Travel First, Live Later: Greece for Nomads and Expats

As someone who travelled the world in my 20s before settling down in my 30s, I'm a big advocate of 'travel first, live later' aka travel around the country you have your eye on before fully committing to living there. Why? Because sometimes the dream is better than the reality and it's better to know that before you go through all the hassle of visas and securing long-term accommodation.

Guide to Travelling Around Greece

Further, travelling the country gives you the opportunity to find the best place for you, as well as, sometimes, emulating stressful situations - put simply, if you can travel in a country and deal with the stress of not knowing where you'll be sleeping, you can probably deal with the stress of moving and living there. Today we're going to be specifically talking about living after travelling in Greece. Let's get started:

Getting around Greece

Cycling and walking are ideal in the cities or places like Corfu's Old Town or Nafplio. Buses and trains connect cities whilst ferries connect between the islands (and if they're big enough, the buses go on the ferries too!) Public transport in Greece is pretty well connected, reasonably cheap, sometimes efficient - but that's part of the charm, you can have a lot of fun on public transport in Greece. Car rentals might be more appropriate for you if you want to explore rural areas or off-the-beaten-path locations, but please do consider the environmental impacts of cars. If you don't want to live in a place where a car is an absolute necessity, you might not need to travel around with a car.

Where to Go

This will depend on the type of place you want to live in the future. If you already know whether you're a city rat or an island soul you'll have an easier job deciding - if you don't know yet don't worry, explore a mixture whilst visiting Greece and see what works for you:

• Cities: Athens (history and culture), Thessaloniki (food and nightlife);
• Islands: Santorini (romance), Crete (diverse landscapes), Naxos (family-friendly), or Ikaria (for slow living);
• Mainland highlights: Meteora monasteries, Delphi ruins, or Pelion for nature lovers.

What to Do in Greece

There's so much to do in Greece and again it will depend on what you're into. History buffs will love ancient ruins in Acropolis and Olympia whereas hikers simply need to go to Mount Olympus and Samaria Gorge! Beach hoppers will probably find themselves enjoying sailing and scuba diving. Whatever you're into, I encourage you to take part in cultural experiences like traditional dance nights, pottery workshops, walking tours and cooking classes.

Must Eats whilst travelling in Greece:

• Veganised moussaka;
• Gemista (stuffed peppers and tomatoes);
• Fasolada (bean soup);
• Dolmades (stuffed vine leaves);
• Spinach pies (spanakopita without cheese);
• Falafel wraps;
• Loukoumades (vegan doughnuts);
• Halva and baklava (check for honey alternatives!)

Tips: Mention asking for 'nistisimo' (Lenten food) for vegan options in traditional tavernas.

Insurance for Greece

Last but most importantly, whilst you're travelling around Greece you're going to need some good expat travel insurance. This is an absolute must to protect you when it comes to general healthcare and unexpected accidents. Think carefully about what you want when it comes to routine care, emergency evacuation and legal support.

For some people it's very important to check whether or not you will be covered for repatriation - for those who have no family or friends left at home or don't believe in an afterlife it's less important. Similarly (in that it will matter to some people but not others), there's the consideration of whether or not your insurance covers not just you but your expensive items too.

Guide to Living in Greece

So you've done the travelling around Greece and now you're ready to settle down. Travelling is of course different to living in Greece, so what are some new things to think about:

A checklist of crucial details:

• Opening a local bank account: depending on your living situation and your work situation this might not be a necessity, you might be able to use a travel card like Wise or Revolut for this;
• Understanding basic tax rules: which is a must no matter where you are. Check back home too, because some countries will still require you to pay taxes at home even if you've moved abroad
• Enrolling in health services or private care;
• Finding accommodation and learning about renting or mortgages in Greece.

Think About Your Visa

We need to talk about your visa too. When you're only travelling around just a Schengen visa will be enough as this allows you to stay in the EU (which Greece is part of) for up to three months. Schengen visas are super easy or super hard to get depending on where you are from, unfortunately. Once you've decided to live in Greece a Schengen visa won't cut it any more (unless you're from the EU in which case you don't need a visa to live or work in Greece, you're lucky and can stay as long as you like). For everyone else you will be looking into either a work visa, retirement visa or a studying visa (p. s. work visas include freelance and remote work).

Think About Your Loved Ones

Consider emotional and practical aspects of moving to Greece. When it comes to family and friends back at home, it can be hard to manage long-distance relationships, although nowadays our modern apps make that a lot easier. When it comes to networking in Greece think about joining groups that share your interests, learning Greece for ease of integrations and, of course, joining vegan meetups to meet other people who care about animals.

Conclusion

I heavily encourage you to explore Greece fully through travel before committing to living there (as I would for any place). Of course, this is absolutely not feasible for everyone but then you would have probably not read this whole post.

No matter whether you're just living in Greece or travelling in Greece please try to embrace Greek culture, nature and lifestyle, whilst also sharing yours! (Second photo by Arthur Yeti on Unsplash)

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ABOUTME

We overland. We eat plants and fungi. We live outside as much as possible. We are all connected. A female travel blogger overlanding and writing about ecotourism, ethical and sustainable travel, socially conscious travel and housesitting. An online travel magazine since 2015.