Luxury Greece Family Vacation: Crete, Athens, Mykonos, Delos, Chania, Santorini Catamaran Cruise, Acropolis

We really (!!!) enjoyed all the locales and the accommodations our agent chose for us. We didn’t see a lot of mainland Greece besides the Athens’ Acropolis area and to and from the airport, but that was fine. Also, what we saw of the islands was very lovely.

We greatly enjoyed the Athens hotel’s staff and location (in spite of the outside looking questionable), and our tour to the Acropolis and its museum was terrific! The two (+) days there could not have worked out better for us.  

We really appreciated the gorgeous “zenness” of our Mykanos hotel. It was so quiet and peaceful. We worried somewhat that our young adult children (20 and 22) were perhaps out of place in this environ, although they enjoyed it as well. The staff was very nice and accommodating, and the facility was lovely. The day-time desk staff talked a great deal to us upon arrival (lots of info!) and knew about our transfer needs. However, the evening staff did not have the same understanding (perhaps translation issues). It all worked out fine, and we were very glad the day staff were at the desk in time for our leave-taking. Mykanos Town was easy to get lost in (in spite of their map), but that didn’t stop us from seeing what we wanted and getting some lovely meals and views. Our day trip and tour to Delos was very interesting and worthwhile if one is interested in Greek history and anthropology.

We loved our place in Santorini, as the villa and its owner were amazing. The owner was terrifically warm, welcoming, accommodating, and helpful. As we continuously mentioned, the villa REALLY should only be used by people who can handle lots of steep steps, the circular staircase, the stairs to the shower in the master suite, etc., but we did just fine. The walk to and from town overlooking the caldera and through town was also QUITE rough over many, many stones, and people should certainly be forewarned. The views cannot be beaten, however. Two of the days we were there, we had hurricane-like winds. We still walked around a lot, because staying indoors was not an option. We were disappointed the wind caused our kayaking trip to be canceled, but we should have asked if a van tour to the other side of the island was an option. Our catamaran trip w/Santorini Sailing was WONDERFUL. The crew and food were terrific, as was claimed. Glad the weather was great that day, because although the water was quite cold, it was one of our greatest adventures.

We had rough water for the three hours’ late ferry ride from Santorini to Crete, so we were very glad to have the motion sickness meds, pressure bands, etc. that our agent suggested to get us through the ride(s). Then, we had a long but very interesting drive and nice late-night meal with our wonderful transfer driver/owner across the island to Chania. Our hotel was lovely. Having our family on two floors and no elevator was a tad challenging, as was finding a breakfast table for four, but it all worked out. The staff even provided us with hot-out-of–the-oven croissants before our hike to the gorge. The small hotel was in the very beautiful area of Old Hania, which was quiet, authentic, incredibly lovely, yet near lots of shopping, the ocean, restaurants, etc. We had two wonderfully interesting days of private tours to a monastery, a ceramist, several small villages, the ocean-side, and the gorge. The hiking even in the smaller gorge was fairly rough, and again people should be forewarned. However, both tours left us with great photos, memories, and wanting to go back.

All four of our family members felt this trip was a unique and wonderful vacation!