I have heard that Symi is supposed to be really nice and quite and I am thinking of going there myself.
Maybe somebody could confirm that it is still reeeally Greek.

I assume Kavos, Laganas & Malia are not your ideal destinations then!!
Most of the mainstream places have their unspoilt regions and villages.
Symi is fine but the town does suffer daily invasions from Rhodes. Take a look at the Pelion most of the tourists are Greek and its largely undeveloped. There are plenty of islands that are very Greek ,some of which are not easy to get to but just how rural or isolated do you want to be. The tour operator Greek Sun has some unusual islands but obviously there will be other tourists so not totally Greek.

I have actually been looking at the Chora Sfakia region in Crete, thought it looks lovely and not touristy atll, only about 250 visitors to village there at a time, just a hanful of hotels, no bars or nightclubs but also no package hols i think so would have to fly to Chania and get taxi or hire a car to get there, its lovely though not sure i want to travel so far south

Ha ha I guess you have more to say there

For this years holiday we were looking for somewhere uncommercialised and with an authentic Greek feel to it but travelling with a 7 year old it had to be fairly easy to get to! So we have decided to go to Messinia in the Peloponnese on mainland Greece. We have booked independantly and are staying in the village of Yialova near Pylos, it looks gorgeous, miles and miles of deserted unorganised beaches, stunning scenery and not a big hotel in sight!! Plus it's the Ionian sea which we love.
After booking I searched the web and could only find 3 quite expensive UK tour operators who go to this area, Filoxenia, Simply Travel & Sunvil and as they only have a handful of accommodation between them hopefully we shouldn't hear too many British voices!!
I can't wait now, I just hope it's as perfect as it sounds!

Diane

Sallybear if you're thinking of Crete, last year we went to Marathi beach on the Akrotiri Peninsular about 20 mins from Chania. It is a very small beach resort with 3 tavernas and very popular with the local Greeks! Direct Greece are the only UK tour operator to go there and they only have 2 lots of accommodation. Apart from our neighbours in the apartments we hardly heard any British voices the whole time we were there! The beach is fabulous, sheltered very safe (no dangerous currants! to worry about) and beautiful golden sand. We stayed in the Karpouzi apartments and the view across the bay to the White mountains was simply stunning!
We had a car included in the price and drove all around West Crete which is lovely especially up through the Topoli and Theriso gorges.
We will definitely go back but as it was so hot will wait until Manos the owner installs air conditioning!!

It really is worth looking at this website
http://www.directgreece.co.uk

Good luck
Diane

Sally - what Ouzo could'nt tell you about Greece and her islands isn't worth knowing - am I right lad!

You could try Naxos, paros, Poros, Amorgos, Alonisos, Karpathos, Symi, Spetse, Hydra, all lovely but some a bugger to get to. You could maybe try flying into Athens and catching a ferry out to somewhere obscure? Depends on what you want to pay, and how organised you wish to be.

Slightly more organised could be package to say Samos or Andros, some places on these islands still unspoilt by tourism - at the moment.
Heather

have a look at greeka .com
Rosie

Island of Paros not too touristy. DH and I were there one year ago exactly on our honeymoon, we were staying in Naussa. Most bar/restaurant staff can understand and speak some English. We spent more time watching boats going in and out of the harbour and fishermen mending nets than anything else. Also spent time sitting eating/drinking in various cafes/restaurants/bars in the village. If you do go to Naussa then I'd reccommend spending an evening sitting out the front of the Calypso bar or any bar in same row and watching the sun set.

IF YOU CAN BOOK EARLY ENOUGH, TRY SKALA BEACH ON THE ISLAND OF ANGISTRI WITH kOSMAR. ITS FAB

Looby loo

Please do not post with CAPS in the forum - thanks

Kath HT Admin

Looby loo , it looks nice but cant see it with Kosmar, i know they have dropped a few places this year due to changes in ferry schedules

True, we have had problems with Kosmar cancelling our Andros booking for this year due to ferry schedules, but it is pretty easy to reach Angistri under your own steam. Fly to Athens and take the ferry to Aegina, then on to Skala port. It sounds like a trek but it is well worth it.

Hi, I'm new.

I love Greece, there are lots of really Greek places and islands, one of my favourites is Sifnos, I don't know if any tour operators go there as I do it alone usually, other islands I can think of are: Folegandros, Antiparos, Paros, Ikaria, Kythnos, Kythira..... If you do a search for opertors to these islands a few UK ones come up.

Sallybear, there's only one problem with Chora Sfakion, for about 2 hours every afternoon, you get ferries galore and coaches and buses galore, full of all those who walked the Samarian Gorge, coming in on the ferry and then out on the bus! Apart from that it is a lovely peaceful resort. It's not too bad getting down there from Chania airport, about 2 hours all told unless my memory is becoming confused (possible!)

Loutro just a little further west of Chora is totally peaceful as there are no roads in or out. You get a boat or walk. Very Greek but it does get mobbed in August by Greeks on holiday (and I'm talking sardine filled here) so best not to go then.

The far west of Crete is still pretty much unspoiled and most resorts are within 2 hours of Chania. I would recommend Ravdoucha and Kefali.

True about the ferries coming into Hora Sfakion....but providing you stay out of the direct route between jetty-stepsup to car park - car park, you can ignore the hordes. Actually it's quite amusing to sit at the Lefka Ori or on your balcony with a beer watching the, hot, tired, ill equipped herds of wildebeest stampede off the ferry and up to their coaches!!

Hi
Try finikounda in the Peloponnese with kosmar we went last year and it was very Greek
Steve

Aghia Galini in Crete