Expect Greece [and the rest of Mediterranean Europe] to look a lot like California (minus the Mojave desert) and Baja California, both in their rugged/rocky landscapes and in their vegetation.

What do you mean by clearer blue waters?

The shallower the water, the clearer it appears when you’re in it, and the more turquoise it appears from a distance. The deeper the water, the less clear and the deeper blue it appears.

The picture below sort of illustrates this point. This is a picture of a famous beach in Greece on the island of Zakynthos, called Shipwreck Beach (or Navagio, which is Greek for “shipwreck”):

A lot of the country’s beaches, especially most of the touristy ones, look like this because of the fine pebbles and light/blonde colored sand. But some beaches have different textures of sand (sometimes, thicker and different color pebbles might produce a greener tint in the shallower water) or different colors of fine sand. Volcanic Santoríni has some black-sand and red-sand beaches that are popular with tourists. And other beaches might have fine blonde-color sand, but limited shallowness once you get in the water. In many areas of the country, you can come across several different kinds of beaches within a couple miles of each other.

You’re not going to find a inferior quality of beaches in the Mediterranean than you would in the Carribean. The beaches in the Med are just as amazing. The difference between the Med and the Carribean is in the coastlines. Many parts of the Carribean and Florida have miles and miles of uninterrupted beach, when this is not the case in the Mediterranean. Again, the Med is like California: sandy beaches are frequently interrupted by rocky coastline, and the picture above illustrates this point too. IMO, this makes for a very picturesque setting.

Well, in June the water will be a bit cool, but a lot of people do go to the beach. It definitely won’t be packed like in July and August, but the beaches won’t be empty. Then again, the whole point of going in the water is to cool off on a hot summer day (or late spring/early summer day in your case).

No one will be able to name you all the country’s beaches, but amazing beaches can be found all over. IMO, you shouldn’t make this the primary factor in determining your itinerary. But here’s a list of places with amazing coastlines and beaches:

• Epirus region (northwest mainland)
• Halkidiki peninsula (trident-looking peninsula, near Thessaloníki)
• The Ionian Islands -all of them
• Certain Cycladic Islands are known for great beaches (like Milos), while others aren’t (like Syros).
• Ditto for the Dodecanese Islands, of which the two largest (Kos and Rhodes) have fantastic beaches. As well as [technically not Dodecanese, but close to the Dodecanese Islands] parts of Sámos and Ikaría
• Many parts of the Peloponnese region (southern mainland)
• Crete
• Sporádes Islands

Thanks for you help LTB! Keep on rocking