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Hi,

I'm looking into a trip between end of September and October to visit the Greek Islands. I heard the temperature is nice then - but it may not be hot enough to swim in the water?

Any suggestions on where to go/stay in Greece for those periods of time would be helpful.

Is 2 weeks (or 2 1/2 weeks) long enough to visit the greek islands, etc?

Thanks,
Lisa

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1

The sea water is actually at it's warmest in September because it has had all summer to warm up. In October it will start to cool off, but it will still be comfortable to swim in (especially for someone from Canada :-)).
How long is long enough ? I could easily spend two months or more... But two and a half weeks ain't too bad for a first visit. Just don't try to fit in too much; a rule of thumb many regulars on this board agree on is to stay at least 3 nights in one place to get a good feeling for the place.

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In response to #1

Yeah (due to work) i won't be able to spend maximum 3 weeks (even at that - might be pushing it). We haven't decided yet on the length - hoping for a little over 2 weeks. How's the weather in October on the islands? Is it easy to get around as well? Thanks: )

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3

Last October we spent 10 days in Western Crete. Weather was perfect, water warm, scenery great. We did some hiking in the mountains. Mid October it can get colder with rain… that's what the locals told us. Why not just stick to one island. Crete is fantastic. We hired a car and prices was really cheap compared to other med. countries.

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In response to #3

Hi,
I actually going bananas trying to figure out in what island I'll be going to around that time. Cyprus pulls me; I don't know why. But it seems to be very difficult to get there. Some airlines do go. Still....I have heard that Crete is a beautiful island. I want to go somewhere where I can see/feel authentic Greek life, but not to be part of a horde of tourists travelling en mass.

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5

End of September to beginning of October there won't be any horde of tourists anywhere in Greece. If you are planning to use ferries you should wait for a while to see which of them are running and with what schedules. Normally the schedules will get suspended about Sept 10th to shoulder season. Do not book non-refundable accommodations before you know how to travel between the islands. Use booking.com as they'll let you free cancellation some days prior.
Every bigger island, Crete, Naxos, Paros, Samos etc have local people living all year round.

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Thank you Akana for your information. You are right. Had not thought of it: that schedules change with the seasons. Also, my husband also likes to book non-refundable but I could see that that would not be advisable at this time. I'm leaning to visit Naxos at this moment. After seeing travel videos and reading and studying I get bug-eyed and confused. They all seem to be so beautiful, but I do like to imagine that I could find the local people and interact with them when I get there.
Thanks again,
Hortensia

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7

Thank you everyone! We finally decided on Ireland early sept.

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8

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