Diagram by Greece Trips. Free to reuse with credit - CC BY 4.0.
What runs normally
- Athens works all year. The Acropolis, the museums, the neighbourhoods and the food are all there, with short queues and no heat.
- Thessaloniki likewise, and it is a better winter city than a summer one.
- The mainland: Meteora, Delphi, Nafplio, Ioannina, the Peloponnese towns and the stone villages of Zagori and Metsovo, which are at their best with snow on them.
- Crete and Rhodes, the two islands big enough to have a real year-round population. Chania and Rhodes Town stay open.
- Ski centres: Greece has them, on Mount Parnassos above Arachova, at Kalavryta, Karpenisi, Vytina and in the north.
What closes
Most small islands. From roughly late October to Easter:
- Hotels and rooms close, often all of them outside the main town.
- Tavernas drop to the two or three that serve the residents.
- Ferries fall to a skeleton timetable, sometimes two or three sailings a week, and they are cancelled outright in bad weather.
- Domestic flights to island airports thin or stop.
This is not a shoulder-season slowdown. On a small island in January there can be nothing open at all.
Santorini and Mykonos are the sharpest version: both are heavily seasonal, and the caldera hotels and the Mykonos beach clubs are shut. Santorini in February is a beautiful, empty, largely closed place, which some people love and most did not expect.
The weather
- Athens and the south are mild and wet rather than cold, with sunshine between the rain.
- The north is properly cold, with snow inland and in the mountains.
- The islands are windy. Winter storms genuinely stop boats, and being stuck an extra two days is a normal winter island experience.
- The sea is cold. This is not a swimming season, whatever a photograph suggests.
Who winter Greece is for
It is excellent for cities, archaeology, mountains and food, and for anyone who dislikes crowds and heat. It is wrong for island-hopping, beaches and nightlife, and no planning fixes that.
If you want the empty version of the islands without the closures, the shoulder season is the answer instead.
Last checked August 2026. Winter ferry and hotel closures change every year - see our editorial policy.
Common questions
Is Greece worth visiting in winter?
Yes for Athens, Thessaloniki, the mainland sites and the mountains. No for the small islands, most of which close from late October to Easter.
Do ferries run in winter in Greece?
Yes, but on a skeleton timetable, sometimes two or three sailings a week to a small island, and they are cancelled outright in bad weather.
Is Santorini open in winter?
Partly. The island is heavily seasonal, and most caldera hotels and many restaurants are shut, though the island itself is beautiful and empty.
Can you ski in Greece?
Yes. There are ski centres on Parnassos above Arachova, at Kalavryta, Karpenisi, Vytina and in the northern mountains, with a season that depends heavily on the year.
How cold does Greece get in winter?
Athens and the south are mild and wet rather than cold. The north and the mountains get properly cold with snow, and the islands are mostly windy.
Next
Read the shoulder season, Athens, or Meteora.