Greece Travel Guide
Everything you need to know before you go — from the Acropolis of Athens to the volcanic cliffs of Santorini.
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Overview
Greece is one of those destinations where the reputation, however large, turns out to be accurate. The Parthenon is as moving as you hoped. The Aegean is as blue as the photographs suggest. The food is as good as anyone who has eaten it in Greece will tell you. The light is specific and extraordinary and immediately recognisable once you have experienced it. Greece delivers. The country divides into two primary travel experiences that most itineraries combine. Mainland Greece — Athens, the Peloponnese, Delphi, Thessaloniki, Meteora — is where the ancient history is densest and most accessible. Island Greece — the Cyclades, the Dodecanese, the Ionian islands, Crete — is where the landscape, the beaches, and the particular quality of Greek summer life are at their most concentrated. Athens is consistently underestimated. The Acropolis is genuinely unmissable and worth visiting at opening time to experience it without crowds. The new Acropolis Museum is one of the finest archaeological museums built in the past thirty years. But Athens beyond the ancient sites — its neighbourhoods, its street food, its late-night restaurant culture — rewards the traveler who stays an extra day. The best time to visit is May through June and September through October. July and August are peak season — hot, busy, and most expensive, but when the islands are fully operational. October is arguably the best month for the islands: warm enough to swim, quiet enough to find a taverna table, and lit with a lower-angled light that is in some ways more beautiful than the summer glare.
Top Attractions
The Acropolis & Parthenon
Built between 447 and 432 BC under the direction of Pheidias during the golden age of Pericles, the Parthenon is the most important surviving building of classical antiquity. Visit at opening time (8am) on a weekday to avoid the worst crowds. Book tickets online in advance at the Hellenic Heritage e-ticketing portal — the standard adult ticket is €30 and includes the Acropolis slopes. All other ancient sites in Athens require separate individual tickets.
The Acropolis Museum
Opened in 2009 at the foot of the Acropolis hill, designed by architect Bernard Tschumi. The top floor — the Parthenon Gallery — displays the surviving sections of the Parthenon frieze in natural light, oriented in the same direction as their original position on the building. One of the finest archaeological museums built in the past thirty years.
Santorini Caldera & Oia
Santorini is the remnant of a volcanic eruption dated to approximately 1600 BC. The caldera it left behind is surrounded by cliffs up to 300 metres high on which the island's villages sit. Oia's whitewashed houses, blue-domed churches, and infinity pools above the caldera produce the defining images of the Greek islands. The sunset from Oia is among the most celebrated in the world — arrive at least 90 minutes early to secure a position on the castle ramparts.
Knossos, Crete
The Palace of Knossos is the best-preserved Bronze Age palace in the Aegean and the administrative centre of the Minoan civilisation — the first advanced civilisation in Europe. The palace complex covered 20,000 square metres and included running water, flush toilets, and a drainage system that would not be matched in Europe for over a thousand years.
Delphi
The pan-Hellenic sanctuary of Apollo sits on the slopes of Mount Parnassus at 570 metres with views down a valley of olive trees to the Gulf of Corinth. The archaeological site includes the Temple of Apollo, the theatre (seating 5,000), and the stadium at the top of the hill. The adjacent Delphi Museum houses the Bronze Charioteer (478 BC), one of the finest surviving bronzes from antiquity. The finest day trip from Athens.
Meteora
Four hours north of Athens, Meteora is a complex of six Eastern Orthodox monasteries built on top of natural rock pillars rising up to 400 metres from the plain of Thessaly. Founded in the 14th and 15th centuries by monks seeking solitude, the monasteries are reached today by steps cut into the rock. A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988 and one of the most otherworldly landscapes in Europe.
Local Culture & Cuisine
Greek social life is organised around the table more thoroughly than almost any other European culture. A meal in Greece is not an event with a beginning and an end — it is the evening. Greeks eat late (dinner rarely before 9pm), order slowly, share everything, and leave only when the conversation has run its natural course. Attempting to eat quickly in a traditional Greek taverna is practically difficult, because the kitchen operates on its own schedule. The food is built on olive oil, vegetables, legumes, cheese, grilled meat, and fresh fish. The Greek salad (horiatiki) — tomatoes, cucumber, olives, green pepper, red onion, and a slab of feta with olive oil and oregano — is one of the great summer dishes of the Mediterranean when made with the right ingredients. Tzatziki is the universal accompaniment to grilled meat. Grilled fish — sea bream, sea bass, red mullet — priced by weight at tavernas, is the pinnacle of simple Greek cooking. Greek coffee (ellinikós kafés) is brewed directly in a small copper pot and poured unfiltered into a small cup — similar to Turkish coffee, drunk slowly, leaving grounds to settle. Frappé — instant coffee shaken with cold water and ice — was invented in Greece in 1957 and remains the default cold coffee throughout the country. Greeks are warm, direct, and genuinely hospitable — the concept of philoxenia (love of strangers, the duty to welcome the guest) is ancient and still operative. Tipping is appreciated but modest — 10% in restaurants is generous; rounding up is sufficient in cafes and taxis.
Practical Information
- Visa
- Greece is a member of the Schengen Area. Citizens of the EU and many other nationalities enter visa-free for stays up to 90 days. ARTA confirms current requirements per passport at time of booking.
- Currency
- Euro (EUR). Greece is moderately priced by Western European standards — the islands are more expensive than the mainland, with Santorini and Mykonos at the premium end. Credit cards widely accepted in tourist areas; cash useful for small tavernas, village shops, and smaller island ferry tickets.
- Language
- Greek. English widely spoken in Athens, Santorini, Mykonos, and tourist areas throughout the islands.
- Getting Around
- Domestic flights between Athens and major islands (Santorini, Mykonos, Heraklion/Crete, Rhodes) are frequent — book early for best prices. Fast ferries from Piraeus to Santorini take approximately 5 hours; conventional ferries take 7–8 hours. Weather delays are possible on fast ferries in high Aegean winds. Athens metro connects the airport to Syntagma Square in 40 minutes. ARTA arranges all ferry and flight connections between islands.
- Best Time to Visit
- May–June and September–October. July–August for peak summer. October for the islands — warm enough to swim, dramatically quieter.
- Safety
- Greece is generally safe. Petty theft (pickpocketing) is a known issue in crowded tourist areas of Athens — the Acropolis, Monastiraki, and the metro. Standard precautions apply.
Suggested Itineraries
3-Day Itinerary
Day 1: Acropolis at opening time, Acropolis Museum afternoon, Monastiraki evening. Day 2: Ancient Agora, Temple of Hephaestus, Plaka neighbourhood, Syntagma Square. Day 3: National Archaeological Museum morning, Psyrri lunch, departure.
7-Day Itinerary
Day 1–2: Athens — Acropolis, Acropolis Museum, Ancient Agora, neighbourhoods. Day 3: Day trip to Delphi — sanctuary, museum, mountain scenery, return to Athens. Day 4: Fly or fast ferry to Santorini — arrive afternoon, Fira town, caldera sunset. Day 5: Santorini — Oia sunrise, Akrotiri Minoan site, caldera boat trip, wine tasting. Day 6: Ferry or fly to Mykonos — old town (Chora), Little Venice, beach afternoon. Day 7: Return to Athens from Mykonos. Departure from Athens International Airport.
Travel Tips
- The Acropolis is best visited at 8am when it opens. Book tickets online in advance at the Hellenic Heritage e-ticketing portal — €30 per adult, includes Acropolis slopes. All other sites require separate tickets.
- The Athens Combined Ticket has been discontinued — do not rely on it. Purchase individual tickets for each site online before your visit.
- Fast ferries to Santorini must be booked well in advance in July and August — they sell out. ARTA books these at itinerary stage.
- Santorini's Oia sunset: arrive at least 90 minutes early to secure a position on the castle ramparts.
- Inter-island ferry schedules change seasonally — always confirm departure times and ports before travel. ARTA handles all ferry logistics.
- Eat lunch rather than dinner at the best fish tavernas — a leisurely fish lunch is more relaxed and often less expensive than dinner.
- The National Archaeological Museum in Athens is undervisited relative to the Acropolis and contains some of the finest ancient Greek sculpture in existence — allow three hours.
- October is the best kept secret for Greek island travel — warm enough to swim, dramatically quieter than summer, and the light is extraordinary.
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