Greece is an amazing destination for couples. Whether you are looking for a romantic island to spend some quality time together, want to want to enjoy honeymoon in Greece, want a destination wedding, or plan you wedding annivesary in Greece, there is no shortage of places to choose from. In fact, things may get a bit overwhelming.

But here’s where we can help!

We have decided this winter that we want to spend our fifth wedding anniversary in Greece, so I decided to turn my planning notes into something useful (this blog post). We will stay on Ios (which is one of the best places to get married in Greece), a destination which was not hard to choose because it has been on our radar for quite a while now.

Here are the steps we took to plan and book our trip.

Step 1: Timeframe

With many full-time employees having limited vacation time and all of us wanting to make the most of our free days, choosing the time to go can be quite tricky. And we always depend on flights, trains, buses, ferries…

Since this is a wedding anniversary trip, the only “rule” I set was to be on the island of our choice on the anniversary date. And we would be away for 10-14 days.

Step 2: The Destination

Since our anniversary is in late May, visiting one of the Cyclades is a great choice! The tourist season has not started yet (in late May) but the weather is amazing. What more do we want?

If you have no idea where you want to go, read about these destinations in Greece.

Step 3: The Transportation

How can you travel to Ios? By ferry, of course.

Ios is served by ferries from the other Cyclades, Crete, and the mainland. This means there are quite a few ways to reach the island by ferry.

Once you decided on a place, check how you can get there. If you opt for an island, then most likely the ferries will be the obvious choice. However, some islands are served by airports (Santorini, Mykonos, Crete, to name some of them).

This website offers excellent info on the airports and the possible connections. When it comes to ferries, I just use this link and check the connections (the same link can be used to book the ferries).

Step 4 Narrowing down flights and ferries

Armed with some ideas, I’ve used my favorite flight search engine: Kiwi (Although Skyscanner is is a great alternative)

I always use the “whole month” search so that I can see the best days to fly on.

We’d be flying out of Budapest to Athens and take the ferry to Ios.

Yes, the ferry is at 7 a.m. or 7:25 a.m. (depending on the day and company) but you can stay a night in Piraeus or Athens before heading out to the island. That’s what we did , too – stayed in Athens.

What I’ve done above to choose the possible options is called “flight hacking”. It does take quite a lot of experience to figure out how and where to break the trip, but spending time checking out the possible connections helps a lot. Start with the destination and narrow down how you can get there. Then look into what flights are available into the airport you need to fly into. Instead of choosing a connecting flight, break the trip up.

Step 5 Accommodation

Now that we have the dates for the transportation, we need to look into places to stay. We’ll be traveling directly to Budapest Airport (so we won’t stay overnight on the way to Athens), but we will need a place to stay in Athens for a few days and of course, the stay in Ios. On the way back, we’ll just need to stay a night in Athens as we are able to catch the train in Budapest to complete the last leg of the journey.

Booking.com is an excellent site to look for places to stay. The nice thing about this site is that it allows you to book whenever you want but pay at the accommodation. Just make sure “free cancellation” is ticked. Unfortunately, paying at the property is all but inexistent lately.

For our 5 nights in Ios, back in 2017, we have decided on Galini Pension, located close to Yialos Beach and beside the Port of Ios.

Looking at the prices now (n.a for May 2024), with the cheapest days to fly on 19 and 28, respectively, the same property offers a great value for money. Since suggest a longer stay in Athens, in this case, let’s look at May 22 to 26 for the stay in Ios. The same property has a great value for money.

I’ve also narrowed down the options for Piraeus and Athens. I’ve also used the same booking engine to look for options and, again, applied the same filters as above, and made sure to show private rooms only.

Booking is really simple. Just click on the accommodation of choice, then choose the room you want and follow the prompts on the screen. You’ll also be told when is the last day for free cancellation and when you’ll get charged.

Step 6: Booking transportation

Generally speaking, I do book the flights before the accommodation and not the other way around. But, if you choose “Free cancellation” when you book a place to stay, you can easily book that and the flights afterward.

As mentioned, I like Kiwi and Skyscanner. Once I chose the city I’d be flying out of and the dates, I can go ahead and book the flights. There is no difference in price when you click through from either sites’ results rather than go to the airline’s website on your own! That’s because either site will redirect you to the airline’s site anyway…

Let’s talk about my choice: RyanAir. I have never flown them before the trip to Athens in 2017 so I asked around. And did a lot of reading on their website. What do you need to remember? The conditions for online checking and how much your bag(s) should weight.

Yes, RyanAir is a low-cost carrier, and may I add, one with the worst reviews I’ve read. Having flown Blue Air, EasyJet, and Wizz Air before, I know what to expect from such an airline.

RyanAir’s site is not that hard to tackle, but I wouldn’t call it a pleasure to deal with, either. Just double check what you choose as extras. And right now (n.a. 2024), I’d probably go with the Regular fare.

When filling in the form, have your passport handy and make sure your name on the reservation matches your passport. Ryanair has this useful feature to add your name and details, as well as a companion, so you don’t need to scramble each time you book.

All we have to do is book the ferry to/from Ios. It is super easy via this link

Once you choose the ferries, you’ll need to add your name and passenger type. You can then choose whether to have the tickets shipped to you (for a fee) or you can pick them up in the port.

Generally speaking, unless you choose a fast ferry (orange in the above photo) or travel during the high season, you don’t need to book the ferries in advance.

Have fun on your trip in Greece! And if you need any help planning it, I am an email away! (or leave me a comment).

Note: This article was written originally as we were planning our 5th wedding anniversary in May 2017. Prices have been updated to reflect the current reality.
This article includes affiliate links and we may earn a commission if you book through them.