Our top Greece travel tips

Greece really is the GOAT which, to those who haven’t discovered the handy acronym, stands for the Greatest Of All Time. And its architecture, stories and communities really do go back a long time. It has such a vast landscape of peaks and peninsulas, from the Pindos to the Pelopponese, as well as an array of archipelagos, it’s hard to know where to start. We can help you with that, but we also want to share our top Greece travel tips, so that you make the most of this Hellenic heaven, and not fall into tourist trap hell instead. Thus ensuring that you have a GOAT adventure holiday.

Tips for visiting Greece’s mainland

Most people’s expectations of Greece are influenced by movies or TV series, from Mamma Mia to Shirley Valentine, The Durrells dramas to The Lost Daughter. Of course, the islands are iconic idylls, but to overlook the mainland, is to miss out on a fine main course. This is a land of gods and goddesses after all. And the gods’ home of Mount Olympus, the country’s highest peak, is a natural high for many on a walking holiday in Greece. You can read more about it in this blog, as well as tales of summiting it here. Other mainland Greece walking holidays where Gaia, the goddess of the earth shares her generous gifts are the Peloponnese, Pelion or Pindos Mountains.

The magic of the Menalon Trail on the Peloponnese Peninsula.

Read our best Greece travel guides in Nat Geo

We were over the moon to have leading UK travel journalist, Duncan Craig, explore mainland Greece on two of our holidays for National Geographic Traveller magazine. Walking in both the Zagori and Thessaly regions, Duncan found landscapes that were free of crowds but packed with myths, monasteries and mountains:

Walking in Zagori

The Zagori region is a landscape of mountains, myths and gorges where,“it’ll likely just be you, your thoughts and the soporific whir of the cicadas.” – Duncan Craig, National Geographic Traveller, April 2025. Read the full article here.

Meteora Monasteries and the Pindos Mountains

Our eight day, walking tour in Vikos-Aoös National Park as well as Meteora, took Duncan to a landscape which he describes as “borderline miraculous.” Read his full article here.

Hold on tight. Zagori will rock your world.

Greece holiday tips for crowd and cruise control

Both the cruise ship and movie industries can take the blame for a lot of overtourism in Greece, with the islands of Skiathos and Skopelos still pulling in Mamma Mia fans. And cruise ships unloading their thousands in the likes of Santorini and Mykonos. We can, however, help steer you away from the problem areas on our walking and cycling holidays, and it’s part of our responsible tourism policy to do so. There is also an invaluable resource here, which shows the arrival and departure times of all cruise liners around the world, so you can time your visits to avoid the cruise crush.

Travel to the quieter Greek islands

Because, honestly, they’re all gorgeous. In addition, our cycling or hiking holidays allow you to travel out of the traditional peak Greek seasons. If you don’t know where to start,get out a map and immerse yourself in archipelagos. And then pick an island or two from there, or combine a few. To make it easier, we’ve written a bespoke blog, Heavenly and Hellenic: walking on the Greek islands. Although we also have some epic cycling holidays there too, such as on Rhodes, Evia, Kefalonia and Corfu.

Greek island-hopping tips

We have several holidays that combine a couple of the Greek islands, so that you can make the most of your archipelagic adventure. Naxos, for example, is the largest of the Cyclades at 2,572 km² where, as well as summiting Mount Zas, the island’s highest point at 1,004m, or walking on ancient trails through vineyards and olive groves, you hop over to Santorini. Here you can walk away from overtourism controversies up to Thira, the ancient capital of the island, swapping cruise crowds for colossal kalderimi.

Another Cycladic combo is Andros and Tinos. We pair these two beauties together on this walking holiday, because they are just an hour apart, and yet offer a perfect meze of maritime trails. We also combine the two main islands in the Saronic archipelago into one walking holiday. Poros is more forested, and Hydra more mountainous, with one of the most loved spots being Mount Eros, the highest point on the island at 588m. For more information, see our blog on the Greek Islands.

One other thing to remember while walking or hiking on the Greek islands, is that waste management is expensive and complex. So don’t bring packaging with you and, if in doubt, take your litter out.

Andros in the Cyclades archipelago is combined with neighbouring Tinos on our walking holiday.

Best travel tips for Greece’s long-distance trails

There are trails, and then there are Greek epic trails. The Corfu Trail is one of the most famous, a 200km walking adventure into the heart of the Ionian archipelago’s second largest island. Walk it in segments or do the whole thing in two weeks, reading its most famous resident’s work, Gerald Durrell, along the way.

The Menalon Trail in the Peloponnese is another great, covering 75km of ancient paths through the aptly named Arcadia region. Because, as well as being a place name, the word arcadia is defined as an image or idea of life in the countryside that is believed to be perfect. It covers the western Menalon massif and Mylaon Valley, traverses walnut and olive groves and leads you to ancient architecture such as Old Philosophou Monastery. For more information, see our Guide to the Peloponnese Peninsula.

As well as the island-hopping holiday mentioned above, Naxos has its own long-distance trail. The ancient Naxos Strada trail is a blissful 52km coast-to-coast hiking trail that you take on over ten days. As well as enjoying the contrasting landscapes of coast and mountainous hinterland, ancient sites and traditional villages, you get to take on Mount Zas.

The Naxos Strada Trail on the island of the same name is Cycladic on steroids.

Hydrating isn’t just for Hydra

Summer temperatures can go off the scale in Greece and so always ensure that you have plenty of water, using a hydration backpack carrier rather than just a bottle. With the climate crisis, it’s still pretty hot in other seasons too, so don’t assume that you need less water in winter. Also, drink plenty of water before you leave on your hike, as well as little and often during it. Wear suitable cooling clothing, nothing dark, a wide-brimmed hat, and take electrolytes. Carry a filtering water bottle so that you can use local streams to top up water supplies if necessary and never hike if there’s an extreme heat warning.

Greece safety travel tips on wildfires

The climate crisis has also whipped up many parts of the world with forest fires, and unfortunately Greece has been hit. The European Forest Fire Information System has excellent forest fire monitoring services. It’s also advised to put the ‘emergency alerts’ settings in place on your iPhone or Android. For iPhones, for example, go to Settings > Notifications and enable the Emergency Alerts options. This allows the Greek government’s Emergency Communication Service alerts to reach you in the case of an emergency.

Read up on mountain safety before you go

Sometimes people forget that Greece has some seriously remote peaks, and we love it all the more for it. However, it’s important, therefore, to be on the ball about walking responsibly. We have a detailed blog on mountain safety, because we believe that there’s always something to learn. From bear bells to helicopter rescue procedures, stay safe folks.

There is no shortage of mountains in Greece, such as here in Corfu, and knowing how to hike safely is crucial.

Sunscreen can make marine life scream

Between overfishing and marine pollution, the splendid waters of Greece’s coast are at risk. Although they are monitored by the EU as well as by the national parks umbrella, because Greece has two marine national parks: the National Marine Park of Alonnisos, Northern Sporades and Zakynthos. However, remember that all the cosmetics you use are washed off into the sea as you swim, and the same goes for toiletries or cleaning products at your accommodation. So we recommend doing your bit by wearing marine-friendly sunscreens, moisturisers and other smellies when swimming or showering. And spread the word on socials too.

Cats love Greece too

You will see a lot of feral cats and sometimes dogs on your travels in Greece. It’s best not to feed them, unless you get the advice of a local person or cat welfare group, and keep your distance in case they are diseased. A better approach is to support local welfare organisations such as Greek Animal Rescue and Friends of the Strays of Greece, both of which also offer adoption services.

Don’t judge Greece’s wine

Greek wine’s reputation has grown over the years, leaving behind its rough retsina reputation, and welcoming the country’s varied grape varieties. Moschofilero is flowing on our Peloponnese tours, malvasia and mandilaria thrive on Crete’s rugged terraces and assyrtiko rises like a phoenix out of the volcanic ashes on our Santorini walking holiday.

Turn Greece into a workation

Swap cycle to work schemes for a Cyclades to work scene, on our holiday that combines the lively, co-working vibe of Athens with an eco-escape to the small island of Kea. In Athens, you get to explore the city on our ‘hike and bite’ tour through not only some of the city’s ancient cultural highlights, but also its green and great gourmand spaces. You then take a short ferry journey to Kea, the Cycladic island that’s closest to the capital, for some superb hiking.

We hope that you’ve enjoyed our top Greece travel trips. If you’d like any more information about our Greek cycling tours or hiking holidays, please don’t hesitate to speak with one of our adventure specialists. We also have two epic blogs to befit an epic trek, Mount Olympus is the ultimate Greek odyssey, and Taking on the summit of Mount Olympus. Or you may also appreciate a bit of Greek geekiness in our blogs, Guide to the Zagori region, Eight best day hikes in Greece, Our guide to walking in Crete and Best time to go to Greece.