Greek Travel Tips

- People drive on the shoulders - usually the slower folks will slide over to let others pass.

- There is much less personal space, people will stand very close.

- The locals are very aggresive and will cut in line if they can see you are tourists, to survive you will have to "play their game" and be aggresive in return.

- Many Greeks like to think they speak good English, but their English may not be accurate, try to get more than one interpretation.

- In the more touristy areas the restaurants will act like used car sales men in the States and try to woo you into their establishment. Take time to look at the menu and see if there are any locals. Be choosey. (One guy offered us free wine, free dessert and 10% off!)

- If you plan to visit any of the Greek Islands, be sure that your bags can be carried easily. Preferrably carry on sized. There are lots of uneven, crooked steps and it's impossible to roll your bag along.

- Buying bottled water in a local food market will save you a ton of money. We bought six packs and then refilled as we could.

- You will likely find that you drink a lot of water. It is nice to bring along the new mix ins that are in the market - Kool-Aide, Crystal Light etc. to spice the free water up a bit. This is also an cheap and easy way for a non-coffee drinker to get caffine.

- If you take lemon in your tea, bring some powdered lemon packets along.

- Sugar is all that is available so if you can't live without the pink or yellow packets bring your own.

- In most places "filtered coffee" is the equivelant of American brewed coffee. "nescafe" is the equivelant of instant coffee.

- Bread is rarely free - it's usually about 1 euro per person. They won't tell you this, don't be afraid to turn it down when they bring it.

- You pay a lot more to sit down and eat vs. "take away"

- When a table is ordering, be sure to talk one at a time. If several people echo that you want an order of hummus that you mean to share, the server will likely bring an order for everyone that spoke up.

- Coffee to go is very rare.

- Paying in cash at hotels/hostels may get you a discount - but you have to ask.

- Pharmacies in Greece are old fashioned and the people who work there can usually assist with some medical advice.

- Most medical supplies are ONLY available in pharmacies, unlike in the States where you can find bandaids in the supermarket.

- Greek medical careis free but hospitals are sketchy.

- Greek perscriptions are reusable and the medicine is cheaper than most insurance deductables.

- If you're on a budget and flexible, you don't need to book hotels in advance, you can just walk in.

- Many places "include" breakfast but it's usually lame and you can decline it and receive a discount.

- Explore supermarkets for picnic foods and fresh fruits and veggies. Especially if your hotel has a good place to sit and eat.

- Always ask what ammeneties are available. Many places offer things that aren't advertised. Like if you ask, they have a hair drier even though it isn't in the room. Also explore the hotel for things.

- Being polite to locals and trying even a little of their language will get you REALLY far. I frequently would ask if someone some English "milate anglik?" and the would say no "ochi" so I would proceed in broken Greek to ask a question. 9 out of 10 times they would switch to quite excellent English...you just have to make the effort.

- Make friends with locals, they often have great tips on restaurants etc.

- Most hotels will hold your bags for ou.

- A lot of places don't have washclothes or shower curtains

- Unlike the States the hotels don't typically provide shampoo, conditioner etc....

- A pillow case is a VERY useful thing to pack, can be used on extra pillow, to sit on etc.

- Things to find/buy early on or bring with you if you can: multiple sizes of ziplocks, wine opener, sharp knife, bandaids, sewing kit, alcohol swabs, rubber band, safety pin, lip balm with SPF

- We LOVE tripadvisor.com

- Rick Steves has GREAT tips for Greece as well as a packing list

- We copied the pages from guide books that pertained to places we were visitng rather than take the whole guide book, this was great because we could take only the applicable pages with us each day.