What You Need to Before About Traveling to Greece Now

The intensity of the Greek debt crisis, along with clashes between protestors and police, have some travelers rethinking their plans for a Grecian getaway. An interviewed with True Greece's Christos Stergiou, one of our meticulously vetted top travel specialists of 2011, to find out what travelers need to know.

How are things in Greece now?
Christos Stergiou: In the last month or two, things have been very quiet in terms of strikes and protests. And when you look at it from the perspective of international media—blasting out protests and riots—it’s kind of a skewed image that one is getting. This is what always happens in Greece. When I was a kid, there were protests, and there were strikes. And all this happens in the very center of Athens. It’s an area of about ten blocks. Though the intensity was higher this year, people seem to get an image of fire in Athens. I think it’s a big misconception.
Have you seen an effect on travel reservations?
CS: We hosted as many people this extended summer season as we had hosted last year. Recently, we got all our feedback. I was very concerned that given the strikes, customer satisfaction would be hurting this year. We had our highest customer-service rating ever. So yes, there are strikes, and things are quite edgy. But we all know as Greeks not to go down to these ten blocks on the days when it happens.
Which area of Athens should travelers avoid?
CS: Overall, I would be cautious of the area in front of the Greek Parliament and the surrounding areas. If protests turn ugly, I would not go down there. But we do monitor the strikes. It’s not a social media thing, where people say, “in a half hour, let’s go down and destroy the square.” They are usually announced a day or so in advance.
So should people feel safe?
CS: Overall, I think people are extremely safe. They are no less safe in Greece than they would be in any other country in the world that does not have radical phenomenon. Greece does not have radical phenomenon. Some of our guests, during one of these days, were wandering around, took a wrong turn, and found themselves in the midst of tensions between police and protestors. They were clearly shocked, turned around, and said they had to get back to their hotel. Someone holding a rock stopped, gave them instructions very politely, said “Welcome to Greece, enjoy your stay,” then went back to fighting the police.
It’s very much like Occupy Wall Street. It’s like saying it’s not safe to go and have a walk in Central Park. There’s not going to be a coup d’état or anything like that. Greece has been a democracy for many years now, and a very strong one.
What about the Greek islands?
CS: If you’re on the Greek islands and not in Athens or a major city, you won’t know what’s going on in the rest of the country. If you’re vacationing on Mykonos or Santorini, people are cheerful. It’s sort of like a different country. Hotels are fully booked, restaurants are full. You have all the Greeks feeling depressed in Athens because of the financial instability. And you go to the islands, you wouldn’t know. It’s like being on an island in the Caribbean.
What if you’re a particularly paranoid person?
CS: Let’s say you have the ubersensitive person that really wants to be very safe. There are two ways to field this. One, don’t stop in Athens. If you don’t stop in Athens, you have zero risk; except for a strike when you are arriving or departing, which is as bad as your flight getting delayed or canceled. You can sleep at the airport, there’s a hotel right at the terminal, which is great for an airport hotel. But my life in the suburbs, life in the airport; things are very calm

Health

There are no immunization vaccines required for a trip to Greece if you are traveling from the USA or Canada. For all other countries, consult the Greek Embassy near you.

Visa

For US and Canadian citizens visiting Greece for a period less than three months, only a valid passport is required. For visits longer than three months consult the Greek Embassy near you. Greece has ratified the Schengen Agreement concerning the visa issues. The Schengen Agreement covers the following ten member-states of the European Union: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

All visitors to Greece who hold a tourist visa must have travel insurance. Visitors from EU countries must bring along their European Health Card (EHIC) or their county's Social Security service documents.