Which Greek island for a family holiday?

We went to Kos some years ago, staying on the quieter North East coast, and we enjoyed it; cycled up and down the coast, walked in the mountains and found some lovely little untouristy villages. It was extremely hot, even in late September though. It wasn't overdeveloped at that time, but there was a lot of building going on at the time, so it's probably changed now. I got the impression then that everything shuts down in October when they all went off and picked their olives!

Well that's it-done and booked.DD1 found a lovely place in Peurto Pollensa, just the sort of thing we like and then Monarch came on stream with cheap(er) flights so we paid a deposit this afternoon for 11 days end Aug/Sept NEXT YEAR!
Very exciting. And still have holiday in France THIS Aigust to look forward to.
We are so grateful that we are well enough to go AND that they want us to go with them too.
The 18 year old said this afternoon she loves us all going together-long may it last?
Thank you all for your suggestions of Greek islands.

I'm a bit late with this but we'vebeen to a few Greek Islands, my favourites are Corfu and Santorini. If it is of any help Newquay we've just come back from a Monarch holiday in Madeira - Monarch were very efficient.

The Greek Islands are beautiful but if you plan to travel to one by ferry be prepared for delays and cancellations due to high winds. We missed the first two days of a trip to Naxos because it was too windy for the ferry to set sail, but eventually left Piraeus when the wind dropped to force 8! I was really green by the time we arrived and never been so glad to be back on land.

Thanks Katyk-we've visited Santorini too but, funnily enough, wouldn't want to spend too long there, lovely though it is. Looking forward to visiting Corfu some time.
We have used Monarch often and have always been pleased, certainly with their flights.
Am a terrible sailor so any island that needs a ferry is out for me old goat
A neighbour, who can see DH is a very good gardener, has said to us that he ORDERS us to go to Madeira!

So are the Greek islands a good place to go in Winter please?

Not really (see oldgoat above). The larger ones such as Crete are reasonable but the smaller ones close down completely because ferries are unreliable/cancelled. I was once in Zakynthos in the last week in October as I left the hotel was packing up, moving all the potted plants etc. My flight had some of the holiday reps on it (apparently they are booked on the last flights to any UK airport just to get them home). The weather isn't awful, just a bit unpredictable although the Greeks think it is cold!

Newquay We stayed in Funchal in Madeira. Lovely bays, stunning views, lovely flowers etc and our hotel overlooked the Atlantic. However, I was surprised at how built up Funchal is, a bit of a concrete jungle until you get to the pretty seafront places. Anyway, back to the Greek Islands.....

Loved Madeira-great place for a winter holiday. I was there in November, rained a couple of days and some bits are windy, but warm enough to sunbathe and swim sometimes. Centre of Funchal is fascinating and the gardens are amazing.

What about Madeira after Christmas then trisher?
We're going to Jersey with some friends end Sept/Oct and have seen a local company doing a 3 day trip to Edinburgh Nov or Dec

It may have changed in the 30 years since I went with my children to Madeira. Although it's a lovely island, great for walking and gardens, it is not good for beaches. The only one we found was of black volcanic sand and not much fun for kids. The climate is a bit unpredictable but the temperatures fairly even over the course of the year. We were there over Easter and the weather was disappointing.

Anyone been to Paxos I've heard by someone who has gone there for a number of years it's really beautiful and not yet touched by tourism. He goes in June and it's really hot then.

It does depend where you are staying. I was just outside Funchal, great hotel, but built into the cliff and the wind howled on the balcony sometimes. I did a trip to the south coast that seemed to be much more sheltered and warmer. We had real storms and rain on a couple of days, they were quite spectacular. There was a beach on the South coast -think it might have been man-made. It will have changed so much annodomini not the least because of the tunnels that now enable transport all over the island. The tour guide told me EU money paid for the tunnels and they opened up some places where boats used to be the best way of getting to Funchal.

There was an article in the Telegraph the other day which might be useful to read regarding Greek islands

www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/family-holidays/the-best-family-friendly-islands-in-greece/