The Greek islands and inland areas are among the most common places where tourists rent cars. The natural beauty and many beaches are very difficult to reach by public transport.

Even in Greece there are general guidelines for renting a car and if you are new to this segment, read our article How to rent a car abroad for the first time.

In Greece, drive on the right.

How and where to book a car in Greece

Most multinational car rental companies operate in Greece, both at all local scheduled airports and in city centres.

To book, we recommend using the comparison engine of most car rental companies, which will sort the results according to your chosen criteria:

When booking a car in Greece, the price depends mainly on the season and also on the rental location.

Prices in winter (November to March) are up to 50% lower than in summer and on some islands up to 70% lower.

If you're heading to the Greek islands in the summer, we recommend booking your car at least 2 months before your trip.

Travellers have had good experiences with rental companies such as Avis, Greenmotion, Budget or Sixt. They can all be found on booking.com, for example.

Car rental prices in Greece

Car rental in Greece is not expensive and is one of the cheapest in Europe. This is mainly due to the high competition between car rental companies.

The price depends on the length of the rental (the longer the rental, the cheaper the daily price) and the season.

In general, the smaller the island, the higher the rental price will be.

Examples of prices are given below.

• Weekly summer rental (small car) - from 200 eur
• Weekly rental summer (SUV 4x4) - from 300 eur
• Weekly rental winter (small car) - from 90 eur
• Weekly rental winter (SUV 4x4) - from 150 eur
• compare prices on booking.com

There are dozens of airports in Greece with car rental companies, and there are rental companies in the centre of every major seaside resort without an airport.

Generally, prices tend to be lower at larger airports where there is more competition. In less touristy areas or small places with limited competition, prices can be 20-30% higher than in Athens or Thessaloniki, for example.

Always read the detailed rental conditions and especially the insurance conditions, which you can also find on Booking.com. Some rental companies include insurance in the final price, elsewhere you will have to pay extra, between 5 eur and 10 eur per day depending on the type of car and length of rental.

International driving licence and other documents

Rhodes is part of the European Union, so there is no need to arrange an international driving licence. The rental company will also accept a national driving licence from any EU country.

In case you hold a driving licence from a non-EU country, Norway, Switzerland or Iceland, get an international driving licence with your licence.

Car rental companies usually require a credit card to rent a car, and will often lend on a debit card, but either on less favourable terms or with a very high deposit often exceeding even 1 000 eur.

The price of petrol in Greece

You will pay on average 1,70 eur to 1,90 eur for a litre of petrol.

Gasoline in Greece is generally among the most expensive in Europe and average.

Prices are always roughly 0,10 eur to 0,20 eur per litre higher on the Greek islands than on the mainland.

How do petrol stations work?

You will find petrol stations in large numbers in all tourist and populated areas of Greece.

Most petrol stations are self-service. You drive up to the stand, fill up yourself with petrol and then go to the shop to pay.

Some smaller petrol stations (for example, Aegean or Avin brands) may be manned. In this case, you don't have to get out of the car at all, you just tell the attendant how many litres or how much money you want to fill up for and then pay the attendant directly.

You can always pay by cash or card.

Traffic regulations in Greece

In Greece, drive on the right.

The rules here are very similar to those in other European countries and there are no tricky rules to be prepared for.

Greece uses standard metric units, so all speeds are given in kilometres per hour (kph) and distances in kilometres.

Compliance with traffic rules

Greece is notorious for its very bad and reckless drivers and probably nowhere in Europe have we seen such anarchy on the roads.

In particular, beware of overtaking - Greeks love to overtake absolutely everywhere and unexpectedly. So keep a closer eye on the traffic behind you in your mirror than elsewhere.

Speeds are practically not observed at all, and failure to use indicators when changing lanes is also very common.

What are the speed limits?

The following speed limits apply in Greece:

• built-up areas - 50 km/h
• Outside the village, single carriageway roads - 90 km/h
• outside the village, multi-lane road - 110 km/h
• standard motorway - 130 km/h

Radar speed measurement is not very common in Greece, which corresponds to the non-compliance of local drivers.

Other rules

Vehicles travelling from the right havethe right of way at unmarked junctions. Vehicles travelling on roundabouts also have the right of way.

It is forbidden to usephones, tablets and other devices while driving and while stopped at traffic lights or in a traffic jam. Hands-free use is permitted.

Alcohol is only tolerated up to 0.5‰.

Seat belts are compulsory for all.

Pedestrians have the right of way at all crosswalks, but this rule is rarely followed, so as a pedestrian be very careful!

Right turns on red are not allowed in Greece unless the additional green arrow is lit.

Roundabouts

Roundabouts are very common in Greece. It is always the case that cars travelling on the roundabout (from the right) have the right of way.

If you leave the roundabout by taking the 1st exit, you give the right turn signal when you approach the roundabout.

If you are leaving the roundabout on the 2nd exit, you do not give any turn signal on approach and you give the right turn signal before leaving the roundabout.

If you are leaving the roundabout by the 3rd (or higher) exit, give the left turn signal on approach. The right turn signal is not given again until you leave the roundabout.

What is the practice? We have never seen any Greek driver giving any indication of a change of direction at a roundabout.

Traffic and road quality

Greek roads are in below average condition by European standards.

Only some sections of motorways and main roads are of good quality, but many roads on islands or in the countryside are poorly maintained. For example, horizontal markings are often missing and potholes in the middle of the road are not uncommon.

Signage is, however, quite good and clear and most of the text is in Greek alphabet and Latin.

In villages and towns, expect narrow and winding streets.

Traffic tends to be very heavy in the summer season in all coastal areas and on the islands.

Toll

Tolls on motorways and multi-lane main roads are common in Greece - most motorways are tolled.

Different motorways are operated by different companies, detailed information and exact prices can always be found on the individual company websites, which are listed below.

How do I pay tolls in Greece?

Tolls are collected at toll gates per section driven, meaning that for a longer journey across Greece you may pass through more than 10 toll gates.

Payment can always be made by cash or credit card.

Some car rental companies may have on-board units installed in their cars, with which you can drive in separate lanes without having to stop. The toll will then be charged to your credit card.

However, the usual practice is that rental companies do not have these on-board units and you pay the toll by card or cash at the toll booth.

Toll prices in Greece

Each stretch is charged at a different amount, but generally speaking you will pay on average around 9 eur per 100 km.

Where are the toll sections and how do I find out the exact price?

All motorways are tolled, as well as some roads with multiple lanes in one direction.

Here are the motorway operators' websites to find out the exact prices:

• Aegean Motorway
  • Thessaloniki - Lamia (A1 motorway)
  • aegeanmotorway.gr
• Kentriki Odos
  • Section around Lamia (A1 motorway)
  • Lamia - Trikala - Kalambaka / Meteora (A3 motorway)
  • kentrikiodos.gr
• Nea Odos
  • Athens - Lamia (A1 motorway)
  • Patras - Arta - Terovo - Ioannina (A5 motorway)
  • neaodos.gr
• Attiki Odos
  • Athens northern bypass airport - Elefsina (A6 motorway)
  • aodos.gr
• Olympia Odos
  • Athens - Corinthos - Patras (A8 motorway)
  • Rio Bridge - Antirio
  • olympiaodos.gr
• Moreas Odos
  • Corinthos - Kalamata
  • moreas.com.gr
• Egnatia Odos
  • Tyria (Ioannina) - Kozani - Thessaloniki - Kavala - Alexandroupoli - border with Turkey (A2 motorway)
  • Thessaloniki - Promachonas - border with Bulgaria (A25 road)
  • Polykastro - Evzonoi - border with Northern Macedonia (A1 motorway)
  • Ieropigi - border with Albania (A27 motorway)
  • Aktio Tunnel - Preveza
  • egnatia.eu