Practical Ιnformation
Working hours
The shops’ operating hours in Greece are designed to complement the country’s siesta tradition, which is widely observed. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays, most shops in rural areas are open from 09:00 to 15:00, while on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, they are open from 09:00 to 14:30 and then again from 17:30 to 20:30. On the other hand, stores in the city center are generally open daily from 09:00 to 21:00. With the exception of tourist destinations, shops are closed on Sundays.
The working hours of institutions and corporate enterprises are different:
Government offices
Winter Period (October – May)
Monday – Friday : 07:30 – 15:00
Summer Term (May – October)
Monday – Friday : 07:00-14:30
Banks
Monday – Friday : 08:30-14:00
Businesses
Monday – Friday : 08:00-17:00
Production Enterprises
Monday – Friday : 07:00-15:00
Supermarkets
Monday – Friday : 08:00-21:00
Saturday: 08:00-20:00
Shopping malls
Monday – Saturday: 09:00 – 20:00
Sunday : 11:00 – 19:00
Public Holidays
New Year’s Day: January 1
Epiphany: January 6 (Christ’s baptism in the Jordan River is celebrated)
“Clean” Monday: 48 days before Easter. It is the beginning of the fasting period.
Independence Day: March 25 (It is the same date as the announcement of the Virgin Mary by Gabriel that she will give birth to Jesus Christ and is celebrated as the “Double Feast”)
Easter: The first Sunday after the full moon following the spring equinox on March 21.
Labor Day : 1 May
Holy Spirit Festival: The Monday, 50 days after Easter.
Assumption of the Virgin Mary: August 15
“No!” Day: 28 October (commemorates the rejection of Italy’s 1940 ultimatum involving territorial claims.)
Christmas : 25 December
Transportation
City Transportation
The urban transportation system requires passengers to either scan a pre-paid ticket or purchase a ticket from the automatic ticket machines that are available on most buses. The machines only dispense tickets that cost €0.45, €0.90, or €1.80, and do not provide change, so the full ticket price must be inserted into the machine.
City Bus Ticket Fees:
Single Use Basic Ticket:
Regular : €0,90
Discount : €0.45
Two-Use 70-minute Ticket
Regular : €1,10
Discount : €0,55
Triple Use 90-minute Ticket
Regular : €1.30
Discount : €0,70
Four Re-use 120-minute Tickets
Regular : €1,80
Discount : €0,90
Unlimited Use Cards
The fees and methods for purchasing tickets apply to the metro and tram lines as well. Reading the ticket to the turnstiles at the station entrances is how you board the metro.
Taxis in Greece do not have a standard color scheme throughout the country. For example, in Athens, they are yellow, while in Thessaloniki, they are dark blue. Other cities, such as Kavala, use different colors.
Taxis in Greece can pick up additional passengers during the trip, but they must remain on the designated route. The fare for each additional passenger is calculated by subtracting the taximeter value when they board from the value when they disembark. However, each passenger is charged the opening fee separately, which is added to the fare. Therefore, taking a taxi in Greece is more cost-effective than in many other similar countries.
Taxi fares vary slightly between cities in Greece. Thessaloniki has an opening fee of €1.19 for the taximeter, a €3.16 hop-on-hop-off fee, a €0.68 inner-city fare, and a €1.19 per km extra-city and night tariff. Additionally, luggage is charged at €0.40 per 10 kg, and an exit fee of €1.07 is added to the opening fee when leaving ports and stations.
Train
Railway transportation is widely used in Greece, and the existing active railway network is 2,552 km long, which is sufficient for the mainland’s transportation needs. The railway network has different speed ranges: 18% is capable of speeds up to 160 km/h, 23% between 120 and 159 km/h, 40% from 80 to 119 km/h, and 19% is up to 79 km/h.
In addition to train stations, tickets for railway transportation in Greece can also be purchased online. The website (https://tickets.trainose.gr/dromologia/) offers an English option for convenience.
The most central railway line in Greece runs between Athens and Thessaloniki, the two largest cities in the country. The journey covers a distance of 500 km and takes approximately 4 hours and 20 minutes. A regular ticket for this journey costs €43.
Thessaloniki is the starting point for international train services to Skopje, Sofia, Belgrade, and Bucharest. Work is ongoing to resume the Istanbul-Thessaloniki line, which was active between 2005 and 2011.
Bus
In Greece, intercity road transportation is provided by KTEL (Bus Revenues Joint Fund), which operates separately and individually for each line. Since 2003, KTEL has been established as public limited companies. Private companies do not compete with KTEL in this sector, and this monopoly has been criticized by the Greek Federation of Tourism Enterprises in 2010, but the situation remains the same today.
The central bus terminal system has been implemented in Greece, replacing the previous practice of having stations at different points for each route. Currently, there are 62 KTEL companies operating with a fleet of 4,199 buses.
In addition to bus terminals, tickets for intercity road transportation in Greece can also be purchased online. Each province’s KTEL has a separate webpage that offers an English option for convenience. The website (https://ktelbus.com/en/category/ktel/) provides online ticketing services.
The most central bus line in Greece runs between the country’s two largest cities, Athens and Thessaloniki, covering a distance of 500 km. The journey takes approximately 6 hours, and a regular ticket costs €36.
Aeroplane
In addition to 41 state airports, 15 of which are international and 26 of which operate on domestic routes, there are 45 airports in total, including 4 airports belonging to municipalities.
International Airports:
-
- Athens Airport “El. Venizelos”
- Thessaloniki Airport “Macedonia”
- Rhodes Airport “Diagoras”
- Heraklion Airport “N.Kazantzakis”
- Kerkyra Airport “Ioannis Kapodistrias”
- Kos Airport “Ippokratis”
- Alexandroupoli Airport “Dimokritos”
- Mytilini Airport “Od.Elytis”
- Limnos Airport “Ifestos”
- Chania Airport “I. Daskalogiannis”
- Kefalonia Airport
- Zakynthos Airport “D.Solomos”
- Samos Airport “Aristarchos of Samos”
- Kavala Airport “M.Alexandros”
- Kalamata Airport “Captain Vassilis Constantakopoulos”
Athens Airport
Located 33 km northeast of Athens, the Athens Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport is one of the top 25 airports in Europe and serves as the main hub connecting Greece with the rest of the world. It has convenient connections to the city center and the port of Piraeus through the Metro, Suburban Railroad, and buses. The airport is directly connected to most European countries and the Greek islands by two major airlines, Olympic Airways and Aegean Airlines. There are 172 destinations, both domestic and international, with direct flights available.
Thessaloniki Airport
Thessaloniki International Airport Macedonia connects Thessaloniki with direct flights to about 38 countries and more than 60 cities abroad, as well as 35 cities and Greek islands (direct flights and transit).
Countries with a direct flight connection with Thessaloniki:
-
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- France
- Germany
- Georgia
- Denmark
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- United Arab Emirates
- Spain
- Israel
- Italy
- Qatar
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Malta
- Morocco
- Moldova
- Holland
- Hungary
- Ukraine
- Poland
- Romania
- Russia
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Sweden
- Turkey
- Czech Republic
Boat
With hundreds of islands, Greece has more than 140 passenger and commercial ports, 16 of which are international. The port of Piraeus is one of the busiest ports in Europe and the country’s main commercial port, followed by the ports of Thessaloniki, Patras and Igoumenitsa.
Piraeus Port : https://www.olp.gr/el/
Thessaloniki Port : https://www.thpa.gr/index.php/el/
Patras Port : https://www.patrasport.gr/
Port of Igoumenitsa : https://olig.gr/
For Ferry / Ship tickets: https://www.ferries.gr/booking/
Social life
You can find practical information on social life in Greece in the tab Greece -> Living in Greece -> Cost of Living.
