Greek Island Day Trips from Athens

Athens has its nearest Greek islands in the Saronic Gulf, 40 to 90 minutes away by sea, and most of the tours we describe that state a length run about 10 hours. They come in two formats; one stays on a single island for long hours ashore, the other cruises between several islands in the same day. Travellers have left more than 1,166 reviews on the tours we list here, with an average rating of 4.6 out of 5. Of the trips shown here, the one with the most reviews is "Hydra Island: Full Day Trip from Athens with Swimming", with more than 554 reviews and a rating of 4.6 out of 5.

Guided day trip to a single island

In this format the day belongs to one island. A Hydra tour sails from Piraeus on a high-speed ferry, adds a one-hour guided walk of Hydra Town and leaves six full hours ashore; a Poros tour is guided all day by an archaeologist and gives 5.5 hours to explore and relax. A Spetses tour gives 5 hours of free time on the island, after a bus ride through the eastern Peloponnese mountains and a sea taxi crossing.

Small-group day trip by vehicle and ferry

Aegina gets a small-group tour that is shared, with an air-conditioned vehicle, a tour leader throughout and a ferry ride from Piraeus across the Saronic Gulf. Its stops include the Temple of Athena Aphaia and Aegina Town, then a swim from a sandy beach, over about 10 hours.

Boat day trip with hotel pick-up

One cruise offers hotel pick-up and drop-off in Athens, and what it covers is "Island hopping cruise of the Saronic Islands", one listing notes, plus lunch. Its highlights name Hydra, Poros and Aegina, so it is the three-island format with the transfer handled for you.

Multi-stop cruise with meals and open bar

Another cruise runs about 10 hours and calls at Agistri, Moni/Metopi and Aegina, with breakfast, lunch and unlimited drinks (open bar) on its inclusions list. Its listing is available in Arabic, Greek, English, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian and Turkish. On a three-island cruise, time ashore is typically 1 to 2 hours on each island, so the day is mostly about seeing each place in turn.

Hydra, Poros and Aegina each appear as a single-island day among the tours we describe, and all three appear together on one of the cruises. We list 16 day trips to the Greek islands from Athens in total.

Table data is indicative and comes from the GuruWalk catalogue. Each activity's current details, including availability, are the ones shown on its listing when you book.

One island or three: how to decide

The sums are plain. The single-island tours we describe leave about six hours on Hydra or 5.5 hours on Poros, while a three-island cruise adds 1.5 to 2 hours of sailing between islands and typically 1 to 2 hours ashore on each. Hydra offers a stone harbour and car-free streets, Poros pine trees and a historic clock tower, Aegina pistachios and the Temple of Aphaia; one island lets you swim or walk without watching the clock, three let you see Hydra, Poros and Aegina in a single day.

Departure times and ports

Most three-island cruises set off between 7:45 and 8:15 from ports such as Marina Kallitheas or Piraeus and are back around 19:30, with lunch and live entertainment on board. From Piraeus the sea crossing takes about 40 minutes to Aegina by hydrofoil and 1.5 to 2 hours to Hydra.

Ferry tickets and cancellation

Ferry cover differs by listing: one Aegina tour includes tickets "if you have booked the option with tickets included", it notes, while the Hydra tour lists a high-speed ferry from Piraeus as part of the day. Each of the tours we describe lists free cancellation up to 24 hours before the trip.