BootsnAll Travel Community

I'll be traveling (hopefully) to Kalamaki, Greece this June 2008. Leaving Detroit, Michigan and flying into Heraklion Airport (several layovers later I assume).

I'm a first time traveler to Greece and need all the suggestions/tips/warnings/advice that you've got!

I'm trying to find airfare that doesn't put me in the 'poorhouse' too. I'd like to arrive at Heraklion on June 21st and arrive back in Detroit on June 29th. Any suggestions?!

For a short trip, it's often better to bite the bullet on price. The best price I could find required 3 different tickets (and thus picking up your bags and checking in again at each stop), driving to Toronto and back, and an overnight in Athens on the way out, and London on the way back.

At $1450 (depending a bit on exchange rates), it was $400 cheaper than a more convenient, single ticket route that also takes about half the amount of time in transit. You could probably save another $100 by taking an overnight ferry from Athens instead of staying overnight.

Now, if you were going for a month, I'd be all for saving $400 and going the most inconvenient but cheap route. But you're going for a week, which means you're not going to have recovery time, and those hours in airports cut significantly into your holiday.

So the route that I found that I'd recommend is $1860, and goes Detroit-Paris (CDG)-Athens-Heraklion-Athens-New York (JFK)-Detroit, on Delta, Air France, Aegean, and Olympic.

Also, call a travel agent because they're sometimes able to find better deals than what's available online. If they don't, you're under no obligation to buy from them.

Wow.... Thanks for such a quick and informative reply! So, I should have bought the ticket I first saw back in December for $1,200, because now with gas and the US $ losing value I'm not gonna find a deal, eh?!

I saw the one cheaper flight, but didn't notice that it had me overnight in the airport....boy that would have been terrible to get that one.

So, I'll try a travel agent (I didn't know you could call them and not buy from them) and see what they have to say, but other than that, I'll just suck it up and pay.

Thanks so much!

quote:

I saw the one cheaper flight, but didn't notice that it had me overnight in the airport....boy that would have been terrible to get that one.

It's not terrible. I've spent nights in airports before, there's even a whole website dedicated to the practice. But, yeah, for a short trip it's a little different, since you don't want to be dead to the world for the first two days after you arrive.

And, of course, the best deals that I can find in a quick bit of internet searching aren't always representative of what's out there. However, yes, I've noticed that flight prices have gone up a lot this year, even measured in canadian dollars which haven't been hit nearly as hard as yours.

Since you haven't yet been to Greece, this site would answer some of the questions: Greece Travel Guide

June is high season so make sure to start booking. I was starting to look for accommodation in August and places are already booked!

A travel agent will help figuring out the flights but you can also do that by spending some time online. Just make sure to not fly during the weekend and choose mid-week: less crowded and little cheaper.

whatch out for the Kamakis on Kalamaki