On the eve of our one year wedding anniversary, I thought it was about time I shared our honeymoon itinerary! For the longest time both Nick and I knew we wanted to travel as far as we could for our honeymoon while we had the time off from work. The history of Croatia and the tranquil white and blue painted streets of Greece were calling our names.

Even a year later, we can still picture the purple cloud coastal sunsets of Santorini and taste the fresh Cacio e Pepe under the view of the Acropolis night sky. We will treasure these memories forever and love looking back at the photos we took! Here is a full itinerary from our honeymoon, hope it helps as you plan your next trip to these ancient cities and enchanting islands!

Why Greece + Croatia?

Travelers at heart, Nick and I booked a three-week-long honeymoon to Croatia and throughout Greece. We try to visit one new country a year as a couple and these bucket-list destinations had the ideal balance of romantic old city charm and breathtaking ocean views for us! We chose Croatia and Greece, because we had both never traveled to these countries and both had a desire to visit them! 

Travel Schedule

WEEK 1: We started our first week in Dubrovnik and spent our day’s hand and hand getting lost within its picturesque medieval limestone walls. After acclimating to the European time change & catching our breath after our 200 guest wedding, we were ready for adventure and headed to Athens for 5 days!

WEEK 2: Rich in culture, we loved staying in the heart of Athens with a view of the Acropolis from our balcony. Spending most days exploring by foot, Athens truly mesmerized us with its Greek pride and history. But the most impactful day in Athen was actually an excursion we booked outside of the city. Truly a bucket list item for us, we took a day trip to Meteora to see the monks that live in the sky. It still brings me to tears thinking about this honeymoon memory that imprinted on both of our hearts as a couple. You need to visit Meteora once in your life to see these mountain top monasteries! They will leave your soul in awe of their ability to live on a cliff overlooking the world, but never needing to be a part of it.

WEEK 3: Once we had our fill of history, my husband and I were ready to be romanced by the Greek islands! We spend our final 10 days in both Santorini and Mykonos. This is where we had the pleasure of meeting Konstantinos and capturing these breathtaking memories from our honeymoon to remember for decades to come!

 

What’s the best way to travel from Santorini to Mykonos? 🛳

The easiest way to travel between Greek Islands is by high-speed ferry! Sea Jets is a premium fleet of ships that comfortably transport people and their vehicles throughout the seas. We absolutely loved bringing our suitcases on board and enjoying lunch in our large reclining chairs during our 2.5 hour ferry from Santorini to Mykonos. It was really easy to book on their website a few weeks prior to travel, reserve a seat, and board with our ticket day-of. Sea Jets has 17 ships that transport guests throughout 33 Greek islands on the Aegean Sea! (Link to their website – here!)

We HIGHLY recommend them – Sea Jets is definitely the best way to island hop in Greece! 

Our Honeymoon Hotels

Croatia 🇭🇷

Dubrovnik Hotel: Rixos Premium Dubrovnik – Linked here

The Rixos Premium Dubrovnik was the most tranquil luxury property to start off our honeymoon vacation! We chose it for it’s close proximity to be able to walk into Old Town Dubrovnik, it’s world-renowned Turkish Bath House Spa on property, and for its incredible cliffside rooms. We spent our first 5 days relaxing by their expansive pool, diving into the crystal blue ocean on the side of the hotel, taking romantic strolls along the cobblestone streets of Dubrovnik, and getting “Sports Massages” at the Rixos Spa – which we HIGHLY recommend to relax those muscles after travel!

*To note: We will visit this property again & absolutely loved both the breakfast restaurant and Libertas Fish Restaurant on property! But as an honest heads up, we do not recommend the Umi Teppanyaki restaurant at the hotel as the experience is pricey and quite long.

Greece 🇬🇷

Athens Hotel: Coco-Mat Athens BC – Linked here

When traveling to an ancient city, it is hard to find hotel properties with new & modern amenities at times! We chose the Coco-Mat Athens BC for it’s central location, rooftop infinity pool with a view of the Acropolis, and for its modern designed hotel rooms. Nick and I had the best time staying at this property and found the location conveniently located near restaurants, shops, and historical landmarks!

Santorini Windmill Airbnb: El Viento Santorini Private Villa – Linked here

This 200 year old cliffside windmill has been in the same family since it was originally was built to ground flour for baking! The charm of this property begins with its story and ends with the breathtaking ocean views of the entire island of Santorini. The private & gated grounds include a secluded soaking pool, lit cave for moonlight dining, morning breakfast delivered from the local Greek bakery, modern bathroom and electricity amenities in the two floor windmill, and the dreamiest views in the world! This was the highlight property on our trip and we will forever treasure the memory of staying here.

Santorini Hotel: Katikies Santorini – Linked here

Nestled in the cliffside town of Oía on the island of Santorini are many famous white cave hotels. We loved staying at the Katikies Santorini premium hotel, because it had  3 exclusive ocean view pools, premium service, and the best access to the village of Oía with shops and restaurants right outside of our door.

*To note: When we were booking in Santorini, I know the big question is, “which town should we stay in?” If you are looking for a romantic, quiet, and picturesque vacation when visiting Santorini – then we recommend staying in the town of Oía and visiting the other villages like Fira by taxi. 

Mykonos Hotel: Alissachni Mykonos – Linked here

Mykonos is known as the party island of Greece! We were on our honeymoon so we were looking for a more romantic and private experience, with the ability to visit the party and leave when we were tired. We LOVED the boutique property of Alissachni in Mykonos, as each room had its own individual swimming pool for private sunbathing and nude night swims as a couple. *wink wink* This remote hotel isn’t the closest one to the party, but it’s easy to call taxis or rent scooters to get around the island! From this property, we highly recommend taking a walk around the new premium shopping village of Nammos – it was fun to dress up and window shop there away from tourist traps.

 

We loved all of our Honeymoon Hotels Below! – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

Most Memorable Experience?

One of the most memorable moments from our honeymoon was waking up in our own private windmill that we booked on Airbnb for 2 nights. (Our Windmill Linked here)  Located on the cliffs of Santorini, our two-floor 200-year-old windmill faced the inner ocean crater with views of tip to toe of the entire island. The pink cloudy sunset sky lulled us to sleep as we relished in the romantic views with a full glass of wine in hand. It felt like it was only us in the world & heaven was under our feet – here, in the country of Greece. 

🔑 Secret tip to booking: The nightly rate of Airbnb’s can be lower if you book to stay on Monday & Tuesday nights! This Airbnb was a splurge for us, but we were able to book it for 1 night a couple hundred dollars lower than it’s normal rate – because we visited during an off season and stayed on a Monday night!

Honeymoon Excursions

Dubrovnik: Game of Thrones Walking Tour // 3 hours // Via: Viator – Linked here

Athens: Private Guided Tour: Athens, Acropolis and Acropolis Museum // 5.5 hrs // Via: Get Your Guide App

Athens: Meteora Monasteries Tour from Athens // 12 hrs – Lunch not provided // Via: Get Your Guide App (car pick up at hotel) – Linked Here

Mykonos: Sunset Sailing Cruise with Swimming & Light Lunch // 4.5 hrs // Via: Get Your Guide App (car pick up at hotel)

 

Would you recommend booking a honeymoon photo session? If so, advice?

Yes, I would 100% recommend booking a honeymoon session when you travel. For us, we may never be able to visit Greece again, and what better way to frame our travels in our home than with professional photos of this dream destination. If you do book a session I would recommend only booking an hour and bringing 2 dresses/outfits. The benefit of booking a local photographer is they know the best locations & the best time to shoot for lighting, so you can make the most of your time. And if your partner isn’t convinced this is a good idea, tell them the shoot is a date activity that will be romantic. And if that doesn’t work bribe them with a special dinner after to make it worth their while, if you know what I mean. 

Photo Credit: Kostis Mouselimis

P.s. Big thank you to Style Me Pretty for featuring our Honeymoon on your site! I shared a bit of our chat here, but for the full article to help with planning a trip to Greece – Click Here!