Posts by NinjaPenguin

I’d book in advance, especially for mid-July and early August, because that’s really when everyone’s crossing. You *can* sometimes find a better price on the spot, but you also risk waiting a long time or not getting a convenient schedule. For Tétouan, check Algeciras-Ceuta or Tarifa-Tangier Ville depending on what works best for you. You can compare here and also check directly with Balearia/FRS. Personally, I’d pay a little extra for peace of mind, especially with a car.

Hey 😊 For a 3-week van trip, I’d keep it to a simple loop to avoid too many kilometers. Coming in from the south, I’d head to Bulgaria first—Melnik, Rila, Plovdiv, then Veliko Tarnovo, and maybe the coast toward Nessebar or Varna. After that, I’d head up to Romania: Brașov, Sibiu, Sighișoara, and a bit of Transylvania. Honestly, I wouldn’t add much more, or it’ll start feeling too much like a road trip. Since January 1, 2025, Romania and Bulgaria are fully in Schengen, so crossing between them by land is easier than before.

As for the ferry, yeah, it might be worth it if you want to skip a long drive. There’s no direct ferry from Italy to Bulgaria on the routes listed by Ferry Hopper, but Bari connects to Igoumenitsa in Greece and Durrës in Albania. The Igoumenitsa-Bari route runs year-round with 1–2 crossings per day, taking around 8h30. Bari-Durrës is also year-round, with daily departures and a trip of about 8h. With a van, I think the ferry’s really only worth it if you’re already near southern Italy or want to cut down on driving fatigue. To plan the route a bit, I found this, this, and this helpful.

Hey Clara :) , for a first solo trip on a small budget, I’d lean toward either Spain or Naxos or Crete. Naxos seems great for starting out because you can do beaches, hikes, little villages, and meet people pretty easily without it being too hard to organize. Crete is awesome too if you want more hiking and a slightly more varied trip, but it’s bigger so a little less simple for a first time. To get an idea, I’d check out here, here, or here.

If I were you, I’d start with the big classics of Rhodes itself: the Old Town of Rhodes, Lindos with its acropolis, then a more nature-focused day at the Butterfly Valley. These are the most popular visits and they strike a great balance between culture and beautiful landscapes. For the surrounding islands, Symi is definitely the most obvious and prettiest day trip, and Halki is a good option too if you want something quieter. As for the weather starting May 18th, it seems like a really good time overall. When I was looking into all this, I used these pages to get an idea of the sights and ferry crossings: here and here, for example

Your itinerary is well thought out—very comprehensive without being overwhelming, though it does get a bit packed at times (especially the long trips like Enna/Agrigente/Trapani). We did something similar but with a car, and even then, the distances add up, so using public transport might get tiring faster. If you want to lighten the load a bit, Enna is the most "dispensable" logistically.

For organizing connections (especially to the Egadi Islands or adjusting certain routes), we checked out this site—it really helps visualize what’s doable. Otherwise, your plan is solid, and for the Baroque towns, you can also take a look here to compare Noto with other options.

Have a great trip—it’s going to be amazing! 🙂

Your itinerary is already packed honestly :) Maybe a few extra little ideas without overloading: In Naples, if you have time, the archaeological museum is really worth it (especially after Pompeii/Herculaneum, it complements things nicely). On the Amalfi Coast, Positano is nice even just for half a day, or Amalfi for the atmosphere and a relaxed stroll. We also took a few boat trips between the towns—super pleasant to avoid the roads and enjoy the views (we checked the options here). And keep at least one "off" day with no plans, just beach and restaurants—it’s a nice break in the middle of the trip :)

Hi :) Yeah, it’s pretty simple to get from Majorca to Menorca—no need to take a flight between the two. The most common way is by ferry, which leaves from Palma or Alcúdia and arrives in Mahón or Ciutadella.

Personally, when we organized a little island-hopping trip in the Balearics, we used Ferry Hopper to compare schedules and companies. It saves you from checking each site separately (like here).

There are several crossings per day, ranging from ~1h to 2h30 depending on the boat. If you want to save time, check out the fast ferries from Alcúdia—they’re usually the most convenient. Honestly, it’s super easy, and it’s definitely worth combining both islands

Hi! We did something very similar in Mallorca, and the coast that really stood out for a boat trip was the northwest coast toward the Serra de Tramuntana (near Sóller/Sa Calobra). The landscapes are much wilder—cliffs, super clear water—it’s quite different from the rest of the island. We also tried a half-day on the east side (near Cala d’Or), which was pretty but more "postcard-like" and busier. For renting a boat, we looked at several options, like Click&Boat, SamBoat, and GetMyBoat. Another thing we loved: you can also spend a day in Menorca by boat—it’s a completely different vibe, even quieter and wilder. To check routes and options between the islands, we used Ferry Hopper, here.

There are a few islands I have in mind that we visited as a family and the kids really loved. I remember they adored the beaches in Rhodes and Naxos (we went at different times). There are also some great blogs I used to find kid-friendly spots, like this one, here and here. Amorgos is beautiful but I agree, the beaches aren’t really suitable for kids... Hope this helps and have a great time! :)

I’ve taken it from Chios twice—you can find all the info here.

There’s so much to do, and I agree with Attila—it’s best to get around (and not stay in the same place). Will you have a way to get around? There are a few blogs I’d suggest reading to get a better idea, mainly these (here, here, here, and here)

In this case, I’d suggest visiting Crete.

Hey! Both are beautiful, for sure. Just know they’re different in size—Crete is *much* bigger than Menorca—so if you’re not planning to rent a car, I’d recommend Menorca. I actually visited Menorca when I was in Majorca, and both islands are really lovely. Crete is amazing too, of course, but since it’s so much larger, I think you really need your own wheels to get around.

Maybe check out these blogs for ideas—we used them and were happy with them: here and here

Hi! Last year we took the ferry from Toulon to Mallorca. Maybe from Mallorca you could take a ferry to Barcelona? Not sure if that’d interest you. One site we find pretty useful for ferries is Ferry Hopper (here’s the route Toulon-Mallorca as an example). Hope this helps! :)

Hi! Last year we went by bike from Genoa to Palermo—hope this helps or interests you. We found reliable info on ferry routes from Genoa here

I’ve only hiked on Amorgos so far (in the Cyclades), and it was a really beautiful experience for me (but keep in mind it’s hot and the sun is strong). My favorite spot was the hike up to the monastery—when you get there, the people are super welcoming and warm. They even offered us loukoumi and rakomelo, though it was off-season. This guide was pretty useful as a starting point for planning the trip.

I’ve heard Sifnos has the best hiking trails, though I haven’t been there yet!

My partner and I did something similar last year, but we also included trains and ferries. Not sure if you’d be into mixing in other transport or if you’d rather stick to biking as much as possible. Here’s what we did: we took the train from Lyon to Sète, then caught the boat from Sète to Tanger Med (we found some useful info on this ferry blog: ferryhopper). We had our bikes to get around, but we didn’t do the whole trip by bike.