How We Spent 20 Days in Greece for $1800
A slow-travel itinerary through Athens and Thessaloniki, filled with food, history, and savings.
Birthplace of ancient myths and legends, the Olympics, philosophy, and democracy; home of historical figures like Aristotle, Homer, Socrates, and Alexander the Great; a mix of cultures spanning thousands of years.
Greece is a country that looms large in the history of modern civilization and in the hearts of travelers around the world. With so many things to see and do, it is certainly a worthy pick for a slow travel destination.
Last fall, we spent 20 days in Greece as part of a nine-week journey through parts of Europe, splitting our time between two cities: Athens and Thessaloniki. In both cases, we stayed in Airbnb so we could have plenty of room, a kitchen, and laundry.
Athens
We started off in Athens, in a one-bedroom apartment just a mile from the Acropolis but tucked into a little neighborhood out of the fray. Arriving after a bumpy overnight flight that didn’t let us get much sleep, once we dropped our bags, we were pleased to find that there was a collection of a half dozen restaurants sharing a shady open-seating area just a block from our new home. Even better, on the corner was a convenience store where we could pick up some supplies for breakfast, beverages, and so on.
Athens is definitely a tourist destination. But we had enough time that we did not feel like we had to rush around to see everything all at once. We had picked our location so that most of the sites were within walking distance, and Ubers were plentiful and easy to get if we wanted to venture farther from home.
For us, walking is a key feature of slow travel. It allows you to really see what is around you and gives you time to stop and linger at anything along the way that catches your eye. We love self-exploration on the road, and in fact, we only signed up for two organized tours during our 10-day stay.
One tour was of the Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum. We mostly signed up for this one in advance so we could be sure to get tickets for entry first thing in the morning, as mid-September can still get very warm in Athens. The other was for the Temple of Poseidon since that got us a bus ride out to the Cape Sounion peninsula, a good 45-minute drive from our apartment.
We strolled around the Agora, saw the Temple of Zeus, and enjoyed walking through the parks and markets, but I have to say what impressed me most about Athens and Greece in general was the food. Really, the whole dining experience. The only place we ate indoors was when we ate at home. Every restaurant had outdoor seating under large umbrellas or, most often, shady trees.
As we absorbed the deep sense of history, what impressed me most was a fact I never learned in school. I always knew it was a center of art, philosophy, and trade—but what I didn’t know was that after various wars with the Ottoman Turks and the Greek War of Independence, Athens had been so ravaged that the population was down as low as only 4,000 people just 200 years ago. Since that time, it has exploded into a city of over three million.
Thessaloniki
From Athens we took a hopper flight that cost us less than $100 for the two of us to the Macedonian city of Thessaloniki. Again, we had a comfortable one-bedroom apartment where we could do our laundry and prepare meals if we liked that was centrally located to shops and restaurants.
Although not as touristy as Athens, Thessaloniki is a popular cruise ship stop. Like much of Greece, you can’t go far without a reminder of the rich history of the city as well. After all, this region was the birthplace of Alexander the Great, and the city itself is named after his half-sister. The New Testament books First and Second Thessalonians were letters sent to the newly founded Christian church there. Although there is a dispute as to whether that original church still exists, there are churches there that date back to the first century.
We did not sign up for any tours in Thessaloniki; we just purchased a pass good for admission to four museums and historical sites and took our time over a few days walking around and exploring on our own. The museums we visited were all equipped with audio guides, so we still got our fill of facts about what we were seeing.
The town is a fascinating blend of old and new, due in part for two reasons. First, unlike Athens, Thessaloniki’s position as a major port and crossroad for trade made it important to conquerors, so it was kept largely intact. Then, a major fire in August of 1917 destroyed a large part of the city. It was rebuilt based on modern city planning, so walking from the new city up the hill towards the Old Town is like moving back in time.
Thessaloniki is a working city and busy port, and also the home to Aristotle University is the largest in the Balkans and attracts students from all over Europe and the world, which gives a cosmopolitan feel to the shops and menus of the restaurants. Like Athens, we found the food to be exceptional, and we were surprised to find that ice cream made from goat’s milk is creamy and delicious.
Our time in Greece was easy on the pocketbook as well. We averaged $70/night for our apartment stays in accommodations much larger than a hotel room, which would have cost much more. We saved additional money by having some of our meals at home and not needing to hire a car or tour group to get around. All in all, our 20-day stay in Greece cost us about $1800, enjoying our trip the slow travel way.
— Jim Santos, IL Roving Correspondent
Editor’s Note: Want to explore Greece beyond Athens and Thessaloniki?
If our 20-day adventure has you dreaming of your own Greek escape, check out these helpful guides:
From island life to historic cities, Greece offers more than just a vacation—it might just be your next home.