Weather in Greece in Oct half term

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Reptile Smile

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The missus stunned me the other day by suggesting we charter in Greece for the Oct half term. this won't be especially easy in that I would need to get my DSK ticket to do it. That's do-able in time, but I'd rather know a little more about the weather before I commit to the idea as if we can expect sideways rain for a week in miserable conditions and short days, I'd rather go camper-vanning... (Half term is the last weekend in October, FWIW).

Can anyone shed any light on this?

Also - my understanding is that with sufficient experience (which I have), Sunsail in Turkey only requires an ICC, whereas Gereece legally requires Day Skipper. Is this true? And if so, is it worth thinking about Turkey? Or not so much..?

Cheers all
 
We have done a few flotillas in Corfu October half term. The weather has always been great. Not always as much wind as you would like but the sun has always shone and the temp has been great. We have booked again for this year with Sailing holidays.
 
Most years the weather is fine, but it is on the cusp! Corfu is very popular in that week, but one advantage is there are lots of places to hole up if the weather goes bad on you.

An ICC is fine. Makes sense to book early as many of the more European orientated operators have closed up and the main market is Brit families. Sailing Holidays worth looking at for flotillas and bareboating or Bobs Yachts, but you have to arrange your own flights.
 
1. ICC, as said, is all you need.
2. "Short days"...well, you'll have less than 12 hours of sun-up any time after the autumn equinox. About 11hr 10min in mid-Oct (or the same as mid-March). Sea temperatures obviously good for bathing.
3. Weather: often benign and sunny, with comfortable temperatures, but a week or two of unsettled weather is a frequent autumn feature. This can take place any time after around mid-Sept.
Mind you, this is so far a very odd year in the eastern Med.
 
We've experienced some pretty windy weather in the Ionian in October. Out of a week, three days were Force 6 or so, which wouldn't bother us in our current boat, but was no fun for us total beginners (at the time) in the totally ill equipped flotilla boat we happened to be in. Big orange kapok life jackets, an enormous companionway hatch/sunroof that wouldn't stay closed, inadequate anchor dragging in the harbour etc.

We laugh about it now....
 
Corfu last October was lovely. We arrived there at the beginning of october and promptly "decommissioned" the boat (ie. took sails down, winterised engine, etc.) in preparation for the horrid weather we'd been told we'd be seeing. Queue a beautifully sunny and warm autumn, the weather was lovely (aside from the odd few days here and there) all the way 'til Christmas eve, when things turned wet and windy.

This season has been rather unusual. The normally prevailing NW winds haven't been steady, with quite a few southerlies kicking in, which bring not so pleasant weather.

The only issue with October is that many of the touristy places will be shutting down so you may find some places are ghost towns. Corfu is pretty good, and doesn't tend to go dead until the end of October. Don't know about other areas.

As for ticket, an ICC is more than enough for an average sized boat. Many companies won't even ask or check, as long as you show confidence.
 
macd said:
Odd weather. Late spring very unsettled, summer arrived late, lots of rain lately (and forecast). Current forecast for Wed/Thur is southerlies in the Aegean!
Click to expand...

Cheers, it's just I'm taking the The Wiff for 2 weeks (last one in sept, 1st one Oct) on a flotilla and I don't want to scare her in any way!

Should be fine then though, I'm hoping!
 
>Sunsail in Turkey only requires an ICC, whereas Gereece legally requires Day Skipper. Is this true?

An ICC is a global certificate so all countries will take it and the officials recognise what it is. Day skipper and upwards is also acceptable but if the official can't read what it says there may be a problem, hence why the ICC is popular.
 
Hi

Your information is close, Turkey require a national qualification, so an ICC or Day Skipper or IYT equivalent will do fine. Charter companies will ask for a copy before your charter as it now has to be supplied to the HarbourMaster's office when applying for the mandatory transit log.

The weather is on the cusp and it's a lottery what it will do. Generally there will be one gale of 2-3 days sometime in October, possible rain but mostly very nice warm UK summer like weather. Probably avoid Bodrum and North as it is much windier there as a norm. Sunsail no longer operate in Orhaniye,:) only in Turgetreis in the north and Gocek/Fethiye in the south

The flotillas generally fizzle out mid October but the bareboats run until early November when the bay restaurants close and the airlines stop flying. This is the best time to cruise the area!
 
macd said:
Odd weather. Late spring very unsettled, summer arrived late, lots of rain lately (and forecast). Current forecast for Wed/Thur is southerlies in the Aegean!
Click to expand...

We are in UK at present but I checked Poseidon yesterday and could barely believe what I was seeing. Force 3 or less almost all across the Cyclades and Dodecanese, with, as you say, southerlies coming along. Quite amazing, although July four years ago was also very quiet when my son was on the boat.
 
Most E Med rain falls in October and April. Periods of rain are short but the rainfall is intense.
I've quite frequently sailed in October - mainly the Ionian and places are uncrowded and winds highly workable and the sun pleasantly warm but not too hot.
I believe the situation is different in the Aegean, especially in the N.
I'd certainly go for it - but October half-term is a highly movable feast - for 3 of my grandchildren it's on totally different dates.
 
Just to clarify the qualification issue slightly. The RYA Day Skipper is a national qualification: if you hold one, the RYA will issue you an ICC with no further questions. If you don't have the Day Skipper ticket, you can still get an ICC by taking an assessment at an RYA school: they will give you a certificate that you send to the RYA who will then give you an ICC. Most overseas authorities will be puzzled by the Day Skipper certificate but very happy with the ICC as it repeats the required information in a number of different languages.
 
Returning back to Greece in late sept , we will be cruising until mid to late Nov before headed West to Malta so fingering cross we get a late summer , lately so far it been thunderstorm after thunderstorm in North of Croatia , weird weather for here .
But hey Ho there always to morrow as long as we don't get a direct hit as some of our follow cruisers did in Sicily .

www.bluewatersailorcroatia.webs.com
 
I agree with the weather information others have given.

Early October is usually lovely but it gets more unpredictable as the month progresses. We normally have strong winds in November. It has been very unusual weather this year though - right from January

You may find its warmer and less rainy in the Saronic than in the Ionian. If you want a flotilla there try Nautilus in Kalamaki or Greek Sails in Poros.

The new RYA Day Skipper cert has several languages on the back and a photograph. It's very widely accepted in Greece. Depending who you sail with you may have to supply a certificate or declaration of competence for your co-skipper.
 
We were in Turkey last year in October. During the second week in October we had the most spectacular storm. Luckily we'd tracked the weather and by the time the storm broke we were tucked away in Marmaris. I would have been very scared indeed if we'd been out in the storm or moored somewhere exposed. The rain was so heavy you couldn't see a thing. I'd guess a storm like that could easily put someone off ever sailing again. The area we sail in Turkey is very close to Rhodes and Simi.
 
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