I tried "search" for this question and Googled, too. Really couldn't find anything! Here goes: What are the weeks, or "window of time" typically on the calendar, when I can see the back hillside of Santorini in bloom with all of the wild daisies? And the poppies on the mainland?
Also: thinking about Greek Orthodox Easter in '09 (April 19th). But really CRAZY is it to get out an island for that, right? How many days out do you recommend a ferry ride out to the Cyclades? Best, Sonny.
Dear Sonny,
It does depend on how wet a winter it is and how warm a
spring it is. Do you know which specific "daisy"
you're talking about? For wildflowers in general, most places are at their best in March and April. Higher elevations will have later springs, so in the mountains, the best season is usually April-May.
I know from personal experience that the poppies on the north coast of Crete were just getting going in early May a couple of years ago, and looked like they would be better a week or so later. But again, it all depends on the rain.
I have been told by one of those horticulturally-inclined friends on Crete that April is the best month for wildflowers there. The Cyclades tend to be drier - Crete is big enough to make its own weather - so I would suspect in a normal year that early April or even late March would be your best bet. Not to be redundant, but of course,this is depending on the recent rainfall. Your '09 date might work well for you.
As for the ride to the islands, depending on the ferry schedule (and remember, some hydrofoils won't be running that early) I'd get to where you're going 3 days before you need to be there, and plan to leave about the same amount of time after. Crete does a lovely job of it, and it is certainly no hardship to spend a week or much more on Crete.
Hopefully, by 2009, the Olympic Airlines restructuring will be all sorted out. Otherwise, access to the islands may be even more challenging than usual.
Another reader request on Greek Poppies
By the way, Greece also has an unexpected fall wildflower season. Meadows can almost look like spring, and some dramatic plants like the sea squill send up their spires of flowers in great abundance. In the meadows, fall-blooming crocuses pop up through the dried grasses.
You might also enjoy getting Making a Garden on a Greek Hillside', the story of a very special garden made by a woman who truly loved Greece. It's organized month by month, so it gives a good idea of what blooms when, at least in her portion of the Peloponnese.
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