A Honeymoon At Sea: Sailing the Greek Islands

Sailing The Cyclades Islands

After our wedding, we sat down to brainstorm ideas for an EPIC honeymoon, one in which I personally think we succeeded in planning. We needed and planned to go during the summer (teachers you know why…) of 2018. I had always wanted to charter a yacht around the Greek Islands (Below Deck anyone??), but knew that wasn’t exactly in the cards for us on our budget. However, I set out to make this dream come true.

Yacht Getaways

After doing what seemed like hours and hours of research, we decided to book a week exploring the Greek, Cyclades Islands on a 4 bedroom, shared, catamaran with Yacht Getaways. For roughly $1,300 a person we sailed on a 45 foot “superior” catamaran for 7 days. Our sail began in Paros and stopped in Antiparos, Ios, Naxos, Mykonos, Syros, Kea, and finished off in Athens. Included in the price was:

Seven nights accommodation on your own Catamaran (shared with 6 others)
Breakfast & lunch freshly prepared daily (wine with lunch!)
BYO – Bring your own drinks and snacks on board
Explore & learn to sail with your RYA qualified Skipper (I enjoyed being on anchor duty)
Stand up paddleboards & snorkelling equipment
A host that prepared breakfast and lunch
Complimentary tea, coffee and drinking water
Towels and fresh linen for the week

Not bad right?? You sleep on the boat docked in a port (mostly) or anchored by a port and during the day, you sail to a new port stopping along the way to swim, paddle board and eat lunch. Dinners were on our own or with others from the boat in the town where we were docked. When the boat was docked, which was the case for most ports except for one, we had electricity and air conditioning at night.

Our only hesitation was the idea of sharing a catamaran with 6 strangers! What if they were strange? What if they didn’t travel like us? What if they wanted to do things together ALL the time?? How would we have alone time? Was it strange that we were on our honeymoon with strangers? All these questions were valid, yet we felt like we couldn’t pass up this budget-friendly and unique way to travel the Cyclades Islands!

In order to include some “alone” travel time, we decided to extend our honeymoon for another week to explore two other islands. It was a great compromise! 16 days in Greece! My dream was finally coming true! After leaving the catamaran, we decided to travel to Milos for 3 nights and Santorini for 4 nights. (This blog to come shortly.)

Itinerary:

Friday July 6 – Saturday July 7

Delta Flight from JFK – Athens: We booked non-stop flights using points from our Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card and utilized our Priority Pass at the airport lounge in John F. Kennedy Airport.

Saturday July 7

We landed in Athens, Greece and planned to jump on a quick flight to Paros, where we would board our catamaran at 3:00.

TIP: We booked our flights on a random site, and when we got to the check in counter in Athens, they didn’t have a reservation for us. Don’t do that! I even had our printed confirmation email. Book on known websites or directly through the airline while traveling internationally.

We boarded a bus at the airport to a ferry that would eventually get us to Paros. We took the bus to Rafina, a ferry port in Athens, and had lunch at the port. Keep in mind that there are 3 different ports within Athens. We experienced all three in the short time we were in Greece!

Boarding the ferry was pretty interesting, as there weren’t any lines. People just huddled together in a big mob and walked on all at once. We bought designated seats (like an airplane), got a drink and stayed mostly outside. My husband even met the President of Greece!

By the time we got to Paros, we had actually missed our catamaran’s departure, but luckily enough for us, the boat was only in Antiparos, another (short) ferry ride away.

Tom, our captain, greeted us at the ferry and escorted us to meet the rest of the passengers at a restaurant along the water. To my surprise and delight, everyone was so much fun! There were 2-30 year old girls from New Jersey, 2-26 year old girls from Australia, and a 40-something year old couple from Florida. We knew immediately that we would all get along! This trip is for all ages and make up of travel companions!

After dinner, we watched a World Cup game and took a tender back to our catamaran, as it was anchored out in the harbor of Antiparos. We were surprised at how spacious our room actually was! There are hidden storage compartments, which allows for you to be neat and organized in such a small area.

July 8: Antiparos – Ios

We woke up looking out our porthole window to the view of the port of Antiparos and were welcomed by a diverse breakfast spread, made by Sophie, our host.

Tom, our captain brought us into town and we were able to walk around a bit before leaving. We walked along the stone streets, lined with white houses and blue trim and highlighted with purple bougainvillea. It is everything you think of when you think of Greece!

We made two stops along the way to Ios to swim and paddle board. The water was clear and refreshing! We had lunch after snorkeling in a secluded cove then headed to dock at the port in Ios (Gialos).

We had dinner at Grandma’s Restaurant and had the BEST view of the sunset! (*You need a reservation) I can’t describe how beautiful it was. Went out after dinner in the main square, walked around to explore, and had a few drinks.

The town is very cool, and high up in the hills. Shops are vibrant and selling everything from clothes and jewelry to ceramics and linens. I suggest walking around and popping in and out of shops and bars. Everything was within walking distance of the dock. Ios is a party island and the night life starts relatively late. There is a bar there that OPENS at 4am!

July 9: Ios – Naxos

We set sail around 9am, with me on anchor duty, which became my “job” on the boat, and stopped in the most beautiful, secluded cove and snorkeled and swam into a cave. We had lunch overlooking the cove and cave. After lunch, we headed to the docks at the port in Naxos.

Once in Naxos, we walked around and explored the port city. We walked along hilly and winding streets, and took in the combination of new and old architecture. Artists were selling paintings on the side of narrow alleyways and kids were selling rocks that they painted for 2 euros a piece. Our captain recommended that we watch the sunset from Apollo’s Gate. In preparation for the sunset we bought a bottle of wine and a block of cheese and found seats around Apollo’s Gate, along the edge of the cliff to watch the sunset.

Tip: If planning on watching the sunset, you should get there a little early as it gets pretty crowded and it becomes tough to get a seat.

After sunset, we went back to the boat to shower and moseyed our way through the port town. We happened upon Boulamontis Tavern, a small restaurant overlooking the port and had a wonderful meal. Some of the people from the catamaran rented ATVs and went to St. George’s Beach which looked pretty awesome. Our jet lag was finally setting in, so we didn’t want to go far from the boat. We would love to check it out when we go back!

July 10: Naxos – Mykonos

I woke up feeling extremely excited to be heading to Mykonos, as I have heard such great things! On the way, we stopped to swim in a beautiful cove. We docked in the “New Port”, which doesn’t have much to do there, so we rented ATVs with our boat crew. (ATVs are a must and a great way to see the island!) The only problem was that our ATV broke down a few times!

On our ATV tour of Mykonos, we:

Went to Elia Beach, a beach with a bar/restaurant, chairs/umbrellas, and water sports
Nikolas Taverna in Paragas Beach – BEST CHEESECAKE ever! (The owner made us try it)
Tried to make it to the famous windmills for sunset, but we were too late.

After exploring the island on our ATVs, we took a water taxi from our sailboat in New Town to Old Town which has a TON of tavernas, bars, and clubs. We hopped around Old Town, eating and drinking, and meeting new people. Everyone is so friendly and are just living life to the fullest! The open air tavernas are so beautiful, no matter where they are! Mykonos is definitely a party scene and VERY expensive. A bottle of water cost 10 euro when we were out, but we had so much fun!

July 11: Mykonos – Syros

We sailed right to Syros (“The Capital of the Cyclades”) and docked at the port. Syros is a very cute town with a lot of shopping and tavernas. After a night/morning out in Mykonos, we wanted to take it easy during the day so we took a bus (which was very easy) to the beach in Kini which had chairs and umbrellas for rent by restaurants along the water. The chairs (and a drink) only cost a few euros each.

We then took the bus to another beach in Galissas, which was a bit larger. After we got back to port, we decided to have a group dinner along the water because Syros has so many restaurants all along the water. Our entire group including our captain and host sat outside of a restaurant that set up a screen to watch a World Cup game, with the port as our background.

July 12: Syros – Kea

I decided to wake up early and explore more of Syros alone while everyone was still asleep. I grabbed an Americano coffee and a croissant and walked along the quiet streets. Restaurant staff were setting up tables and chairs to welcome patrons for breakfast along the water. I would suggest no matter where you are, or who you are with, to take some time to yourself.

We set sail for Kea (after I pulled up the anchor of course) and docked in the port and walked 5 minutes to Gialiskari Beach. This was a small, yet beautiful beach in a cove close to the port. The water was so warm and clear!

The port is cute and small, containing few tavernas, however we decided (based on recommendations from Captain Tom) to go into the main city of Kea which is high up on the island and a 20 minute taxi ride. Many Athenians have vacation houses on the island of Kea, so it was the least touristy island that we visited.

We saw a beautiful sunset from the town, “bar hopped”, and ate a little at each place. Friends from the boat ate at I Strofi Tou Mimi and said it was beyond amazing and recommended it.

July 13: Kea – Athens (Lavrio Port)

We sailed over to another part of Kea, so some of the people on the boat could go scuba diving. Kea is known for a well known wreck, attracting experienced divers. While some of the group went scuba diving, the rest of us relaxed and hung out at Koundraki Beach, which had chairs, umbrellas and a bar. We set sail for Athens and made a stop at another abandoned island, before entering the port of Lavrio.

July 14: Lavrio Port – Milos, Greece

Jeremy and I woke up very early to get a 45 minute taxi to go to the main port (Piraeus) in Athens to jump on a ferry to go to Milos, an island where we were going to be spending 4 days and 3 nights!

Tips:

Packing cubes are essential! Not only do they help when packing your suitcase, but also for organizing your clothes, as I was able to use the packing cubes as “drawers”, as the catamaran lacked storage. These are the packing cubes that I bought and used.
Pack light! You really don’t need much besides bathing suits, summer dresses, and some cover ups and shorts.
We traveled with carry-ons, because you have to store your luggage in your cabin. The bigger your bag, the less space you have!
Leave the hair dryer at home. I didn’t use it, even though my hair requires it to look somewhat presentable.
Pack dramamine or motion sickness bracelets just in case!
Bring Turkish Towels instead of beach towels. They dry quickly and aren’t bulky! They also act as beach cover-ups! (If you have a few days prior to boarding the boat, buy a Turkish Towel, as they make great souvenirs!)
Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen!
Leave the heels/wedges at home! Most streets/sidewalks are made of uneven stone and aren’t flat. Flat sandals, sneakers, and boat shoes are key!