There are quite a lot of travel influencers who claim to give you all the information you need to travel to Greece. However, since they are not Greek, don’t know any Greeks nor Greek, and only visit the most touristic places in Greece, their guides often don’t really represent the true Greek experience.

One of the things I heard recently from multiple influencers, is that Greece is a very expensive country for travelers. This is not true, they made it expensive themselves. Staying in Santorini and Mykonos. Dining at the most expensive restaurants. Traveling first class on high-speed ferries. Or a trip on a Catamaran, including champagne and fancy bites. Of course, you are going to spend a lot of money!

However, choosing to plan the most expensive holiday in a country, does not mean the whole country is expensive. If Santorini prices were the example of costs all over Greece, there would be no more Greeks in the country. But let me show you something. Because if you are willing to explore Greece off the beaten track, you might be able to discover Greece, even on a small budget!

Expensive vs. cheap locations

The prices below are based on two people traveling in July 2022.

You can stay in Oia, the most famous village of Santorini for about 500 euros a night for a hotel that is reviewed with an 8.5. Or, you can stay on an island just above Santorini, Ios, paying just 80 euros for a room with a score of a 9.2. Getting to the famous island from here, only costs 10 euros and an hour of your time. Or 60 euros if you want to be quicker, but everything needs an expensive option right?

The same goes for Mykonos. The average price here is again around 500 euros, but just 10 euros and thirty minutes away by ferry, is the island of Tinos. Here, a normal room is not more than 70 euros during the high season.

In Chalkidiki, a beautiful region in the North of Greece. It is possible to rent a whole studio with 4 people at the sea, for not more than 50 euros. And with just 30 euros you will stay in the Greek mountains with two.

And all the prices above will be halved when traveling outside the summer season!

Are these the prices for an expensive country?

No. Greece is not expensive. The Greeks just want to earn money when there is an opportunity to do so. In Dutch we have a saying, “it is worth what a fool will give for it.” Meaning, that something is worth as much as the right person is willing to pay. This is exactly what is happening in Santorini and Mykonos. These islands got lucky. They got extremely popular, and so the Greeks raised their prices to get the most out of the tourism on these islands. But this doesn’t mean that you need a big salary to be able to travel around in other parts of Greece.

Greece is actually really affordable if you know where and when to go. I currently have around 500 euro’s to spend each month. Although I’m lucky to have zero costs on accommodation, these 500 euros do allow me to go out for dinner, take breakfast and coffee from a bakery, and even go out for drinks. I easily make it till the end of the month without having to constantly think about my budget, which I would have to do in many other European countries.