Greece destinations: the Acropolis of Athens seen from the hill, the Parthenon on its rock under a blue sky with clouds, and the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in the foreground

Greece destinations: Athens, Islands and the Peloponnese

Greece destinations run from the capital Athens to the Cyclades, the Peloponnese and the islands of the Ionian and Aegean seas. Each one is a different base for a trip, and this page sets them out region by region for planning, with our tours in Greece listed at the end.

This page covers the main regions of Greece, Athens, Aegina, Hydra, Poros, the Cyclades with Mykonos, Santorini, Paros, Naxos, Ios and Milos, the Peloponnese with Argolis, Ilia, Messinia, Sparta and Monemvasia, Samos, Zakynthos, Rhodes, Thessaloniki and Delphi, how to travel between them, when to visit and the questions travellers ask.

What are the main Greece destinations?

The main Greece destinations are Athens, the islands of Santorini, Mykonos, Rhodes, Corfu and Crete, and the Chalkidice peninsula. Together they are the major tourist destinations of the country. The capital is also the largest Greek city.

Greece lies in Southeastern Europe, and its thousands of islands extend towards Asia Minor. No other country on the Mediterranean basin has a longer coastline. Greece destinations lie both on the mainland and on the islands. Popular beach resorts also include Kos, Kefalonia, Zakynthos and Skiathos.

Thessaloniki comes second in size among Greek cities, followed by Patras. Shipping and tourism are major sectors of the Greek economy. Chalkidice is one of the smaller peninsulas that project from the mainland, and the Peloponnese is the other. For places to stay near these cities and islands, see our page on hotels in Greece.

Island Greece destinations belong to named groups. Mykonos is part of the Cyclades, and Santorini is the group’s southernmost member. Rhodes is one of the Dodecanese islands, and Corfu lies in the Ionian Sea. Aegina, Hydra and Milos are islands too, and later sections on this page take each of them in turn.

How do Greece destinations divide into regions?

Greece destinations divide into nine traditional geographic regions. They are Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands, Thrace, Crete and the Ionian Islands. The state itself is split into 13 administrative regions.

Greece destinations on the mainland sit on a mountainous peninsula at the southern end of the Balkans. The mainland covers about 80% of the territory. Macedonia and Thrace lie in the north. Further south come Epirus, Thessaly and Central Greece, where the region of Attica and Athens are located.

Each of the 13 regions is divided into regional units, known as prefectures before the reform. One autonomous area stands apart: Mount Athos, a monastic community under Greek sovereignty. It borders the region of Central Macedonia. Our tours and cruises page covers trips that cross these areas.

Island Greece destinations are spread over about 20% of the total territory. The largest island by both area and population is Crete, and Euboea is the second largest in area. Euboea is separated from the mainland by the Euripus Strait, which is only 60 m wide. Lesbos and Rhodes are the third and fourth largest.

The islands form six traditional clusters. The Saronic Islands lie near Athens, and the Cyclades fill the central Aegean. The North Aegean islands form a loose group near the Turkish coast. The Dodecanese lie in the southeast, the Sporades off Euboea and the Ionian Islands in the west. Our Greek islands cruises page covers sea trips between them.

Why is Athens among the leading Greece destinations?

Greece’s capital, Athens, is also its largest city, and written records of it cover more than 3,400 years. Ancient monuments from that past still stand in the city, which puts Athens among the leading Greece destinations.

Among Greece destinations, Athens is the largest city, with an urban area of over 3.6 million people. It is the regional capital of Attica as well. On the European mainland, no capital lies further south. Our Athens page covers the city in more detail.

Athens is among the oldest cities on Earth. Its earliest human presence dates to between the eleventh and seventh millennia B.C. During its Golden Age of democracy, Athens was home to the playwrights Sophocles and Euripides. The philosophers Socrates and Plato flourished there as well.

UNESCO has recognised two World Heritage Sites in the city: the Acropolis of Athens and the medieval Daphni Monastery. These sites give the capital a place among the Greece destinations with UNESCO status. The city also hosted the first modern-day Olympic Games, and 108 years later it hosted the Summer Olympics again.

What do visitors see in Athens?

Visitors see the Acropolis, the old Plaka neighbourhood, the Temple of Olympian Zeus, Lycabettus Hill and the National Archaeological Museum. These sights make Athens one of the Greece destinations where ancient ruins stand inside a large modern city.

The Acropolis is a citadel from ancient times on a rocky outcrop over Athens. The rock stands 150 metres above sea level, and the Parthenon is at its centre. The Acropolis Museum lies 280 metres from the Parthenon, on the rock’s southern side. For a visit, this site lists an Acropolis ticket with audio guide.

Plaka is the oldest district of Athens, inhabited without a break since the Neolithic era. Its streets are labyrinthine, and its architecture is neoclassical. The district stretches from Syntagma Square to Monastiraki Square, below the Acropolis.

In the centre of Athens stand the ruins of the Temple of Olympian Zeus, a colossal temple. In its Roman-era form the temple included 104 columns of colossal size, and 16 original columns remain. Lycabettus, a limestone hill, rises 277 metres above sea level, and no other spot in central Athens is higher.

Visitors can ride the Lycabettus Funicular from Aristippou Street in Kolonaki. The National Archaeological Museum is considered one of the greatest museums in the world. The museum holds the world’s richest set of finds from Greek antiquity.

Piraeus is the chief port in Greece. From the centre of Athens it is eight kilometres to the southwest. Its central port handles ferry routes to the Cyclades. That makes Piraeus the gateway to the island Greece destinations below. For a ride through the city, this site lists the Athens hop-on hop-off bus tour.

These pages help you plan Athens among your Greece destinations.

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What is Aegina like among Greece destinations?

Aegina is a Saronic island in the Saronic Gulf, 27 kilometres from Athens. Among Greece destinations it stands out for its ancient temple, its pistachio harvest and its past as a city-state.

Roughly triangular in outline, the island measures about 15 kilometres from east to west and 10 from north to south. Two-thirds of it is an extinct volcano, and the cone of Mount Oros, 531 metres high, marks the top.

The main town, Aegina, has the same name as the island and lies on its northwestern tip. Its buildings are Neoclassical, with a folk touch, and date to the nineteenth century. Athenians own second houses here, so Aegina is one of the Greece destinations that sit close to the capital.

On the east side, a peak about 160 metres high carries the Temple of Aphaia. It lies 13 kilometres from the main port by road. This Doric temple was built around 500 B.C. on the remains of an earlier temple. The goddess Aphaia had no other sanctuary.

Aegina was a strong city-state in the classical age and, at one point, a rival of Athens. Among Greece destinations it also plays a part in modern history. In the War of Independence the island served as an administrative base for the rebel leaders. Ioannis Kapodistrias spent a short time here.

What is Hydra like among Greece destinations?

Hydra is a Saronic island of 49.6 square kilometres where wheeled vehicles are not permitted. Among Greece destinations it moves people on foot, by horse, mule and donkey, and by water taxi.

Only a narrow channel lies between the island and the Peloponnese. In antiquity it was called Hydrea, from the Greek for water, since springs flow on the island. The municipality also includes Dokos, 13.5 square kilometres in size, and uninhabited islets.

There is one main town, known as Hydra port. It has a crescent-shaped harbour with restaurants, shops and galleries, and steep stone streets climb away from the quay. Hydra depends on tourism, and among Greece destinations it draws a sizable share of its visitors from Athens. Hydrofoils and catamarans serve it from Piraeus, about 37 nautical miles away.

The old Monastery of the Dormition on the quayside is now the island’s cathedral. Inside lies Lazaros Kountouriotis, the wealthiest of the island’s sea captains. He gave all his wealth to the War of Independence. Hydra sent about 150 ships to that war, and Admiral Andreas Miaoulis used fire ships against the Ottoman fleet.

The site lists a Hydra, Poros and Aegina day cruise for anyone who wants three Greece destinations in one day.

Greece destinations: the amphitheatre harbour of Hydra seen from the hill, white and ochre houses stacked around a deep blue bay with moored boats and a stone mole under a bright blue sky

What is Poros like among Greece destinations?

Poros is a pair of small islands in the southern Saronic Gulf. It lies about 58 km from the port of Piraeus. Among Greece destinations it is a popular weekend stop for travellers from Athens. The Peloponnese lies across a channel 200 m wide.

The island covers about 31 square kilometres and has two parts. Sphaeria, in the south, is of volcanic origin and holds today’s town. Kalaureia, in the north, is the larger part. They are linked by a bridge across a narrow strait, and a car ferry runs to Galatas on the mainland. Read more on our Poros page.

Poros has rich vegetation, with old pine forest in the south and centre. On the southern shore you find the sandy beaches, with one bay in the north called Vayionia as the exception. Vigla, at 358 m, is the highest peak.

The town rises up a hillside like an amphitheatre, and its buildings are neoclassical. A clock tower from the nineteen-twenties is its landmark. Henry Miller wrote that his boat seemed to sail through the streets as it came into Poros. The Zoodochos Pigi monastery, founded in the eighteenth century, stands 4 km east of the town.

Researchers date the Doric Sanctuary of Poseidon, in the north, to around 520 B.C. The Archaeological Museum on Korizis Square holds finds from it. Poros is also among the Greece destinations where modern Greece set up its first naval base.

Why do the Cyclades islands matter among Greece destinations?

Southeast of the Greek mainland lies the island group of the Cyclades, set in the Aegean Sea. About 220 islands belong to it. Among Greece destinations the group carries a name that means a ring of islands around sacred Delos.

Syros is home to more people than any other island of the group. Its town Ermoupoli was the chief town of the former prefecture. Other major islands are Amorgos, Anafi, Andros, Antiparos, Kea, Kimolos, Kythnos, Folegandros, Serifos, Sifnos, Sikinos and Tinos. See our Cyclades islands page for the group.

The islands behind these Greece destinations are the tops of a mountain range that now lies under the sea. Two of them are volcanic. The climate is generally dry and mild. To the south of the group lies the Sea of Crete.

The Cycladic culture of the Early Bronze Age left flat sculptures carved from white marble. It arose centuries before the Minoan civilisation of Crete. Tourists from Europe and other places have made the group popular in recent decades. Tourism has also brought erosion, pollution and water shortages.

The sections below take the main Greece destinations of the group one by one. They cover Mykonos, Santorini, Paros, Naxos, Ios and Milos.

What is Mykonos like among Greece destinations?

Mykonos belongs to the Cyclades and ranks among the Greece destinations of the Aegean Sea. Measured on the map, Mykonos spans 85.5 square kilometres. Athens is 150 kilometres to its west. On the west coast stands its largest town, Chora.

Between Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos you find Mykonos. Strong winds blow here, which explains the nickname Island of the Winds. The Kato Mili windmills, a row of them on a hill in Chora, face the sea. Venetian builders raised them in the sixteenth century for milling flour. The mills kept working into the early twentieth century.

Among Greece destinations, the close neighbour is Delos Island, only 2 kilometres away. It covers 3.43 square kilometres. Greek myth gives Delos to Apollo and Artemis as their birthplace. UNESCO lists the island as a World Heritage Site. Regular tour boats make the short trip there.

The island’s reputation rests on its beaches, nightlife and Cycladic architecture. The southern bus depot, called Fabrika, serves Ornos, Psarou and Paradise Beach. In Chora, the first fishing house of Little Venice dates to the mid-eighteenth century. Its balconies hang over the sea.

Chora also holds the church of Panagia Paraportiani, which took around 200 years to build. Its name means standing next to the entrance, because it stood beside the door of the old kastro.

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Why is Santorini one of the top Greece destinations?

Santorini earns its place among Greece destinations through its caldera, a basin of sea water ringed by cliffs. The volcano that made it erupted about 3,600 years ago, in a blast among the largest ever recorded. The island sits in the southern Aegean, 200 kilometres from the mainland.

Santorini closes the Cyclades chain in the south. Its area comes to about 73 square kilometres. Fira, the capital, and the other main towns sit on the crest of the caldera. The caldera wall is a sheer cliff, and its drop passes 300 metres at the tallest point.

Oia, one of these Greece destinations on the caldera rim, stretches for nearly two kilometres along the northern edge. Its ruined castle is a lookout, and sunset viewing is a popular attraction there. On the outer coast, lava sand and pebbles colour the beaches red, black and white.

Volcanic ash buried the Bronze Age settlement of Akrotiri. The ash helped to preserve its frescoes, pottery and three-storey buildings, and the ruins are compared to Pompeii. Excavations have run since the nineteen-sixties. Tour boats sail from the old port, Skala, to Nea Kameni, a volcanic island inside the caldera lagoon.

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What is Paros like among Greece destinations?

Paros belongs to the Cyclades and sits in the central Aegean Sea. Piraeus, the port of Athens, is about 150 km away. Among Greece destinations, it has a long history as a source of fine white marble.

Paros has a round, plump-pear shape. A single mountain of 724 m slopes evenly down to the coast on all sides. Naxos, its neighbour, lies 8 km to the east, and only a narrow channel separates the two. Its smaller sister island, Antiparos, lies to the west.

Parikia, the capital, lies on a bay along the island’s north-west side. The port works as a major hub for ferries and catamarans serving other Aegean islands. The remains of a medieval castle rise over the seafront road. The castle is built almost entirely from marble left by an ancient temple dedicated to Apollo.

Parian marble is white and translucent, and it was the chief source of wealth for the island. Traders exported it from the sixth century B.C. onwards, and the sculptor Praxiteles used it. Among Greece destinations, Paros still lets you see tunnels of its old underground quarries.

Naoussa, on the north side, has a bay that forms a natural harbour for boats. On the east coast, Golden Beach sits close to Drios, a popular harbour. Paros and Naxos share a strait where strong wind blows constantly, so windsurfers favour the island.

What is Naxos like among Greece destinations?

In size, Naxos comes first among the islands of the Cyclades, covering 430 square kilometres. Among Greece destinations, it also has the tallest mountain of the Cyclades, Mount Zeus, at 1,001 metres. The capital, Chora, goes by the name Naxos City too.

Of the 20,578 residents on Naxos, 8,897 live in Chora. Outside Chora, the main villages are Filoti and Apiranthos, then Vivlos, Agios Arsenios, Koronos and Glynado.

Naxos has one clear emblem among Greece destinations, the Portara. It is the large marble door frame of an ancient temple of Apollo. Lygdamis, a tyrant, started the temple around 530 B.C., but it was never finished. The frame has five marble pieces, which weigh up to 20 tons each.

Palatia, an islet at the harbour’s northern tip, carries the Portara. Myth says that Ariadne was left by Theseus on Naxos, after she gave him help against the Minotaur. Then Dionysus, the island’s protector, met her and fell in love.

Among the Greece destinations in the Cyclades, Naxos has beaches at Agia Anna, Agios Prokopios and Aliko. Plaka, Kastraki, Mikri Vigla and Agios Georgios are on the list too. Quarrying of marble began on the island before 550 B.C.

What is Ios like among Greece destinations?

Ios is a hilly Cyclades island that lies midway between Santorini and Naxos. It covers about 109 square kilometres. Among Greece destinations, it has a whitewashed hill village and about 32 kilometres of sandy beach.

On the north side of Ormos harbour sits the port of Ios. From there a footpath climbs the hillside to Chora, the island’s principal village. Chora has whitewashed buildings, narrow alleys and steep stairways, so the village is largely closed to cars. Kastro is the island’s highest point, at an elevation of 723 metres.

Small clusters of houses sit behind the main beaches of Theodoti, Kalamos and Manganari. Ios has been one of the Greece destinations for young people in Europe since the nineteen-seventies. Today it keeps its name as an island of youth and entertainment.

According to legend, the poet Homer died on Ios. The story rests on myth and oral tradition, not on historical records. The island also makes local cheeses from goat and sheep milk. Skotiri is a sour cheese with the smell of summer savory.

What is Milos like among Greece destinations?

Milos is a volcanic island in the Aegean, and it is the Cyclades island farthest to the southwest. Among Greece destinations, it is known for Sarakiniko, a coast of white rock shaped by wind and water. The Louvre holds the Venus de Milo, a sculpture from the island.

Milos is one of the volcanic Greece destinations, and it covers about 151 square kilometres. The harbour sits inside the main crater and leaves the island as two halves of similar size. The harbour town is Adamantas. On the plateau above it lie Plaka, the chief town, and Kastro on its hill.

Milos has a long past. Obsidian, a glass-like rock formed by volcanoes, was already a trade good from Milos 15,000 years ago. It was traded over long distances. The island lies between mainland Greece and Crete, which made it an important centre of early Aegean civilisation.

Tuna fishermen were the first Bronze Age settlers at Phylakopi, on the island’s north-eastern shore. Archaeologists found a Minoan-inspired structure there with vivid wall paintings, among them a fresco of flying fish.

Among Greece destinations in the Cyclades, Santorini and Mykonos draw more visitors than Milos, which has the less crowded setting. The harbour’s eastern shore has hot sulfurous springs. The site also lists a Milos sailboat cruise to Kleftiko.

Why is the Peloponnese one of the big Greece destinations?

The peninsula measures 21,549.6 square kilometres and forms the far south of the Greek mainland. Its ancient palaces and indented coast place it among the big Greece destinations.

At the Isthmus of Corinth, the Peloponnese meets the rest of the mainland. The Gulf of Corinth lies on one side of it and the Saronic Gulf on the other. The Corinth Canal was built across it in the eighteen-nineties.

The interior is mountainous. Mount Taygetus in the south reaches 2,407 metres, the highest point of the peninsula. Lowlands spread across the west, the Evrotas Valley and the Argolid Peninsula. The indented coast gives the peninsula beaches that draw tourists, so these Greece destinations offer both mountain and shore.

Seven regions have made up the peninsula since antiquity. Elis lies in the west, Messenia in the southwest, Laconia in the southeast and Arcadia in the centre. Argolis is in the east, Corinthia in the northeast and Achaea in the north. Patras is the largest regional city.

Greek legend says the hero Pelops conquered the region, and Peloponnesos means the island of Pelops. The Mycenaean civilization, the first major civilization of mainland Greece, dominated the peninsula in the Bronze Age. That long past shapes the Greece destinations found here.

What does Argolis offer among Greece destinations?

Nafplio, Mycenae and Epidaurus all lie in Argolis, a regional unit on the eastern side of the Peloponnese. Together they put Argolis among the Greece destinations that join a seaside town with ancient sites.

Argolis faces the Saronic Gulf to the northeast, while its southern coast looks onto the Argolic Gulf. The leading crops are oranges and olives. Four municipalities make up the unit: Argos-Mykines, Epidaurus, Ermionida and Nafplio.

Nafplio is the capital of Argolis. Its old town lies on a peninsula pushing out into the Argolic Gulf. Nafplio served the modern Greek state as its first official capital. Venice built the Palamidi castle, the last major construction of its empire overseas, on a hill north of the town. Among Greece destinations, Nafplio counts as an important tourist town.

Ancient Mycenae is an archaeological site 120 kilometres from Athens, to the south-west. The hill carrying the citadel stands 274 metres above sea level. Greek civilization had one of its major centres at Mycenae in the second millennium B.C. Noted architecture there includes the Lion Gate as well as the Treasury of Atreus.

Epidaurus has an ancient theatre that Polykleitos the Younger designed in the fourth century B.C. The first 34 rows grew by 21 more in Roman times. Up to 14,000 people can sit there, and plays are still staged. That gives Epidaurus a place among Greece destinations for ancient drama. A Mycenae, Epidaurus and Nafplio day trip joins all three.

What does Ilia offer among Greece destinations?

Ilia, also called Elis, lies in the western Peloponnese. It holds ancient Olympia, the home of the Ancient Olympic Games from the eighth century B.C. to the fourth century A.D. That history makes Ilia a key stop among Greece destinations.

Ilia forms a regional unit within Western Greece, with Pyrgos as its capital. It runs about 100 km from north to south and around 55 km from east to west. In classical times, Elis was an independent city-state that administered the sanctuary at Olympia.

Among Greece destinations, Ancient Olympia was a major Panhellenic sanctuary, mainly dedicated to Zeus. Its sacred precinct was called the Altis. Pausanias records over 70 temples at the site, with altars, statues and treasuries beside them.

The stadium’s length became the stadion, a standard measure of distance in ancient Greece. The Kladeos River forms the site’s western edge. Visitors enter over a bridge by the main gate. The site has three museums, and the village of Olympia lies next to it.

Cruise travellers add Ilia to their Greece destinations through the port of Katakolo. The port is an important cruise-ship stop that gives passengers a way to visit Ancient Olympia. Katakolo sits 11 km west of Pyrgos and also holds the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology.

What do Messinia and Kalamata offer among Greece destinations?

Messinia is a regional unit in the southwest of the Peloponnese. Kalamata is its capital and largest city, and Pylos lies on Navarino Bay. Together they add a city, medieval castles and a Mycenaean palace to the list of Greece destinations.

Messinia has three neighbours: Elis in the north, Arcadia in the northeast and Laconia in the southeast. The Ionian Sea forms its western edge, and the Gulf of Messinia its southern edge. The Taygetus is an important mountain range, in the east of the unit.

Among Greece destinations, Kalamata has a population second only to Patras on the Peloponnese. The city has Messinia’s largest port and sits beside the Nedon River, at the innermost point of the Messenian Gulf. It is known for Kalamata olives, and the Villehardouin castle is one of its historical sights.

Pylos adds a port town to the Greece destinations of Messinia. The island of Sphacteria acts as a natural breakwater for Navarino Bay. The town has two castles, the Frankish Paleokastro and the Ottoman Neokastro.

North of the bay, the Gialova lagoon is the southernmost stop for birds migrating between the Balkans and Africa. About 17 km north of Pylos stands the Mycenaean Palace of Nestor. Greece and its allies won the naval Battle of Navarino near Pylos in the eighteen-twenties.

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What do Sparta and Monemvasia offer among Greece destinations?

Sparta and Monemvasia are two Laconia stops among Greece destinations. Sparta was a prominent ancient Greek city on the Eurotas river. Monemvasia is a walled medieval town on an island joined to the east side of the Peloponnese.

Sparta lies in Laconia, in the south-east of the Peloponnese. Ancient Sparta stood on the banks of the Eurotas. Mount Taygetus bounds its valley to the west and Mount Parnon to the east. Modern Sparta is a provincial town and the seat of the Laconia regional administration.

Sparta grew in the seventh century B.C. into a prominent military power on land. Among Greece destinations, it is the city of King Leonidas, who led a small force at Thermopylae in 480 B.C.

The fortified town of Mystras rises on a Taygetus mountain slope above ancient Sparta. In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, it was the seat of a Byzantine state, the Despotate of the Morea. UNESCO has placed Mystras on its World Heritage List.

A sandy isthmus 400 metres long links Monemvasia to the mainland. Founded in the sixth century, it ranks among the oldest fortified towns in Europe with continuous habitation. Among Greece destinations, its name means the city of the single approach.

The upper town lies on a plateau 100 metres up, and nobody lives there now. The lower town lies on the southern coast, and entry is through its west gate. Hagia Sophia, a Byzantine church, stands in the upper town close to the cliff.

What does Kalavrita offer among Greece destinations?

Kalavrita is a mountain town in the Peloponnese, 764 metres above sea level. A rack railway ends here, and a ski centre and a monastery lie nearby. The town adds a mountain stop to Greece destinations.

Kalavrita is a mountain town and municipality in east-central Achaea. It stands on the right bank of the river Vouraikos. It is 40 kilometres south-east of Patras and 62 kilometres north-west of Tripoli.

The municipality has two notable mountains: Erymanthos in the west and Chelmos in the south-east. Among Greece destinations, Kalavrita is the southern end of the Diakopto-Kalavryta rack railway. Italian engineers built the line between eighteen eighty-five and eighteen ninety-five.

Kalavrita figures prominently in the early days of the Greek War of Independence. On 21 March in eighteen twenty-one, Bishop Germanos raised the revolt’s flag at Agia Lavra monastery. That history gives the town a place among Greece destinations.

The monastery stands on a hill 4 kilometres south-west of the town. In Kastria, a cave system called the Cave of the Lakes holds lakes and strange rock formations. East of the town, a ski centre sits on the slopes of Chelmos.

What is Samos like among Greece destinations?

Samos is an island in the eastern Aegean Sea. It measures 43 km by 13 km. Among Greece destinations, it stands out for its ancient sites and its Muscat wine. The Mycale Strait, 1.6 km wide, separates it from Turkey.

The island sits between Chios to the north and Patmos to the south. Vathy, the capital, lies in the northeast. Karlovasi is in the northwest, Pythagoreio in the southeast and Marathokampos in the southwest. Our Samos page covers the island in full.

Two mountains shape the landscape. Mount Kerkis is the taller, at 1,434 metres, while the Ampelos massif takes up the middle. Vineyards cover a great part of the island, and they give the Muscat wine that Samos still makes today.

Pythagoras, the philosopher and mathematician, was born here, and the town of Pythagoreio now carries his name. The Heraion, a temple of Hera, and ancient Pythagoreion share one UNESCO World Heritage listing. That listing gives Samos a place among Greece destinations with ancient ruins.

Under the tyrant Polycrates, the engineer Eupalinos led two teams that dug a tunnel through Mount Kastro. It carried fresh water to the ancient capital and is over 1 km long. Among Greece destinations, Samos holds the second earliest tunnel in history dug from both ends in a methodical way.

What is Zakynthos like among Greece destinations?

Zakynthos, also called Zante, is an Ionian island with 405.55 square kilometres of land, the third largest in its group. Among Greece destinations it is known for Navagio beach, its blue caves and its sea turtles.

The island lies in the eastern Ionian Sea. The Peloponnese mainland is roughly 20 km to its east, and Kefalonia is 15 km to its north. The capital, Zakynthos town, goes by the name Chora as well, and a ferry joins its port to Kyllini. Our Zante page adds more detail.

On a map, Zakynthos looks like an arrowhead. Cape Skinari forms the point at the northwest end. On the northwest shore lies Navagio, a cove walled in by high cliffs, so only a boat can reach it. The site lists the Shipwreck Beach and blue caves tour for these two places.

The cliffs near Cape Skinari hold natural blue caves, and only small boats can enter them. In the south, the mountain village of Keri has a lighthouse. These sights make Zakynthos one of the Greece destinations where the coast is the main draw.

The Bay of Laganas holds the first National Marine Park. Loggerhead sea turtles use it as their prime nesting ground in the Mediterranean. The Venetians ruled the island from the late fifteenth century to the late eighteenth century. Their nickname for the island was Flower of the East.

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What is Rhodes like among Greece destinations?

Rhodes ranks first in size among the Dodecanese islands, and it was their historical capital. The medieval Old Town is a World Heritage Site. So Rhodes adds a walled city and a long past to the Greece destinations on this page.

Its outline resembles a spearhead. From end to end the island covers 79.7 km, and its greatest width is 38 km. Among Greece destinations, Rhodes lies far from the mainland, at a distance of 363 km. Turkey’s southern coast is just 18 km from Rhodes. Read more about Rhodes on its own page.

The city of Rhodes occupies the island’s northern tip. The Knights of Saint John rebuilt it, and the Grand Master’s palace dates from their rule. The Medieval City has a northern high town and a lower town in the south-southwest. A wall four kilometres long encloses both.

The island once had the Colossus of Rhodes, a giant bronze statue that counted as one of antiquity’s seven wonders. Records place it at the harbour. An earthquake destroyed it in the third century B.C., and no trace of it remains.

Lindos is a fishing village in the east of Rhodes, 40 km from the city. Above the village stands the acropolis, a natural citadel. The temple of Athena Lindia on it is Doric, and the Knights built a castle there in the fourteenth century. The site also lists a Lindos and Seven Springs bus tour.

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What do Thessaloniki and Delphi add to Greece destinations?

Thessaloniki ranks second in size among the cities of Greece. Delphi was an ancient sacred site that the Greeks placed at the centre of the world. Both bring the mainland into the Greece destinations on this page, beside the islands.

Among the Greece destinations in the north, Thessaloniki stands on the Thermaic Gulf, in the Aegean’s northwest corner. King Cassander of Macedon founded the city in the fourth century B.C. Its name comes from his wife Thessalonike, Alexander the Great’s half-sister.

On the waterfront stands the White Tower, now a museum and monument. The round tower is 34 m high and 23 m across, and it is the city’s symbol. On clear days Mount Olympus is visible across the gulf from the Upper Town, about 100 km away. The site also lists a Dion and Mount Olympus day trip.

In central Greece, Delphi occupies the southwest slope of Mount Parnassus. Its oracle, the Pythia, was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. Delphi adds ancient religion to the Greece destinations of the mainland. UNESCO has given the site World Heritage status.

The giant rock pillars of Meteora, in Thessaly, carry monasteries on their tops. The site also lists a Meteora day trip.

When do travellers visit Greece destinations?

The main travel season for Greece destinations runs from late spring to September, when the weather is hot and dry. Greece has a Mediterranean climate, so winters are cooler and wetter.

Summer is the high season for Greece destinations. One travel site puts the peak at mid-June to mid-September. Temperatures can pass 30 degrees Celsius, with the highest readings in July and August. Summer weather in Greece is frequently sunny and dry.

In the Aegean Sea, summer brings the meltemi, a dry and strong wind from the north. The season stretches from late spring into mid-September, and the wind peaks in the afternoon. At times it keeps going for days. Beaufort force 7 or 8 is possible, and the wind softens the summer heat.

Autumn crowds at Greece destinations are smaller, one travel site says, and the weather stays warm enough for the beaches. It gives about 25 degrees Celsius in September and about 18 in November. Spring runs from about 15 degrees in March to about 25 by late spring.

Average annual temperatures in Greece range from about 4 degrees Celsius at Kaimaktsalan to about 22. Winter temperatures run between 10 and 15 degrees Celsius, and rainy days are more frequent in December and January. Our Greece travel information page collects more practical points for planning.

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How do you travel between Greece destinations?

Travellers move between Greece destinations by ferry, plane, bus, train and car. The ferry network is well developed, and between the islands ferries are the main means of transport.

The main airports for Greece destinations on the mainland are in Athens and Thessaloniki. Greece counts 16 international airports. The large islands have airports served by international airlines, and air routes link the major cities with the popular islands. Athens International Airport stands east of the city centre, about 20 km away, and replaced the old Ellinikon airport.

The Attiki Odos motorway is 69.7 km long. The Egnatia Odos motorway is 670 km long. It starts at the port of Igoumenitsa and ends at Kipoi on the Turkish border. Motorways have tolls, paid at stations, and traffic drives on the right. Drivers can start with our car rental page.

The national bus network connects almost all towns and larger villages. Greece has four major bus terminals, and the biggest is in Thessaloniki. It also has 2,571 km of rails, and trains link cities such as Athens and Thessaloniki. In remote areas, road signs are not always in Latin letters.

Car ferries from Venice, Ancona, Bari and Brindisi go to Greece all year round. Choose the Greece destinations first, then check how they connect by sea, air and road. Couples who plan a ceremony on the islands can read about weddings in Greece on this site.

What else do travellers ask about Greece destinations?

Greece destinations come with a long coast. The deeply cut shore and the islands make Greece rank eleventh in the world for national coastline, at 13,676 km. Gavdos, a Greek island, is considered the southernmost point of Europe. The five answers below cover island numbers, island groups, Corfu and Crete, Greek food and the UNESCO list.

How do sources count the islands among Greece destinations, and what number of them are inhabited?

Counts of Greek islands start at 1,200 and reach 6,000, so the total hinges on the smallest size counted. For inhabited islands, sources give figures from 166 up to 227, which is far below the total count. By tradition, Euboea and Crete, together with Crete’s islets, sit outside the six island clusters, which include the Cyclades.

What are the Ionian Islands and the Dodecanese, and where does each of the two groups lie?

West of the mainland lie the Ionian Islands, a group that is traditionally named the Heptanese, or Seven Islands. The seven principal islands, north to south, are Corfu and Paxos, then Lefkada, Ithaca, Kefalonia, Zakynthos and Kythira. Among Greece destinations, the Dodecanese, meaning Twelve Islands, sit in the southeastern Aegean, with 15 larger and 150 smaller islands.

What do Corfu and Crete add to the Greece destinations on this page, and how do they differ from each other?

Corfu is about 64 kilometres long, and its capital is the only Greek city that two castles enclose. Crete, the southernmost Greek region, has the Minoan palace at Knossos and 30 White Mountains summits above 2,000 metres. Our contact page lets you design your own trip around Corfu, around Crete or around both of them.

What is Greek cuisine known for among Greece destinations, and which foods and cheeses stand out in it?

Greek cooking starts from wheat, olive oil and wine, a base on which ancient Greek cuisine already rested. Olive oil is its characteristic and ancient element, and the cheeses include feta, kasseri, kefalotyri, graviera and manouri. In coastal regions, fish dishes are common, and UNESCO lists the Mediterranean diet of Greece as intangible heritage.

How long is Greece’s World Heritage list, and which of its sites are mixed sites?

The UNESCO World Heritage List holds 21 properties in Greece, and 18 of them are cultural sites. Three sites, listed for nature and culture, have mixed status among Greece destinations: Meteora, Mount Athos and Mount Olympus. Bassae’s Temple of Apollo Epicurius was the first site listed, followed by Delphi and the Acropolis the next year.