When to go · Greece
Greece in January
Mixed month. Athens mild and quiet; most island hotels closed and ferries reduced; mountain villages cold with snow.
Key facts
- Verdict
- Mixed
- Crowds
- Low
- Greece
- Prices
- Low
- Greece
Verdict
Athens mild and quiet; most island hotels closed and ferries reduced; mountain villages cold with snow.
Weather in January
- Athens and Attica · Athens, Piraeus, Cape Sounioncool
Dry and sunny; July–August often over 35 °C with heatwaves to 40+ °C. Winters mild with rainy spells.
- Cyclades and Dodecanese · Santorini, Naxos, Paros, Mykonos, Rhodesrainy
Windy: the meltemi blows hardest in July–August and cancels small boats. Sea warm enough June–October.
- Crete · Chania, Rethymno, Heraklion, the south coastcool
Longest season: sea swimmable into November on the south coast; White Mountains keep snow into spring.
- Ionian islands and west · Corfu, Kefalonia, Zakynthosrainy
Greener and wetter than the Aegean; less wind, calm seas in summer.
- North and mountains · Thessaloniki, Meteora, Zagori, Pelioncool
Cold winters with snow in the mountains; Zagori and Pelion are cooler escapes in summer.
- Athens13° / 7°, 11 rain days
Festivals and holidays
Dates as our data lists them. Moving holidays (lunar and Islamic calendars, Easter) shift every year: check the date for your year before you build a trip on it.
New Year's Day
1 Jan
Quiet day; vasilopita cake with a hidden coin is cut at home.
Epiphany (Theofania)
6 Jan
Priests throw a cross into the sea and swimmers dive for it at harbours.
Crowds and prices
- Crowds · Greece
- Low
- Prices · Greece
- Low
What to pack
- Layers: a fleece or light jacket
- A rain jacket or umbrella and shoes that dry fast