First of all. Greece does not do AI all that well.
It falls quite short of the AI's in Spain, Mexico etc.
Why go AI when you can eat in a different taverna every night at a very reasonable price?

There is plenty of affordable self catering or B&B accommodation on all of the islands and the main land that will cater for your needs.

But, if it is AI you want, then I would take a look at Rhodes.

Thanks for the reply.

We probably would be eating out most nights, but AI is very handy just to be able to chill out all day not carrying cash for the many drinks/lollies etc that we always get through (it all adds up!) We do prefer our main meal outside though, sampling the local cuisine.

I'll take a look at Rhodes; thank you.
Jayne

I would second Rhodes, I would suggest somewhere like Pefkos, with great beaches, rather than the "livelier" resorts like Faliraki. Be aware though, that the beaches on the same side of the island as Pefkos are sandy, those on the Ixia/Afandou side tend to be mainly sand & shingle, or pebbles.

Excellent, thank you Doonhamer. That's exactly what I needed, a good lead to start the search off. I'll get onto it tonight!
Jayne

AI in Pefkos. Is there one?

JayneCAFC wrote:

...but as a Greek virgin, I really need help deciding what island to go to.

We are a couple with a 3 year old, so would like a child friendly All Inclusive. In my head, I'm picturing the island being very pretty, good sandy beaches, nice walk along a promenade with a line of shops/restaurants and some nice historical sites to visit.

We like it to be fairly busy, with a good and buzzing vibe to it, but no longer need to be near the rowdy nightlife (that shipped has sailed...!)

So... after all that, does this place exist? If so, where is it?

Many thanks in advance for any help
Jayne :D

If you need a nice sandy beach carefully check out the beach near wherever you choose. Been to five or six different places In Greece and many beaches are a mix of rough sand and shingle.

I've stayed in Afandou on Rhodes and certainly wouldn't recommend the beach there. Ixia can be windy

Stayed in a great AI with superb food in Crete called the Louis Creta Princess but it was some years ago so you would need to check out current reviews, once again the beach was awful - didn't matter to us as the pool complex was fantastic and we were near Chania which is a great Greek town. The western end if Crete seemed to be better than the other end which was really built up, and I don't think would fit your criteria of pretty,

Stayed at Tigaki In Kos, the beach was good there, if you put Tigaki Beach into Google and click images it will bring up pictures. I'm sure there will be a few AI hotels there. Kos is a nice Island in the sense that it is small and contained so nowhere seems far from anywherelse if you are thinking if doing a few excursions.

Corfu was very pretty I think mainly due to the amount of rainfall the Ionian Islands get compared to other groups if Islands.

Once again where we were the beaches were shingle, didn't bother us as long as we had a sunbed and weren't lying directly on it. But would be an issue for anyone with little kids. So if you pick Corfu make sure you are near a resort with a sandy beach.

Doe

That's brilliant, Doe - thank you! Lots of very helpful information there. I'm taking it all on board for my search.
Jayne

Roda in Corfu had a sandy beach. It's a smallish resort, but with plenty of tavernas, and nice bars.

Alykes/Alykanas on Zante are both great family resorts with very good sandy beaches, especially the beach at Alykes which is very child friendly. You walk out into the sea for some 20/30 meters and the water is still only up to your knees. Not sure about AI there, but there are one or two hotels that are on the beach which do half board.

Kos, as mentioned above is wonderful small island, with many family resorts. I would imagine there may be one or two AI hotles, probably in Corfu town, which is a great place.

Lesvos is another nice island. You get a truly Greek feel there, as it is not so commersialised as most Greek islands, and it's one of the cheapest places to eat in the Tavernas. probably no AI there though

Inca, off the top of my head I can think of The Thalia, Pefkos Garden, The Ilyssion & The Sunrise, doing AI

I think in Kos Town there is the Blue Lagoon Resort and in Tingaki is the Astir Odysseus doing AI. I agree with Inca that Kos Town is a great place if you want a wander. Both islands are good wouldn't mind going back to Kos or Rhodes, but my next Island is going to be Santorini when I get the chance, think it's a bit expensive but supposed to be stunning, maybe more of an adult place than a family one.

doonhamer32 wrote:

Inca, off the top of my head I can think of The Thalia, Pefkos Garden, The Ilyssion & The Sunrise, doing AI

Well Boo to them then.

The Ilyssion: Stayed there once a few years ago on a HB basis. Got a very good deal so we said if the food is rubbish (which it was) then we can eat out every night at no loss (which we did) The food was awful. We only ate there once it was that bad. Dessert was squirty cream with a glacia cherry on top! pool filthy, room compact with a padlocked fridge.

The Thalia has quite a lot of bad reviews and the cheap price for the holiday tells its own story.

Don't know about the Sunrise.

As previously said, If I wanted AI, Greece is not the place I'd look at.

doe wrote:

I think in Kos Town there is the Blue Lagoon Resort and in Tingaki is the Astir Odysseus doing AI. I agree with Inca that Kos Town is a great place if you want a wander. Both islands are good wouldn't mind going back to Kos or Rhodes, but my next Island is going to be Santorini when I get the chance, think it's a bit expensive but supposed to be stunning, maybe more of an adult place than a family one.

Kos, coupled with Lesvos are my 2 most fave islands.

Been to Santorini 4 times. It's only expensive if you stay on the Caldera (Fira, Firasofani, Oia) otherwise the 2 beach resorts of Kamari and Perissa are more affordable. It does seem to cost that bit extra to get there, but once there the prices in the tavernas are no different to any other Greek island. This changes when you go to the Caldera where a Mythos can cost you 10 Euros!

Inca wrote:

As previously said, If I wanted AI, Greece is not the place I'd look at.

100% agreement from me -in all our visits to Greece we have only once gone full board -fortunately it was only for a week because the food was all but inedible -we lasted one evening meal and one "lunch" (previous night's food reheated ??) then ate out for the rest of the week -much better standard in every taverna we tried.
It was a classic case of once they have yoiu ................