A Guide to the Ferries in Greece
When you think of Greece, what do you think of? The brilliant white buildings and incredible cliffside views, right? But how do you get to those brilliant buildings and incredible views? Well, you’ll either have to fly island to island on a tiny airplane, or catch a ferry! While flying can be a great option, if you’re planning on visiting more than a few islands, ferries are going to be your best bet!
Before we went to Greece we did tons of research on the ferry systems there. I wanted to know what ferries were the best, what food & drink options (if any) they had, and how to get to and from the ports. I’ve gathered all the info I found and paired it with our real life experience to give you this comprehensive “guide” on how to best use the ferry systems in Greece.
Download “Ferry Hopper”
This is absolutely where you should start! This app saved our lives while in Greece. You can book ferry tickets, see delays or changes in your ride, and check in!
If you book your ferries through the app they automatically upload to the app so you’ll be able to have all your tickets and itineraries organized in one place - a game changer for these types of trips!
Book your tickets early!
How early will depend on what season you’re traveling in. We were in Greece at the end of summer, so we booked our tickets about 3 weeks in advance and it seemed to be perfect! If you’re traveling in the middle of the summer, I would book them a little bit earlier and if you’ll be there any other time, you might have a bit more leeway.
To book them, open your Ferry Hopper App, enter your desired port of departure and arrival, and the app will do the rest!
Make sure to check how long the ferry ride will take - for us, there were a few times when one option would take 3 hours and the other 9 hours! That's a big difference, so make sure you pick what will best suit your needs.
Not All Ferries Are Created Equal
Unfortunately, this was something we learned the hard way. Through all my research, I have no idea how I missed that some of the ferries are huge cruise-like ships, while others are teeny-tiny speed boats that will knock you around and make you sea sick.
I do believe the small ships were faster, but in my opinion it wasn’t worth it. Especially if you’re with someone prone to motion sickness.
Here’s a chart with the amenities offered on the ferry lines we took. The bolded answers are meant to emphasize an answer! For better, or worse.
Basically, Power Jet sucks and Blue Star Delos was by far the nicest.
Check Where the Port Is Located
Checking where the ferry port is located is important for two reasons: on some islands there are multiple ports and sometimes the port is VERY far from town.
All I did was google where the port was and compare that to where my hotel or airbnb was located. It’s also important to check the best way to get to your hotel because there are multiple options - buses, transfers, taxis, walking, etc.
Here is an explanation of how we got to and from the ports that we went to:
Athens (Piraeus Port)
To get to this port, we took the metro from the town center. Tickets were less than $3.00 and it was super easy because the stop is called “Port '' and has a drawing of a ship. It's also the last stop on the metro - you can’t miss it. After you get off at the metro stop, there will be buses you need to walk to that will take you to your ferry, as they have multiple ferries docked at the same time. The buses were very close by and most of the people on the subway went there so we just followed the crowd.
Naxos (Naxos Port)
This port is directly in front of the town of Naxos. We walked from the port to town and got some dinner before walking to our hotel. This was BY FAR the easiest port to navigate to and from because it required zero effort. But if you are staying in a different town on the island of Naxos, there are plenty of taxis and rental car places nearby.
Mykonos (Mykonos “New” Port)
This port is very far from town, so walking is not a great option. We ended up taking a “water taxi” to the town. The water taxi station is right outside the port (there are signs for you to follow) and cost about $5 for round trip tickets. The ride was less than pleasant, as there was no A/C and it was a fairly bumpy ride. BUT it was the cheapest option and you gotta do what you gotta do. There were also buses that would take you to the city center and transfers ready to take groups.
Santorini (Thira Port)
This port is also very far from town with a road that would be borderline impossible to walk up because of how narrow, steep, and windy it is. Luckily, the bus system here is super easy to use. You can purchase bus tickets from the bus driver if you have cash (they do carry change). If you don’t have cash, you can purchase tickets online or use a nearby ATM. The bus ride was about 10 minutes and only had one stop that drops you right at the city center.
Crete (Heraklion)
This port is about a 15 min walk from the center of Heraklion, so walking is a great option! There are also taxis right outside the port if you’d rather not walk though. We stayed in the town of Chania which was a 2 hour drive from the port. We walked to a nearby car rental place and rented a car to drive there.
Other Helpful Tips
The Ferry Hopper app lets you check in online and you absolutely should. Finding the booth for your specific ferry company can be difficult at the port and sometimes they charge you a $5 fee for printing your tickets.
Check the arrival status of your ferry before you head to the port. There were a few times when our ferry was a few minutes late and once when it was 50 minutes.
The ferries are a great time to sit, relax, and enjoy the views, but however you decide to get to and from the islands of Greece, you are bound to have an incredible time!