Greece

Greece offers an extraordinary variety of landscapes to yachtmen. With some 9000 islands, only 134 inhabited, the main Greek attractions are to be discovered by yacht.
The greatest concentration of yachting activities is in the Athens-Piraeus area. Athens has several harbours available at Alimos, Aretsou, Flisvos, Glifada, Mandraki, Lavrion, Patras, Porto Carras and Zea. The Saronic Gulf and the Aegean are in immediate reach and therefore, these are the most popular cruising areas. Glifada and Zea marina are the best boarding places for crewed yachts.

Although these places are quite crowded, especially during the high season, there are still plenty of less frequented places dotted around the rim of the Aegean. Some of the more remote islands rarely see more than a handful of yachts.

Greeks take much care of keeping traditional Greece for future generations . !

The recent expansion in yachting has been accompanied by a parallel development in facilities, but fortunately none of the picturesque ports have been ruined by the construction of pontoons in centuries old harbours. In most islands yachts still either come stern-to the existing quay, if there is space, or stay at anchor.
Most marinas have been created inside newly built breakwaters or reclaimed land and they are on the mainland.

The Saronic Gulf:

Only a few miles away from Athens, you will find some beautiful islands like Aegina, Poros, Hydra, and Spetsai. These islands offer an easy and well protected area for a one or two-weeks itinerary.

Cyclades:

The Cyclades or Cycladic islands are worldwide known for their barren landscapes spotted with white little houses and mills. They lie in a circle around the island of Delos, the birthplace of Apollo. There are about 200 islands, 20 of them being larger and inhabited.
Visit the island of Amorgos, where the movie "Le grand bleu" was shoot and take the bus to visit the convent of "Panaglia Choroviotissa", offering a tremendous panoramic view.
If you wish to go to Santorini, it would be advisable to moor on the island of Ios with a well protected harbour and get the ferry to Santorini.

In summer, the prevailing wind is the Melthemi, who comes from the north. It should be noted that this wind generally blows between 5 and 7 Beauforts in July and August. But it lies down at the end of the day.

Ionian Sea:

The Ionian Islands are West of mainland Greece. They consist of seven main islands, including four majors: Corfu, Lefkas, Kephalonia, and Zakynthos.
The Ionian Sea is a increasingly popular crusing area with smooth and foreseeable winds.
Kephalonia boasts some very charming villages and ports: Fiscardo is one of those.
On the island of Zakynthos there are more plenty beaches to be discovered, sea turtles!)

The winds and the conditions of navigations in this area are good and fore-see-able.

The Sporades:

The Sporades lie on the East coast of central Greece. The most beautiful island would be the well known Skiathos. There are fine sandy beaches, lush forests and ancient ruins all over, making it a very attractive destination that is visited by few yachts only.

The Sporades are renowned for offering excellent snorkelling and scuba diving.

Dodecanese:

Dodecanese is a bright string of islands in the south East of the Aegean Sea, close to the Turkish coast. The airport of Rhodes and Kos are very well serviced by several charter airlines.

Greek traditions remain very strong in local villages and the smallest islands suffer from a slow decrease of their younger populations. But in high season, when migrants travel back home, the streets are noisy and the small beaches are irresistible. Sponge divers are still active nowadays.

Just as in the Cyclades, the main wind is the northern Meltemi, reaching forces of 6 to 8 Beaufort during the hot summer months.

The Peloponnese:

South to the Saronic islands, the Peloponnese is a splendid navigation area, only rarely cruised by. Winds blow with an average of 3 to 4 Beauforts. The mainland offers a lot of protection but the gusts coming from the mountains can be very surprising to those cruising very close to the shoreline. Tasteful fresh lobster around.

The crowds are also seasonal and it certainly pays to cruise Greece outside of the peak summer months, ideally around Easter, which is the main holiday in the Greek Orthodox calendar. The autumn months are just as attractive; both winds and weather are more pleasant than in the meltemi-swept months of high summer.