Greece: The Rough Guide (Rough Guide to Greece) [Paperback]

For independent travel, the Rough Guides are the most useful source.

The best currrent general guidebook for Greece.

Famously honest.

This guide contains listings of the best places to stay, eat and drink in every region. It has information on attractions, from ancient monuments to Athenian nightclubs, Greece's history, culture and natural history.

8th edition of Rough Greece, bigger and better than ever.
The Rough Guide to Greece, now in its eighth edition, remains one of the most comprehensive (and longest-established) guides on the market. Marc Dubin, veteran Greek trekker and island-hopper, brings you the benefit of his expertise with the best hikes on Pilion and Epirus, as well as the inside story on the Dodecanese and East Aegean archipelagos (where he lives for part of the year). Another trek leader and botanist extraordinaire, Lance Chilton, has revamped the Peloponnese and Argo-Saronic islands. The sections on Thessaloniki, 1997 European Cultural Capital, and Mount Athos are the most in-depth available in English. Long-term Cretophiles John Fisher and Geoff Garvey distill the best of their stand-alone Crete guide to the Crete chapter of this book. Lance and Marc respectively turn in practical, readable sections on wildlife and Greek music, complete with a buyer's guide for CDs. And of course there's the in-depth history section, with a real grip on recent events and current trends. Some other guides may have more colour pics, gimmicks, whistles and bells; the Rough Guide's strength remains what it always has been - substance, Greek-speaking and -reading researchers (thus far fewer howlers!) and value for money facilities, neither dosshouse nor expense-account behemoths.

Where and when to go

There is no such thing as a typical Greek island; each has its distinctive character, appearance, history, flora and even a unique tourist clientele. And the same is true of the mainland provinces. Landscapes vary from the mountainous P'ndhos range and the rainy, dense forests of the P'lion peninsula to the stony deserts of the Mni, from the soft theatricality of the Peloponnesian coastal hills to the poplar-studded plains of Macedonia, from the pine-scented ridges of Skithos and Smos to the wind-blown rocks of the central Aegean. The inky plume of cypress, the silver green of olive groves, the purplish outline of distant hills, an expanse of shimmering cobalt sea: these are the enduring and unfailingly pleasing motifs of the Greek landscape.

Most places and people are far more agreeable, and resolutely Greek, outside the peak period of early July to the end of August, when soaring temperatures and crowds of foreigners and locals alike can be overpowering. You won't miss out on warm weather if you come in June or September, excellent times almost everywhere but particularly in the islands. An exception to this pattern, however, is the north-mainland coast - notably the Halkidhik' peninsula - and the islands of Samothrki and Thssos, which only really operate during July and August. In October you might hit a stormy spell, especially in western Greece or in the mountains, but for most of that month the "summer of yios Dhim'trios" (the Greek equivalent of Indian summer) prevails, and the southerly Dodecanese and Crete are extremely pleasant. Autumn in general is beautiful; the light is softer, the sea often balmier than the air, and the colours subtler.

December to March are the coldest and least reliable months, though even then there are many fine days of perfect crystal visibility, and the glorious lowland flowers begin to bloom very early in spring. The more northerly latitudes and high altitudes of course endure far colder and wetter conditions, with the mountains themselves under snow from November to May. The mildest winter climate is to be found on Rhodes, or in the southeastern parts of Crete. As spring slowly warms up, April is still uncertain, though superb for wildflowers, green landscapes and photography; by May the weather is more generally predictable, and Crete, the Peloponnese, the Ionian islands and the Cyclades are perhaps at their best, even if the sea is still a little cool for swimming.

Other factors that affect the timing of your Greek travels have to do with the level of tourism and the amenities provided. Service standards, particularly in tavernas, slip under the peak-season pressures, and room rates are at their highest from July to September. If you can only visit during mid-summer, reserve a package well in advance, or plan your itinerary off the beaten track. Explore the less obvious parts of the Peloponnese or the northern mainland, or island-hop with an eye for the more obscure places - where ferries call less than daily and there's no airport.

Out of season, especially between November and April, you have to contend with reduced ferry services to the islands (and non-existent hydrofoils), plus fairly skeletal facilities when you arrive. You will, however, find reasonable service on all the main routes and at least one hotel and taverna open in the port or main town of all but the tiniest isles. On the mainland, winter travel poses no special difficulties except, of course, in mountain villages either cut off by snow or (at weekends especially) monopolized by avid Greek skiers.