What to expect when traveling to Greece?

Nomads, today we will talk about Greece. We know you are already dreaming of your trip to Greece, Greek salads and gyros, but after living there for three months we got another vision of Greece. In fact, if at the beginning we believed to spend our summer in the Greek paradise, we quickly realized that it was not the case.

During our first weeks in Athens, we figured out that the city was divided in two realities: one was full tourists visiting the Parthenon, and the other was filled with the remains of society: drug addicts, migrants, refugees and Greeks victims of the crisis.

This huge society gap shocked us, and we are not exaggerating. Just close to our Airbnb, in Antoniadou Street, people were taking drugs 24 hours a day, every day. In addition to not being safe at all, nobody was caring about them, nobody was intervening. This made us really reconsidering the idea we had about Greece. If at the beginning, we were connecting Greece to a paradise on Earth, we started to see that it wasn’t like that. If you want to know what happened in Athens in the last years, this cultural guide is so accurate!

Keep on reading and discover how is local life in Greece: from the cost of an Airbnb or a gyros, to the travel tips, plan the perfect travel to Greece!

Accommodation – In Athens Airbnb and hotels are more than popular. Imagine that Athenians are making a real revolution about it: in fact, there are so many apartments rented to tourists at the double of the normal price, that Athenians can’t afford anymore to live in the center. Our apartment was in the African ghetto, 45 minutes by foot from the central area, and it was 800€ per month. OK, it was amazing, but definitely too expensive. If you shift on the coast, the price will be around 500€ per month. If you choose to live on the island, without counting Santorini and Mykonos, the prices will increase a lot: expect at least 50€ per night for two people. If you are traveling on a budget, you will be able to find better hotel deals in Crete or smaller islands. If you want to save 25$ on your booking, check out the amazing apartments in Travala! In any case, the prices change during the year. You will have cheaper prices in summer and lower during winter: if you can, why not organize your trip in Athens the cheapest time of the year?

Food – In Greece food is very cheap, like really cheap. We think food is one the things you can’t go wrong during your travel: we always ate great food in Greek restaurants, so you shouldn’t worry. While in Athens, we were enjoying Plateia Agiou Georgiou’s restaurants a lot! You must visit this square: not touristic at all and full of locals. We really advice you to leave your hotel in the central area and visit a real part of Athens. Οι Νοστιμιές της Μαίρης was definitely the local place for excellence: a real Greek canteen where a huge meal for two costs 15€. The ladies who run this taverna will make you feel like at home. You need to try it during your trip! Another very nice restaurant in the same square was Κυβέλη, with a more modern atmosphere. We definitely recommend you to try the dish of the day, simply amazing! When on the coast, picnics on the beach are the best option: with few euros you will get incredible Greek street food. On the islands, in the most famous Mykonos and Santorini as well as in smaller islands, food will be more expensive, so prepare yourself to pay at least 30€ for a meal for two.

Transportation – In Athens is very easy to move. We never took the metro or the bus, but we used a lot Taxi Beat, the local Uber. The app is really good, rides are cheap and drivers are always kind and speak English. That’s definitely the best way to move in Athens and visit the coast as well. You will be able to pay in cash or with a credit card. We never paid a ride more than 8/10€. If you want to reach the city center from the airport, we advise you to use the metro with the special 10€ ticket. Otherwise, if you want to save some money takes a taxi to the next metro stop and take the metro: you will pay your ticket 1€ instead of 10, and you will only have to add few euros for the cab ride. If you are traveling with a group of friends, that’s really a good plan. On the Athenian Riviera, we suggest you use the tram: it’s cheap, clean, it makes a lot of stops and rides are frequent. On the islands, we advise you to rent a car that will cost you something around 40€ per day, but in this way you will really be free to visit every corner of the island. We got this price renting the car in the small island of Kythnos, so most probably in Santorini or Mykonos it will be more expensive. To reach the islands the only possibility you have from Athens is the ferry: if you want to know how to book ferries in Greece avoiding scams, give a look at our article!