Island Hopping in Greece with kids: a guide

There are over 200 more inhabited islands in Greece for your family to explore! We’ve compiled a list with some of the most family friendly Greek isles, as well as an itinerary to follow to hop around!

 

 

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But first, here’s a small guide to the Greek isles:

 

Greek Island Groups

Cyclades

Santorini, Mykonos, Paros, Antiparos, Naxos, Sifnos, Serifos, Milos, Andros, Tinos, Delos, Amorgos, Folegandros, Kythnos, Kea… So many islands here, all with the same characteristics: they are in the middle of the Aegean sea, where it can get seriously windy, so few trees can stand here. These islands are hence sand and rock, with the typical white-washed houses perched in hills creating a unique scenery.

Sporades

Just above the Cyclades, those ones are also in the Aegean Sea, but there aren’t as many. Skyros, Skiathos, Skopelos, Alonnisos. That’s it! All lush, small, with picture perfect villages and sandy beaches. It doesn’t get as windy here (apart from Skyros) and the forests abound.

North Aegean

Lemnos, Lesvos, Ikaria, Samos, Thassos, Samothrace. All really unique.

Dodecanese

We’re still in the Aegean, and these 12 islands carry lots of history. Rhodes, Kos, Symi, Kalymnos, Kastelorizo, Αstypalaia, Nisyros, Telos, Kasos, Karpathos, Patmos, Leros.

Argosaronic Gulf

We’re still more or less in the Aegean, and most of these are easy to get to from Athens. Agkistri, Aegina, Hydra, Poros. Spetses is harder to get to, but one of my favorites.

Ionian Sea

The islands of the Ionian sea are harder to get to (car then ferry), but don’t see that many winds, plus they’re so green, you’ll get the shade you need. Corfu, Paxos, Kefalonia, Ithaki, Lefkada, Zante, Kythera. All amazing and lush.

 

 

How to hop

That’s not that easy with kids, so let’s narrow it down a bit. Or a lot.

1. You’ll probably land in Athens.
From here, you can catch a flight to Santorini, after of course you explore the capital where there’s much to do with kids.

2. On Santorini, you should stay at a baby/kid friendly hotel, to have all the comforts you need before and after exlporing. We recommend you rent a car, to move around easier. Read more about Santorini with kids.     

3. After you spend 2 days on Santorini, you can take the ferry to Tinos island for another 4 nights. It’s a typical cycladic island, with family friendly sandy beaches, great food, short distances, clinic etc. You can stay at a family home next to the beach, to unwind, wash clothes and move around less. From the villa, you can ask for a car rental to explore a bit, request a chef to enjoy some quality greek food and local wine.

4. Time to get back to Athens and enjoy the city center from your kid friendly hotel

 

At this point, you can 1. leave Greece, 2. keep exploring inland, 3. have just arrived or 4. continue north to either:
5. To the Ionian Sea! I can’t recommend Kefalonia and Paxos islands more. Kefalonia is large, green, with stunning coves and charming fish towns, ideal for 7 nights. Paxos is off the beaten path, synonym to relaxed luxury and ideal for small boat cruises, ideal for 4-9 days. You can get to Paxos by ferry from Igoumenitsa and rent a yacht or sailing boat to explore more, before heading to Kefalonia. On Paxos, you can stay at a lovely stone villa with history;

 

7. From Paxos, you can head to Corfu via ferry, stay in this stunning family resort for 3 nights before your flight back home.

 

And there it is! In just 7 steps, you’ve been to 3 islands you’ve never heard of, 1 famous island and one well-known the world over. You swam in azure waters, tasted amazing food, hopped on some picture perfect villages and stayed in amazing family villas and hotels!

 

 

 

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