Your Free Travel Agent to the Greek Cyclades

Let me be your free travel agent. Helping you to plan your dream vacation to the Greek Cyclades on a budget. Without sacrificing the things you love about traveling.

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Hi I’m Michala! Your Free Travel Agent to the Greek Cyclades

As your free travel agent I will walk you through how to plan your trip to the Cyclades, how to book your trip, how to prepare for your trip and provide a day guide for your daily activities. The trip will start in Athens, then a ferry ride to Milos (with a day trip to Poliegos), onto Sifnos, then Naxos and finally Mykonos. Where each island holds its own beauty, culture and terrane.

About The Greek Cyclades | From your Free Travel Agent

The Cyclades are a group of Greek islands in the Aegean Sea. With over 33 of them that are lively little towns. Mykonos and Santorini are the most well know. Think crystal clear water, breathtaking volcanic rock formations, caves, sandy beaches, good food, good people and rich history.

Trip Highlights

1 night in Athens
4 nights in Milos
3 nights in Sifnos
4 nights in Naxos
2 nights in Mykonos

Planning A Trip | From your Free Travel Agent

Know when you are going to travel. Whenever traveling to Europe the most crowded and expensive time will always be the summer months. Middle of May through the beginning of September and major holidays. If you travel during the “off” season the crowds are less which means hotels, other accommodations, and activities will be more affordable. Bronson and I visited the cyclades the end of April and wish we would have gone a little bit later. Athens is very lively but the other Islands are a little more dormant. Half the shops and restaurants were closed. The locals said it is best to travel after Greek Easter. That is when everything is open. So wait until then to travel to the islands. I highly suggest visiting in September. When the weather is very warm with little wind but has started to cool down a smidge. All things are open and the water is at its nicest.
Make sure you have a credit card. If you travel without a credit card you are missing out. The right credit card gives you points or miles back on every purchase (this is how Bronson and I get free flights on our trips every year.) Has no foreign transaction fees. Provides free TSA or Global Entry Pre Check. And comes most of the time with travel insurance, rental car insurance, etc if you used your card to make the reservation. It’s the smart way to travel and builds your credit at the same time. I never leave my house without my Capitol One Venture X card. It’s how I travel affordably. Check it out and others if you don’t already have one. Then you can reap all the benefits too.

Booking A Trip | From your Free Travel Agent

Get your Flights: Now that you know when you will be traveling begin searching for the flights. You’ll need a roundtrip ticket from your main airport to Athens and Athens back to your home. Plus a flight from Mykonos to Athens at the end of the trip. Try to coordinate that flight with your flight home the best that you can. For reference, Athens is 8 hrs ahead of mountain standard time. When planning your flight to Athens account for that. I always plan two days of the trip as travel days. One day to get to the destination and the other day upon leaving to go back home. I use Hopper to track and find a good flight no later than 6 months in advance. Once a good price arises I cross reference with google flights and then book through the airline. Booking through the airline has always been cheaper for me and also offers the most benefits as a flyer if a cancelation or something were to happen.
Ferry Rides: Be prepared to take a lot of ferries. You’ll need one from Athens to Milos (about 3.5 hours), Milos to Sifnos (about 1.5 hours), Sifnos to Naxos (about 3 hours) and Naxos to Mykonos (about an hour.) Use Ferryscanner to search for the sea busses but don’t purchase your Ferry Ticket with them. Purchase directly from the boat company or the ferry ticket travel agencies on the island. For instance, If your ferry from Athens to Milos is with SeaJets book through them online. If you are traveling during the off season it is easiest to get your ferry ticket from the travel agencies by the port the day or so before departure. If you are traveling from June to beginning of September you will want to book the ferries in advance. As they fill up quickly. Talk with your hotels for advice. We found ours to be very helpful on each island before we travelled. I messaged them directly from my bookings.com portal.
Accommodations. Now that the flights are taken care of its time to book places to stay. Start by looking for the hotels through Bookings.com. It’s the only travel website I use for accommodations. Its easy to navigate, always has the best (lowest) prices and provides free cancellations on most everything.
Experiences. When ever I travel out of the U.S. I use Get Your Guide and Trip Advisor to scout for fun activities. Tip: after browsing sometimes it’s cheaper to book directly through the businesses website instead of a third party website. Just check your sources first.
Transportation: For this Itinerary you will need transportation. I suggest renting an ATV in Milos and getting a car in Sifnos and Naxos. In Athens and Mykonos the bus system works great!

Preparation Before Travel | From your Free Travel Agent

Packing: Pack light. You don’t need more than a carry on. Make sure it is European airline approved. The standard carryon in the U.S. is quite a bit bigger than foreign country carryons. You can also bring a personal bag/backpack too if you feel like you need it. Then your luggage is typically free. Some foreign airlines charge a small fee for carryons but it’s because the flights are so cheap. Baggage is where they make majority of their money. I also recommend packing cubes, a wet bag and a liquid toiletry bag to help keep your luggage organized to maximize the most space. Oh and a towel. I never travel without my Geometry beach blanket. It’s perfect for two and my code “cookieeclub15” will save you 15 percent off of your order. Then bring only two pairs of shoes. Wear a pair of tennis shoes comfortable for the plane, walking, hiking and pack a set of sandals.
ID’s: Please don’t forget your passports and driver licenses. I always carry all of mine and Bronson’s important documents and items in a secured crossover bag that stays with me at all times. Get Global Entry if you plan on visiting a lot of foreign countries. Then you don’t have to go through customs every time you arrive back into the U.S. Your credit card might even pay for it. Double check. It helped us this trip to make it on our connecting flight back home.
Learn the language: last but not least learn common, polite words like please, thank you, good morning, etc of the country you are visiting. Locals will respect and appreciate you for knowing and trying to speak some of their language. It’s the polite way to travel. It also opens people up. Makes them smile. Makes them want to chat and get to know you. Meeting new people is apart of the experience of traveling to somewhere new. If you put in a little bit of effort it will not go un noticed. Bronson and I have met some incredible people this way.
GPS: for directions I always use google maps on my phone. It has worked for my husband and I in Europe very well. We have T-Mobile so data is included but if you need service just get a sim card upon arrival to Europe for the duration of your stay.

Enjoying The Trip | Your Free Travel Agent

As your free travel agent I have listed a step by step guide for each day you are in Greece visiting the Cyclades based off of my experience from my own trip. This is meant to be a list to help you with your planning. Please don’t follow it verbatim. Have fun making your vacation your own by knowing you have me to help you plan the best trip ever!

Athens

Day 1: After arriving into the Eleftherios Venizelos Athens International Airport find the X95 bus to syntagma square. Then walk to your hotel to check in and freshen up. Don’t go to sleep. Just hit the town. It’s the best way to avoid jet lag with the time difference. We stayed at Chic Centre Suites in Athens. I booked through bookings.com. It was great, especially for a night. It’s right in the center of the city next to all the shops, restaurants and museums. Enjoy the day wandering before the ferry ride to Milos the next day.

Milos

Day 2: Ferry to Milos. After checking out of your hotel, to get to Piraeus port you will need to take the subway. The subway runs about every 20 minutes and it cost 2 euro a person per way. It’s about 20 minutes to the port from city center. Download the Rome2Rio app for help with all things transportation while in Europe. Make sure you arrive to the port an hour before your ferry. When you arrive to Milos, check into your hotel, get an ATV for the next 3 days and have fun walking around town. I highly recommend staying at Arco Solium Suites and upgrading your room to a suite with a jacuzzi. It was our favorite hotel of all the islands.

Day 3: Hop on the ATV and go explore! I suggest starting the day at the old sulfur mines then going to Pollonia Beach and swimming at Papafragas Caves. Go early so you can enjoy them without any people. Having Papafragas Cave to ourselves felt like a dream. It is the best spot for a romantic swim. Then visit Pachena Beach and Alogomadra Beach before heading back to town for the night.

Day 4: Pick up where you left off the day before and head straight to Sarakiniko Beach. Also known as “The Moon Beach” because of the beautiful white volcanic rock. It is out of this world! Spend half the day hiking, cliff jumping, tanning and swimming. Then drive to Mandrakia. It’s a beautiful little fishing village. Afterwards visit the Church of Agios Nikoalaso. There’s some ruins overlooking the ocean not too far up from there. Followed by dinner in the city of Plaka. Eat at one of the Taverna’s for some excellent Greek cuisine. Last visit the Ancient Theatre of Milos for Sunset and go back to the hotel.

Day 5: Adamas: Milos & Polyaigos Full-Day Sailboat Tour with Lunch! Make sure to book the tour in advance. It is a must do activity in my opinion. Milos has so many hidden caves that you can only see by boat or kayak. With the boat tour you’ll go to Polyaigos which is an uninhabited greek island near Milos and swim at Kleftiko a seaside cliff with excellent snorkeling. If you don’t like boats then book a half day kayaking tour.

Sifnos

Day 6: Ferry to Sifnos. Once you arrive to Sifnos get a rental car by the port. You’ll only have two full days in Sifnos so getting transportation is essential. A car allows you the freedom to see the island on your terms but it also will allow you to stay in the nicer parts of the island with better hotel options. I highly recommend staying at Nival Botique Hotel in Apollonia. Once you get a car just check into your hotel and relax for the rest of the day. The next two days will be pretty busy so it’s important to chill on travel days. We enjoyed taking a nap, going into town for dinner and just walking around.

Day 7: Eat breakfast at the hotel and make sure you are dressed for hiking and swimming. Pack lots of water and maybe some snacks. Then head to Panagia Poulati. It’s a small church located on the east side of the island 10 minutes from Apollonia on the sea. Take pictures of the the beautiful white church and walk 10 minutes down the stone steps for swimming. Dry off and head on over to the Church of the Seven Martyrs. It’s a beautiful trail that takes you to another breathtaking white church overlooking the ocean. The trail head is very close to Loggia Wine Bar. After, hop on over to Fassolou Beach. If you have snorkeling gear it is a great spot to see some fish. After relaxing by the water you can drive to Chrisopigi Monastery. or back to town for some shopping and strolling.

Day 8: Again wear hiking and swim attire. It’s another day of hiking and swimming. Bring the sunscreen, water, a lunch etc. Today you are hiking to Paralia Fikiada Beach. It will take most of the day. To get to the trail head drive to Villa Olivia Clara Hotel. Don’t stop at it, continue straight until you find parking and then walk to the trail head at the end of the road. Once on the trail you will come upon some ruins. Explore and then continue walking the path until you reach Paralia Fikada Beach. Spend most of the day here. Once you get back to the car take the time to enjoy the little town of Platis Gialos. Shop and eat some food. Then spend the rest of the day doing what you want before another travel day.

Naxos

Day 9: Ferry to Naxos. Once you arrive to Naxos get a car right away. Naxos is the biggest island in the Cyclades. A car is necessary for seeing the whole island. We got an ATV but it was a little uncomfortable because some destinations were 45 minutes away. We wish we would have gotten a car. As for accommodations I recommend staying at a hotel on the outskirts of town by Agios Georgios Beach. Then you can easily walk to the water and still be able to walk into town. For your first night on the island just enjoy walking around “Old Town” shopping and finding a nice restaurant to eat at. Hint: Taverna means traditional greek cuisine restaurant. Naxos is a foodies paradise. We had the best food during our stay. Make sure to try Moussaka, Kalegeros and the local beers and liquors. See “My Culinary Journey: The Greek Cyclades” post for all my restaurant recommendations.

Day 10: Wake up ready for a hike. Zeus’s Childhood Cave is a short 60 Minute hike in total and has some incredible views. It’s magical walking next to the marble mountain. If you are a professional climber you can even go further past Zeus’s cave for some climbing. After hiking visit Halki. Halki is the old capitol of Naxos. It resembles Italian architecture. Here you will want to shop, take photos of the buildings and visit the citron distillery to sample citron liquor and citron olive oil. I also suggest stoping by the honey store up the street to Naxia Natura to sample local pine honey and oils. Greece has some of the best honey in the world! After exploring Halki have fun stoping in the city of Filoti before visiting Apeiranthos. Apeiranthos is the city of marble. It was build by the Cretans during the 10 century and is still standing and functional today. Locals still live and thrive here. It’s a must see. End the day by seeing the Temple of Dimeter.

Day 11: Hit the beach, well beaches! Naxos has the best sandy beaches. Hop in the car and drive along the coast stoping at all of them. Or just pick a few so you can enjoy a relaxing day in the sun. Our top 3 favorite shores in Naxos were Agia Anna, Orkos Beach and Plaka Beach. If you make it all the way to Hawaii beach you must explore the abandoned hotel and go a little further for swimming at the Church Agios Sozon. It is a little bit of a hike in but well worth it! I would start the day at the Church and work your way back down the coast into town.

Day 12: Last day in Naxos so spend it wisely. I suggest making today a half beach day and then going into Eggares to the Olive Oil Museum. You must see Nikolita’s Olive tree farm and sample all of the buttery kalamata olive oils, jams and spreads. It was a highlight of the trip. Then explore the ruin Kalamitisa. It’s an ancient mansion in pristine condition. We ere able to get to all three levels and even sit on top of the roof. Afterwards head back into town for sunset at Apollo’s Temple and take in all of Naxos.

Mykonos

Day 13: Ferry to Mykonos. In Mykonos we just walked everywhere but if you need transportation the bus is always going so you will not need a car. I highly suggest staying in town where no vehicles are allowed. We stayed at Eleanna’s Mykonos and it was the perfect little studio apartment in the heart of the Island. If I ever go back I will be staying there again. After you get off of the ferry and check into your hotel just take the day to chill and take some fun photos. Mykonos is the cleanest of all the islands. Making it very photogenic. All of the colors just pop! It also has a fantastic nightlife so stay up late. Take a mid day nap if you need to.

Day 14: Today you can get lost in Hora (Mykonos Old Town), visit The Church of Panagia, go to the Folklore Museum, The Rarity Gallery, stroll by the Windmills of Mykonos, walk to Paralia Megali Ammos Beach and maybe hike to Armenistis Lighthouse. It’s your last day in Greece so make it special.

Day 15: Fly from the Mykonos Airport back to Athens to head home.

Remarks | From Your Free Travel Agent

If you are like me then your plus one had to drag you back onto the returning flight kicking and screaming because home became Greece and you did not want to leave. It’s ok, just plan another trip back soon.

It’s crazy but traveling to Europe is cheaper than visiting Hawaii, the Hamptons or even Florida in the U.S. Maybe go to Spain next or I’ll go, and write another itinerary to help make your trip more enjoyable by taking the guess work and stress out of it.

Remember to plan a few days of recovery before going back to work. Bronson and I always make sure to get back on a Friday so we have Saturday and Sunday to recoup before Mondays work day.