How Much Does a Trip to Greece Cost?
Ten days in Greece costs most travelers $1,900 to $3,400 per person from the United States, flights included. Backpackers island-hopping on ferries and eating at tavernas manage $1,300. Spend four of those nights in Santorini in August and the same trip costs $5,000.
Greece has the widest internal price range of any Mediterranean country. Two islands three hours apart can differ by a factor of three for the same room, the same meal, and the same view. Which islands you pick matters more than anything else you decide.
Prices are in euros, roughly €1 to $1.08.
Daily cost at three budget levels
| Backpacker | Mid-range | Comfortable | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation | €28 | €110 | €240 |
| Food | €22 | €50 | €95 |
| Local transport | €5 | €12 | €30 |
| Activities | €8 | €25 | €45 |
| Daily total | €63 ($68) | €197 ($213) | €410 ($443) |
Ferries sit outside this. Budget €80–200 across a ten-day island trip.
Flights
Round trip from the US east coast to Athens runs $600 to $1,000 in shoulder season, $950 to $1,500 in July and August. From the west coast add $200–250. From the UK and northern Europe, budget carriers reach Athens and the larger islands for £70 to £220 return.
Direct summer flights to Santorini, Mykonos, Crete, and Rhodes exist from much of Europe, and they can save you a full day against routing through Athens.
Accommodation, and the island that changes everything
- Hostel dorm — €20–38
- Guesthouse or studio — €45–90
- Mid-range hotel — €90–170
- Boutique hotel with a caldera view, Santorini, August — €350–700
That last line is not an exaggeration and it’s the single biggest budget decision in Greece.
The rough tiers:
| Island | Mid-range room, high season |
|---|---|
| Santorini | €220–450 |
| Mykonos | €250–500 |
| Paros | €110–180 |
| Naxos | €80–140 |
| Milos | €120–200 |
| Crete | €70–130 |
| Athens | €80–150 |
Naxos and Crete offer better beaches, better food, and more to do than Santorini, at a third of the price. Santorini sells one thing — the caldera at sunset — and charges accordingly.
Food
Greek eating is cheap if you eat Greek and expensive if you eat at the view.
- Gyros or souvlaki wrap — €3.50–5
- Bakery spanakopita — €2–3.50
- Taverna lunch, shared plates — €12–20 per person
- Dinner with wine — €22–38
- Frappé or freddo espresso — €3–4.50
- Half litre of house wine — €5–8
- Beer — €4–6
The pricing rule in Greece is location, not quality. A taverna one street back from the harbour charges 40% less than the one on it, and the food is usually better because locals eat there. This holds on every island without exception.
Ferries and getting between islands
The ferry network is the thing that makes Greece work, and the thing that most often derails a plan.
| Route | Conventional | High-speed |
|---|---|---|
| Piraeus → Naxos | €38 (5h) | €70 (3h 30m) |
| Piraeus → Santorini | €45 (8h) | €80 (5h) |
| Naxos → Santorini | €25 (2h) | €50 (1h 30m) |
| Piraeus → Crete | €40 overnight | — |
Book July and August crossings ahead; popular routes sell out. Ferries also get cancelled outright when the meltemi wind blows hard in summer, which is common and unpredictable. Never plan an island transfer for the day before your flight home.
Domestic flights Athens–Santorini or Athens–Crete cost €50–130 and take 45 minutes, which is often better value than a high-speed ferry once you count the day.
Sights
- Acropolis — €20 in summer, €10 in winter
- Acropolis combined ticket, seven sites — €30, valid five days
- Ancient Delphi — €12
- Knossos, Crete — €15
- Ancient Olympia — €12
- Akrotiri excavations, Santorini — €12
- Boat trip to a nearby island — €25–60
Greece’s best days out are mostly free: the beaches, the hiking, the villages, the harbours at dusk. A trip here is unusually easy to run on a small activities budget.
A real ten-day budget
Athens, Naxos, and Santorini. Mid-range rooms, mostly tavernas, flying from the US east coast in June:
| Cost | |
|---|---|
| Flights | $850 |
| Accommodation, 10 nights | €1,150 ($1,242) |
| Food | €480 ($518) |
| Ferries | €140 ($151) |
| Local transport and a scooter | €90 ($97) |
| Sights | €110 ($119) |
| Total | ≈ $2,977 |
Replace Santorini with Milos and the accommodation line drops to about €750 — a saving of $430 for what most people who’ve done both consider the better island. Do the whole thing in hostels with gyros and ferry deck seats and you’re near $1,400.
The costs that catch people out
August. Not a hidden cost so much as an ignored one. Greek prices in August are commonly double June or September for identical rooms, and the islands are unpleasantly crowded. Late May, early June, and the second half of September are the same country at half the price.
Sunbeds. Two loungers and an umbrella on an organised beach cost €15–40 a day, and on the popular islands the free stretch of sand is often small.
ATM fees. Greek bank ATMs charge foreign cards €2.50–3.50 per withdrawal, and the standalone Euronet machines are worse. Withdraw larger amounts less often, and always decline the machine’s offer to convert to your home currency.
Scooter and ATV rental. €25–45 a day, and accidents on island roads are common enough that many travel policies exclude them.
Tracking it across islands
A Greek trip generates spending in bursts: a big ferry charge, then four days of €5 and €12 purchases, then another big transfer. It’s the small taverna and beach spending that quietly overruns, because none of it feels significant at the time.
Spentrip is worth having open for the daily drift. Photograph the taverna receipt and it extracts the total, the merchant, and the date — handwritten Greek receipts included — then files it against the trip. The category breakdown afterwards tends to show the same thing on Greek trips: food and ferries are the real budget, and accommodation was whatever island you chose. Receipt scanning is premium; manual entry, currency conversion, and charts are free.
If you’re travelling as a group and one person keeps fronting the ferry tickets while another covers dinners, a shared trip keeps everyone’s total visible so settling up at the end isn’t guesswork.
Common questions
How much money do I need for a week in Greece?
Excluding flights, roughly €440 backpacking, €1,380 mid-range, and €2,900 comfortable, per person. Add €80–150 for ferries if you’re visiting more than one island.
Is Greece expensive?
Athens and the less-famous islands are among the better-value destinations in Western Europe — cheaper than Italy, well below France. Santorini and Mykonos in high season are among the most expensive places in the Mediterranean. Greece is not one price level; it’s two, and you choose which one you’re on.
What’s the cheapest Greek island to visit?
For a mix of beaches, food, and things to do, Naxos and Crete give the most for the least. Ikaria, Karpathos, and the smaller Dodecanese islands are cheaper still but harder to reach. Anywhere with a direct international flight and a famous sunset costs more.
When is the cheapest time to visit Greece?
May, early June, late September, and October. Sea temperatures are still comfortable into October, prices fall 30–50% against August, and the ferries and tavernas are calm. Winter is cheapest of all, but many island businesses close entirely from November to April.
Do I need to book ferries in advance?
In July and August, yes — popular routes sell out days ahead, and vehicle spaces sooner. In May, June, September, and October you can usually buy a day or two before. Always leave a buffer day before an international flight, because wind cancellations are routine.
How much cash should I carry in Greece?
Cards are widely accepted in cities and tourist areas, but small tavernas, island bakeries, beach bars, kiosks, and rural buses often prefer or require cash. Keep €100–150 on hand, and withdraw from a bank ATM rather than a Euronet machine.
The most common Greek travel regret isn’t overspending — it’s spending it in the wrong place. Two nights in Santorini for the caldera and five somewhere quieter buys you a better trip than five nights fighting for a sunset spot, and it costs about $600 less.
