Greece vs Turkey

Greece: the island classics

Greece's beaches range from the long sandy stretches of Naxos, rated the best all-round value in the Cyclades, to Crete's pink sand at Elafonissi and the lagoon at Balos. Water off Naxos or Crete really is that transparent. The trade-off is crowds: Santorini and Mykonos are overwhelmed in July and August, and the meltemi wind can ground ferries for a day or more.

Best value

Naxos, with long sandy beaches

Best on Crete

Elafonissi and Balos

Turkey: the Turquoise Coast

Turkey's Mediterranean coast, which Turks call the Turquoise Coast, runs from Antalya west toward Fethiye and Ölüdeniz: pine-backed cliffs dropping into turquoise water, ancient ruins on the shoreline and a beach-resort infrastructure that undercuts the equivalent Greek or Italian coast on price. A Blue Voyage gulet cruise is a well-established way to see it from the water, and the sea stays swimmable from roughly May through October.

Best resort area

Ölüdeniz and Fethiye

Best from the water

Gulet Blue Voyage cruise

Greece: mid-priced, island-dependent

Greece is mid-priced by Western European standards, and the biggest lever on your budget is which islands you pick. Santorini and Mykonos run 40–60% above equivalent quality on Naxos, Paros, Crete or the mainland, while food, ferries and archaeological sites cost roughly the same wherever you are.

Turkey: one of the best-value countries

Turkey is one of the best-value countries covered on Atlas Guide right now, a direct consequence of the lira's sustained weakness against the dollar and euro. Five-star hotels cost a fraction of Western prices, and prices at museums and tours drift faster than elsewhere, so check current pricing before booking time-sensitive items such as a balloon flight.

Greece: the classical heartland

The Acropolis and Parthenon (€20 summer, €10 winter) are visible from most of Athens and impressive up close, and the Acropolis Museum and the Ancient Agora, where Socrates taught, are a short walk away. Beyond Athens, Mycenae's Lion Gate marks Agamemnon's Bronze Age kingdom, the theatre at Epidaurus carries a dropped coin's sound to the top row 60 metres up, Delphi was the ancient world's most important oracle, and Knossos on Crete is the restored Minoan palace.

Must-see

Acropolis and Parthenon, Athens

Day trip

Mycenae, Epidaurus and Nafplio (2 to 2.5 hours)

Turkey: layers of empires

Ephesus, near Selçuk, is one of the best-preserved Greco-Roman cities anywhere: its marble Curetes Way leads to the facade of the Library of Celsus and a restored amphitheatre that once seated 25,000. Pamukkale's travertines sit below the ruins of the Roman-Byzantine spa city of Hierapolis, near Çanakkale lies the UNESCO site of Troy, and Istanbul adds Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and Topkapı Palace within walking distance of each other.

Must-see

Ephesus and the Library of Celsus

Istanbul core

Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Topkapı Palace

Greece: caldera, cliffs and gorges

Santorini has the single most dramatic view in Greece, the caldera left by a Bronze Age volcanic eruption, best seen from Oia at sunrise before the cruise-ship crowds. Meteora has six active Greek Orthodox monasteries built onto sandstone pillars, best as an overnight in Kalambaka. For walkers, the Samaria Gorge on Crete is one of Europe's longest, and the Vikos Gorge in Epirus is among the deepest relative to its width.

Classic view

Oia caldera, Santorini

Strangest sight

Meteora monasteries

Turkey: balloons and travertine

Cappadocia's landscape of wind-eroded fairy chimneys, some hollowed into churches, homes and entire underground cities, is unlike anywhere else in the world, and sunrise hot air balloon flights over Göreme fly most mornings. Pamukkale is a hillside of white calcium travertine terraces filled with mineral-rich pools. Book balloons ahead and allow a spare morning, as flights are cancelled on windy days.

Signature sight

Cappadocia sunrise balloons

Natural wonder

Pamukkale travertine terraces

Greece: taverna plates and seafood

Greek food outside tourist-menu restaurants is built on olive oil, fresh vegetables, grilled meat and fish and simple preparation. Souvlaki and gyros cost €3.50–5, horiatiki is the real Greek salad with no lettuce, and fish at seaside tavernas is sold by the kilo, so confirm the price per kilo and the weight before it is cooked. Ouzo, tsipouro and Santorini's Assyrtiko wine round it out.

Street food

Souvlaki and gyros, €3.50–5

Sweet

Baklava and loukoumades

Turkey: meze, kebabs and breakfast

Turkish food varies by region, but fresh bread with every meal, a serious meze culture, grilled meat and superb pastries hold everywhere. A Turkish breakfast of cheeses, olives, tomatoes, honey, eggs and flatbread is widely considered one of the best in the world, döner from a busy stall costs $2–4, and Gaziantep is the acknowledged baklava capital. Eat where the queue is local, in a busy lokanta rather than a restaurant with photo menus.

Street food

Döner $2–4, simit from carts

Slow meal

Kahvaltı breakfast, meze and raki

Ferries, metro and a rental car on the mainland

Athens International (ATH) is the main gateway, and several islands also get direct seasonal flights from Europe. Ferries from Piraeus reach virtually every inhabited island: Piraeus to Aegina from about €9.50, Paros, Naxos or Mykonos about €33, and Santorini €40–70, with high-speed catamarans cutting hours off. The meltemi in July and August regularly grounds catamarans, so never book a tight ferry connection to a flight home. A rental car is useful on the mainland, the Peloponnese and Crete.