is extremely difficult to visit the Greek islands on a budget. This may be true for those who lack the skills when it comes to planning and researching for a trip, but in reality those who arrive prepared will find that that are a variety of ways to visit the Greek Islands without breaking the bank.

GETTING TO GREECE

From the United States:

Getting to Greece is easy although it can be quite pricey depending on where you are flying from. For those of you flying from the United States, one of the best tips for finding cheap flights to Greece is to always look for flights departing out of major U.S. hubs. For example: LAX, JFK, ATL, BOS, IAD, MIA. All of those airports are major hubs in the United States and are usually great starting points when looking for the best deals on flights to Greece.

The best websites to use when searching for flights to Greece and the Greek Islands is Skyscanner and Google Flights. Use both of these sites in conjuction with each other to see what you can come up with for prices.

From Europe:

If you’re already in Europe then you’re more than halfway there. Simply log onto Skyscanner and Google Flights and begin your search. Again, the best deals are always found when searching for flights from major European hubs such as LON, LHR, MUC, BCN, FCO and those are just a few examples of the major hubs in Europe. You’ll likely find great deals on flights to Greece on airlines such as Aegean, Olympic and Ryanair.

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GETTING TO THE GREEK ISLANDS

Flying to the Greek Islands

Flying is by far the quickest and most convenient way to reach the Greek Islands. The problem is that not all islands have airports, therefore some islands require you to take ferries in order to reach them.

Below you’ll find a short list of the Greek Islands that DO have airports although finding flights to some of the smaller ones islands can be quite tough due to intermittent flight schedules.

• Chios (JKH)
• Chania (CHQ)
• Corfu (CFU)
• Heraklion (HER)
• Ikaria (JIK)
• Ioannina (IOA)
• Kefalonia (EFL)
• Kos (KGS)
• Leros (LRS)
• Lesvos (MJT)
• Milos (MLO)
• Mykonos (JMK)
• Naxos (JNX)
• Paros (PAS)
• Rhodes (RHO)
• Samos (SMI)
• Santorini (JTR)
• Skiathos (JSI)
• Skyros (SKU)
• Syros (JSY)
• Zakynthos (ZTH)

Note: Flights to some of the more popular islands such as Chania (Crete), Heraklion (Crete), Mykonos, Rhodes, Santorini and Zakynthos are very easy to find during the spring, summer and early fall. Depending on the season and the current specials going on, flights from Athens to these islands mentioned above can be found for as low as €40 round-trip. Example: Ryanair offered multiple deals in summer 2015 with flights to and from Athens to Rhodes and Santorini for €23 each way.

Another thing to keep in mind is that flights from Athens to most of the Greek Islands only take about 50-70 minutes. In other words, always search for flights to the Greek islands before booking a ferry.

Ferries to the Greek Islands
As I mentioned in the ‘Flying to the Greek Islands’ section above, great deals on flights can be found if you keep your eyes peeled. That being said, sometimes flights to the islands are far too expensive. In this case, taking a ferry to the island of your choice is your next best bet.

The greek ferry booking form on the right is powered by FerriesinGreece, a major booking hub that sends more than 35, 000 passengers to and from the Greek isles each year. They are a trusted site and I use them when I’m booking my Greek island ferry tickets.

If you would prefer booking your tickets in person, you can book your tickets for the Greek Island of your choice by going down to one of the many ticket offices at the Piraeus port in Athens. I should note that the Piraeus port is hectic and very spread out so if you do end up heading down there to buy tickets be prepared to do a lot of walking and shopping around.

Accommodations in the Greek Islands

When it comes to finding accommodations on the Greek islands, your options are just about endless. You have a choice of hostels, cliff side hotels, resorts, short term apartments rentals and more.

Hostels & Budget Accommodations

Use HostelWorld’s advanced search features to find cheap hostels in the Greek Islands or search a wide variety of budget accommodations using Booking.com (my personal favorite).

Hotels & Resorts

The best way to find great deals on hotels and resorts on the Greek islands is to book your stay through Booking.com. They are a very reputable company that have been around for a long time. Booking.com has nearly 18, 000 property listings in Greece alone and they’re growing every day. Use them and save today!

Apartment Rentals

In my opinion, renting an apartment on the Greek islands is your best bet. Trust me when I tell you that there’s nothing better than being able to check into your own private accommodations, some of which have full kitchens, balconies overlooking the sea and are located in some of the best locations on the islands. I’ve stayed at many apartment rentals during my travels and when I want to find a quality apartment to rent, I always start my search over at Airbnb.

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