Greece Beyond Santorini: The Peloponnese and the Quieter Islands

Most first trips to Greece go to Santorini, and for good reason. But the country is much bigger than one caldera, and some of its best places are a short drive or boat ride from Athens. The Argolid, on the eastern Peloponnese, has the theater at Epidaurus, the citadel of Mycenae, the old capital at Nafplio and the car-free islands of Hydra and Spetses offshore. Further out in the Aegean, the western Cyclades have islands that feel a world away from the crowds. Here is how we would plan a trip around them, and how to do Santorini well if you still want it on the list. Our Greece page covers the whole country, and our Europe list has every hotel we use.

Amanzoe and Porto Heli

Amanzoe sits on a hilltop above Porto Heli, at the southern tip of the Argolid. It has 38 pavilions, each with its own pool, plus villas in the olive groves and a beach club a short drive below. The resort is between two and a half and three hours by car from Athens airport, or about 25 minutes by helicopter. It is seasonal, generally open from April to mid-November.

What makes Amanzoe work as a base is what is around it. Porto Heli and Ermioni are ten minutes away, Spetses is a short boat ride across the strait, and Hydra is an easy day on the water. Epidaurus, Nafplio and Mycenae are all within day-trip range by car. Four or five nights lets you split the time between the pool, the sea and the sites without rushing.

Nafplio, Mycenae and Epidaurus

Nafplio

Nafplio was the first capital of modern Greece, from 1827 to 1834, and its old town of stone lanes and neoclassical houses is one of the prettiest in the country. Above it is the Palamidi, a fortress the Venetians built after taking the city in 1685, and in the harbor is the small fort of the Bourtzi. Go for a long lunch and a walk, and climb to the Palamidi early in the day before the heat.

Mycenae

Mycenae was the seat of Agamemnon in Homer and one of the great centers of Bronze Age Greece, at its peak around 1350 BC. You enter through the Lion Gate, built around 1250 BC, and the Treasury of Atreus, the largest of the site's beehive tombs, is a short walk down the road. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with nearby Tiryns, and it sits about 11 km north of Argos. Go at opening time, because there is very little shade.

Epidaurus

The theater at Epidaurus was built in the late 4th century BC and seats around 13,000 to 14,000 people. Its acoustics are famous, and it is often called the finest ancient Greek theater to survive. It is part of a UNESCO site with the sanctuary of Asclepius. In summer it still hosts ancient drama as part of the Athens Epidaurus Festival. In 2026, performances in the main theater ran from 20 June to 29 August, mostly on Friday and Saturday nights. Seeing a play here at dusk is one of the best evenings in Greece, so check the program before you fix your dates.

Hydra and Spetses

Both islands are part of the Saronic group, and both are best seen by boat from Porto Heli.

• Hydra: cars and motorcycles are barred by law, and the only motor vehicles are rubbish trucks. People get around on foot, by donkey or by water taxi. The harbor town is stone mansions stacked around a horseshoe bay, and Leonard Cohen lived here in the 1950s and 1960s.
• Spetses: private cars are banned in town, so it is quiet and easy to walk. It was home to Laskarina Bouboulina, the naval heroine of the War of Independence, and the Poseidonion, built after 1899 by a tobacco magnate, is the grand old hotel on the waterfront. On the second weekend of September the Armata festival re-enacts an 1822 sea battle, ending with a ship set alight in the harbor.

Which Islands to Pair

For a week or ten days, we suggest the Argolid plus one island group, not three or four. If you want the Cyclades without the Santorini crowds, look west to Milos and Sifnos.

• Milos: a volcanic island with white rock coves, colored cliffs and the hilltop village of Plaka above the harbor. The Venus de Milo was found here in 1820. Flights from Athens take about 40 minutes, and ferries run from Piraeus.
• Sifnos: long known for its pottery and its cooking, and the home island of Nikolaos Tselementes, who wrote Greece's classic cookbook. The old cliff-top village of Kastro and the monastery of Chrysopigi on its rock are the two sights not to miss. It has no airport, so you arrive by ferry.

The two islands are close, with crossings between them of roughly 40 minutes to two hours, so three nights on each works well. From Milos you can continue to Santorini, about two and a half hours on the fastest boats.

Ferries or Private Boats

Greek ferries are reliable and frequent in summer, and on the faster boats you can cover a lot of ground. The trade-offs are fixed schedules, busy ports and seats indoors on the high-speed catamarans. For island-to-island legs, we usually book business class on the ferry and a driver at each end. For day trips from Porto Heli to Hydra and Spetses, a private boat is far better, since you set the timing, stop to swim, and skip the ferry crowds. In July and August the meltemi, the strong north wind of the Aegean summer, can make crossings rough and sometimes cancels sailings, so we leave a spare day at the end of any island stretch before a flight home.

Santorini, Done Well

Santorini is beautiful and it is busy. In 2023 the island received about 1.3 million cruise passengers, and since July 2025 Greece has charged a fee of €20 per cruise passenger landing in Santorini or Mykonos in peak season, partly to manage the numbers. A few things make a real difference:

• Stay in Oia, not on a day trip. Canaves Oia Suites is cut into the caldera cliff, with plunge pools facing the sunset, so you can watch from your own terrace rather than the crowd at the castle. It is for guests 13 and older, and there are a lot of steps.
• Walk the village early. Mornings and late evenings in Oia and Fira are far calmer than late afternoon.
• Walk the caldera path. The trail from Fira to Oia is about 10 km and takes around three hours, and it is much quieter than either town.
• Spend time inland. Pyrgos and Megalochori are quieter villages, and the island's wineries make a good afternoon.

Two or three nights is the right length. Canaves closes from November to April, and summer dates book months ahead.

Seasons and Closures

May, June, September and early October are the best months. The sea is warm or warming, the sites are cooler to walk, and the islands are calmer than in July and August. Many island and resort hotels close from about November to April, so a late-autumn trip needs careful checking. Athens works all year. For opening dates across our Greek and Mediterranean hotels, read Europe in the Shoulder Season, and if you want to add Italy, our guide to Italy's lakes and coasts covers the Amalfi Coast and Rome.

If you would like help planning a trip to the Peloponnese and the Greek islands, get in touch.