Greece
Athens is a proper city that most people treat as a transit point. The islands are everything the brochures say. Pick one cluster, not three, and you will leave satisfied.
Greece is the country most likely to be misplanned. People arrive in Athens, spend one rushed night near the Acropolis, and take the ferry out the next morning. The result is a shallow skim across two extraordinary places. Athens deserves two full days at minimum - the Acropolis, the National Archaeological Museum, and the Monastiraki neighbourhood alone justify it, and the food and bar scene has nothing to do with the tourist quarter.
The islands are as good as advertised, but the classic mistake is trying to see several on one trip. Santorini and Mykonos are the famous two; Crete is a different proposition entirely, large enough to drive around with its own character and history. The Cyclades, the Dodecanese and the Ionian islands are each a separate geography. Pick one cluster and do it properly. Aegean Airlines is the flag carrier and the airline to know here - the main short-haul carrier from Europe and the backbone of the domestic island network.
The Best Time to Visit Greece
Greece has a Mediterranean climate - hot dry summers, mild wet winters, and two good shoulder seasons. Athens figures below: summers (June-August) regularly exceed 35°C and are genuinely hot in the city, though the islands get a consistent meltemi wind that makes the same temperatures feel tolerable on the water. July and August are peak tourist season - Santorini and Mykonos are at their busiest and most expensive.
May and September-October are the sweet spots for a balance of warmth, manageable crowds, and lower prices. The sea is warm enough for swimming from late May through October. April is cooler but good for Athens - the Acropolis without July heat and summer crowds is a different experience entirely.
Winter in Greece (November to February) is mild in Athens but the islands largely shut down - ferries run reduced schedules, hotels close, and the Cyclades are deserted. Crete stays open year-round and is worth considering for a winter break.
Monthly temperature
Athens averages below. Islands are cooler in summer due to meltemi winds. May and September-October are the sweet spot. July-August is peak season - hot, busy, expensive.
Getting there
Select your origin to see the best routing options.
The easy one - direct from a dozen airports in 3.5-4h, and in summer you can fly straight to the islands. Athens for the city and Cyclades ferries; direct island flights for a single-base beach trip.
| Carrier | Route | Type | Flight time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aegean Airlines | LHR/DUB/EDI - ATH | Direct | ~3h 45m | The flag carrier and the most useful airline to know. I reviewed their Business Class on the Edinburgh route. |
| British Airways | LHR/LGW - ATH | Direct | ~3h 45m | Daily year-round from London. |
| Ryanair / easyJet | LON/MAN/DUB - ATH | Direct | ~3h 45m | The low-cost workhorses; widest network and the cheapest fares. |
| Various (summer) | UK/IE - HER/RHO/CFU/JTR | Direct | ~4h | Direct seasonal flights straight to Crete, Rhodes, Corfu and Santorini - skip Athens for a single-island trip. |
Athens has real nonstops from New York now, mostly seasonal (roughly May to October). Outside that window, one stop through a European hub.
| Carrier | Route | Type | Flight time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emirates | JFK - ATH | Direct | ~9h 30m | Year-round nonstop on the fifth-freedom JFK-ATH-DXB run; often the best cabin on the route. |
| Delta | JFK/ATL - ATH | Direct | ~9-10h | Seasonal nonstop (roughly Mar-Dec from JFK), plus Atlanta in summer. |
| United | EWR - ATH | Direct | ~9h 30m | Seasonal nonstop from Newark, roughly April to late October. |
| American | JFK/PHL - ATH | Direct | ~9h 30m | Seasonal daily nonstop, roughly May to late October. |
No nonstop from the West Coast. Connect through a European hub or backtrack via New York for the seasonal nonstops.
| Carrier | Route | Type | Flight time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lufthansa / Swiss | LAX/SFO - FRA/MUC/ZRH - ATH | 1 stop | 16-18h | The cleanest one-stop, via a German or Swiss hub. |
| Air France / KLM | LAX/SFO - CDG/AMS - ATH | 1 stop | 16-18h | Via Paris or Amsterdam; frequent onward Athens service. |
| Emirates / Qatar | LAX/SFO - DXB/DOH - ATH | 1 stop | 19-22h | The Gulf routing - longer, but a strong cabin both legs. |
No nonstop. The Gulf carriers are the obvious one-stop; the Asian hubs add a leg but suit east-coast departures.
| Carrier | Route | Type | Flight time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emirates | SYD/MEL - DXB - ATH | 1 stop | ~22h | The smoothest single-stop, via Dubai. Daily from Sydney and Melbourne. |
| Qatar Airways | SYD/MEL - DOH - ATH | 1 stop | ~22h | The closest competitor to Emirates, via Doha. |
| Singapore Airlines | SYD/MEL - SIN - ATH | 1 stop | ~24h | Via Singapore; a useful break point if you want a stopover en route. |
Where to go
Athens anchors the mainland; the islands split into distinct clusters. City and island guides below, with full hubs on the way.
Getting around Greece
Athens has a Metro that covers the tourist corridor - Monastiraki, Syntagma, Omonia - efficiently and cheaply, and it is the only sensible way to reach Piraeus for the island ferries without sitting in traffic. For the islands the choice is between ferries (slow, scenic, cheap) and domestic flights on Aegean or Sky Express (fast, more expensive). Within a single cluster like the Cyclades, high-speed ferries between Santorini, Mykonos, Paros and Naxos run several times daily in summer - book ahead for July and August.
Tested routes
2023Aegean Airlines Business Class: Edinburgh to AthensExcellent→Planning the logistics?
The facts above are the short version. The full libraries - every carrier, ferry and cruise line - live one level down under Getting There.