10 day Greece trip at end Nov early Dec

socrates

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Thinking of planing a 10 day trip to Greece at end Nov early Dec. Never been there before and thinking of spending my time in Athens, Delphi, Olimpia etc. Interested in the historical and cultural side and not keen to visit the famous Greek islands. I know that it is the 'low season' at that time and just concerned how the weather will be like. Checked from the net that it is the most rainy time of the year. Not sure if it is rain whole day type of rain or just showers. Is this is a good time to go?

Should I rent a car and drive around outside of athens? Easy to find parking and drive. Appreciate any advice and tips.

Thanks:)
 

Lloyds

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Rented a car around Nov last year and drove up all the way to Meteora and back down via Peloponnese. It was easy to find parking once I was out of Athen. Weather was groomy most of the time and some stretch of the road was foggy. But I think you will be able to manage if you have some experience driving overseas.

I say go for the car rental option as you will have greater freedom over your itinerary. Do also consider that public transport is limited outside of Athens and opening hours is shorter at that time of the year.

Have a great trip.

Sent from OnePlus ONEPLUS A5000 using GAGT
 
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socrates

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Thanks Lloyds for your advice. I do have experience driving overseas so should be able to drive in Greece.

Do you mind sharing your itinerary you did last year? Thanks.
 

mmchaisi

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Thinking of planing a 10 day trip to Greece at end Nov early Dec. Never been there before and thinking of spending my time in Athens, Delphi, Olimpia etc. Interested in the historical and cultural side and not keen to visit the famous Greek islands. I know that it is the 'low season' at that time and just concerned how the weather will be like. Checked from the net that it is the most rainy time of the year. Not sure if it is rain whole day type of rain or just showers. Is this is a good time to go?

Should I rent a car and drive around outside of athens? Easy to find parking and drive. Appreciate any advice and tips.

Thanks:)

Don't drive in Athens. Try to get airbnb near Syntagma Square. From airport you can take train or express bus to Syntagma and walk to airbnb which will be near Acropolis, Plaka etc all walking distance. Could be quite cool so bring rain jacket, Decathalon has good value.

You can to to Delphi, Meteora, Corinth, Naplio and few other places for day trip by train. Or you could get a car at the airport and drive straight to Delphi, and on to Meteora/Kalambaka. Easy motorway driving. A bit more fun driving on the Peloponese, through olive plantations, scenic mountain passes and gorges. Roads will be narrower though.

I did Delphi, Meteora, Thermopylae, Thessaloniki, Philippi, Vergina, Veria, Ioninna, Patras, Olympia, Pilos, Kalamata, Sparta, Corinth and back to Athens. Google maps worked great.
 

socrates

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Thanks mmchaisi. yes I do not plan to drive in Athens itself. Amazing you did Delphi, Meteora, Thermopylae, Thessaloniki, Philippi, Vergina, Veria, Ioninna, Patras, Olympia, Pilos, Kalamata, Sparta, Corinth and back to Athens. How many days was your trip?

I plan to start driving out of Athens the day I land and spend my last 3 days in Athens. Appreciate if you could share which car rental you used in Athens and where you rented and returned the car. Did you sign up for the collision protection?

Thanks. :)
 
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mmchaisi

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Thanks mmchaisi. yes I do not plan to drive in Athens itself. Amazing you did Delphi, Meteora, Thermopylae, Thessaloniki, Philippi, Vergina, Veria, Ioninna, Patras, Olympia, Pilos, Kalamata, Sparta, Corinth and back to Athens. How many days was your trip?

I plan to start driving out of Athens the day I land and spend my last 3 days in Athens. Appreciate if you could share which car rental you used in Athens and where you rented and returned the car. Did you sign up for the collision protection?

Thanks. :)

It was a 2 week road trip, and I rented from Autounion. They picked us up at the airport but it was a bit tricky finding the return station as they do not have an in-airport return site. Google maps ftw. I think we did get FDW and CDW for peace of mind. Took a basic cheap Nissan Micra which was a bit under powered but good enough for the two of us with luggage.

Love Greece, that was our third trip there and in fact going back there again next week with Scoot. It arrives in the morning and it’s about a two hour drive to Delphi I think, not too bad after the 11hr flight, which is what we did on that last trip. Visited the museum in the afternoon and did the Delphi hike the next morning.

oh, make sure you have your International Driving Permit before you go, required in Greece
 
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socrates

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Thanks mmchaisi. Where do you plan to go this time round?

The more I read about Greece the more interesting place it looks to be. Unfortunately just thinking how the weather will be like during the end of 24th Nov to 4 Dec will be like when I am there. A friend has suggested I should save it for a June trip when it will certainly be sunnier. Have you been there around the Nov/Dec period.

Thanks again and have a good/safe trip there.
 

mmchaisi

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This time we’re going from Athens to Thessaloniki, and then to Sofia, Belgrade and Zagreb by all by train. From Zagreb we’re hiring a car for a road trip to Bosnia, Montenegro and Croaria and fly back to Athens from Zagreb.

So just using Scoot to Athens as starting point but will spend a few days in Athens as we enjoy the city.

Our trips have been in Spring and Fall as it does get hot in Summer. With Scoot, it’s a relatively inexpensive trip to Europe especially if you can travel light.

Thanks mmchaisi. Where do you plan to go this time round?

The more I read about Greece the more interesting place it looks to be. Unfortunately just thinking how the weather will be like during the end of 24th Nov to 4 Dec will be like when I am there. A friend has suggested I should save it for a June trip when it will certainly be sunnier. Have you been there around the Nov/Dec period.

Thanks again and have a good/safe trip there.
 

socrates

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Wow that sounds like a trip I would like to do myself but looks like it would take quite a lot of planing. Hope you can share experience in the forum. BAck to greece , how do you find the costs of living to be like there, food, petrol for the car, entrance fees for attractions etc. Would like to have a rough idea how much Euro to change. Thanks again.

This time we’re going from Athens to Thessaloniki, and then to Sofia, Belgrade and Zagreb by all by train. From Zagreb we’re hiring a car for a road trip to Bosnia, Montenegro and Croaria and fly back to Athens from Zagreb.

So just using Scoot to Athens as starting point but will spend a few days in Athens as we enjoy the city.

Our trips have been in Spring and Fall as it does get hot in Summer. With Scoot, it’s a relatively inexpensive trip to Europe especially if you can travel light.
 

coolhead

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Thanks mmchaisi. yes I do not plan to drive in Athens itself. Amazing you did Delphi, Meteora, Thermopylae, Thessaloniki, Philippi, Vergina, Veria, Ioninna, Patras, Olympia, Pilos, Kalamata, Sparta, Corinth and back to Athens. How many days was your trip?

I plan to start driving out of Athens the day I land and spend my last 3 days in Athens. Appreciate if you could share which car rental you used in Athens and where you rented and returned the car. Did you sign up for the collision protection?

Thanks. :)
Have you planned what to do in Athens? I find 3days to be too long. I thought 2 full days was sufficient to see the acropolis and the peripherals though.
 

mmchaisi

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Wow that sounds like a trip I would like to do myself but looks like it would take quite a lot of planing. Hope you can share experience in the forum. BAck to greece , how do you find the costs of living to be like there, food, petrol for the car, entrance fees for attractions etc. Would like to have a rough idea how much Euro to change. Thanks again.

To be honest, we don't really look at the prices if we feel it's going to be a unique experience but I can't recall anything being too exorbitant. We love the food, souvlaki stalls are everywhere and good value as are Greek salads.

You can always get Euros from an ATM using your Singapore ATM card. DBS/POSB has a $5 charge I think so small withdrawals can be expensive. I have a no fee ATM card from an US bank which I use and the exchange rates are usually better than at the kiosks.

For planning we use seat61 a lot for train travel and tripadvisor especially the forums. Google maps is essential as is a dataplan to book accommodation on the fly and research.

Do a search on the Greece forums for winter and you'll get good advice on travelling there in December. Avoid the islands but Athens should be ok and less crowded. Note that it does snow in the mountains. Delphi is at the foot of Mt Parnassos where there is a ski resort.

Normally roads will be fine at lower elevations. Just check the weather reports before setting out from Athens.

After the road trip,it's a good idea to chill out in Athens for a couple of days soaking in the lifestyle and culture. airBnb is ideal for that as hotels in Athens are expensive.
 

socrates

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Thanks mmchaisi for the further information.

I am not going to the islands during this trip. My current plan is to land and then drive and stay at Nafplio 2 nights, Delphi 2 nights, Meteroa 2 nights, maybe somewhere in between Meteroa and Athens for 1 night to break the long journey back to Athens and back to Athens for the last 3 nights. Not so sure it is a viable plan, don't want to drive and then rush off from a place after 1 night and hope to use places like Nafplio to make day trips to other nearby places of interest. What do you think?

BTW when you book Scoot, do you skip the seat selection save $21 per person seat selection booking fee? Would they then allow you to choose 2 seats together when you check in at the airport? Scoot a lot of add on fees like pay by credit card etc etc.
 

mmchaisi

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Thanks mmchaisi for the further information.

I am not going to the islands during this trip. My current plan is to land and then drive and stay at Nafplio 2 nights, Delphi 2 nights, Meteroa 2 nights, maybe somewhere in between Meteroa and Athens for 1 night to break the long journey back to Athens and back to Athens for the last 3 nights. Not so sure it is a viable plan, don't want to drive and then rush off from a place after 1 night and hope to use places like Nafplio to make day trips to other nearby places of interest. What do you think?

BTW when you book Scoot, do you skip the seat selection save $21 per person seat selection booking fee? Would they then allow you to choose 2 seats together when you check in at the airport? Scoot a lot of add on fees like pay by credit card etc etc.

Re: Scoot. We took the seat selection. Yes the add ons do add my but at the end of the day, our flight costs $600 less than a regular airline flight. We didn't buy the meals but sneaked in some bakwa sandwiches. Nobody said anything and it was a 2.35 am flight so you don't really want to eat much. We paid using AXS and a debit card.

As regards your itinerary, it's a lot of driving but doable. The drive from Naplio to Delphi is 3.5 hours but in that area you can visit Mycenae and Corinth. The drive from Meteora to Athens is 4 hours and you can stop in Thermopylae, the Hot Gates where Leonidas and his 300 Spartans faced the Persians. There's a hot stream there and people actually go in for a soak. I recommend scanning the Greece forum in tripadvisor.
 

socrates

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Thanks again mmchaisi

Just tried and strangely the AXS option does not appear at the payment page while that option was available when I tried it yesterday.
 

mmchaisi

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Thanks again mmchaisi

Just tried and strangely the AXS option does not appear at the payment page while that option was available when I tried it yesterday.

I think you don't get the AXS option if the fare is a promotional fare.
 

darklighter

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Don't miss the islands man. It's where the best of Greece is at. I went to Santorini and Naxos on my own on Scoot back in May. You can skip the seat selection to save money, but don't skimp on comfort for such a long budget flight. I paid slightly more for the double seats at the back for more privacy
 

mmchaisi

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Just arrived Athens on Scoot. No problems with leg room and I’m 5’11”. For us, not worth taking the extra room seats. Dreamliner very comfortable. If you’re travelling as couple, select window and isle seats as we did and center seat will probably be empty, 95% full flight.

OP going in December, Santorini will be deserted and cold.

ICC sim card from Sin Lim works great. Using it in a TP Link 4G router.

Sending this as test message.

Don't miss the islands man. It's where the best of Greece is at. I went to Santorini and Naxos on my own on Scoot back in May. You can skip the seat selection to save money, but don't skimp on comfort for such a long budget flight. I paid slightly more for the double seats at the back for more privacy
 

socrates

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Thanks mmchaisi for postine even when you are on holiday. The AXS option is now back in the payment page. Strange why it seemed to disappear on Sunday. Now just thinking if I should select seats or take the risk and select when I check in. 95%, are the flights to Athens on Scoot always so full? Thanks for the advice on getting the ICC Sim card. Thought could only use on phone and not portable mifi. Have a good trip mmchaisi, post and share your trip if possible.

I will not be going Santorini and the islands due to the time of the year which I am going, will just stick to the mainland for this trip.
 

mmchaisi

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Well, if you’re travelling with companions and want to seat together, you should book as it’s probably going to be a full plane. On the other hand, It’s a 11 hour flight taking off at 2.30 am so it may not make a difference where you sit if you can crash out as soon as take off.

We went for seat reservation but not the extra legroom comfort seats.

On the SIM card, you have to activate it in a phone on arrival and then transfer to the router, and set the apn according to the instructions.

Thanks mmchaisi for postine even when you are on holiday. The AXS option is now back in the payment page. Strange why it seemed to disappear on Sunday. Now just thinking if I should select seats or take the risk and select when I check in. 95%, are the flights to Athens on Scoot always so full? Thanks for the advice on getting the ICC Sim card. Thought could only use on phone and not portable mifi. Have a good trip mmchaisi, post and share your trip if possible.

I will not be going Santorini and the islands due to the time of the year which I am going, will just stick to the mainland for this trip.
 

juxtaposition

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Omg Naxos.. best potatoes n is trueeee
Things r cheaper in Naxos and beaches so nice. I’m only Asian there.

Next I will try Crete.

Don't miss the islands man. It's where the best of Greece is at. I went to Santorini and Naxos on my own on Scoot back in May. You can skip the seat selection to save money, but don't skimp on comfort for such a long budget flight. I paid slightly more for the double seats at the back for more privacy
 
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