Internet in Greece: A Traveller's Guide

Updated: October 2026

Short answer: Roaming on a non-EU SIM is pricey, buying a local SIM means registering with your passport, and the Greece eSIM costs a few euros, needs no registration and is installed before you board. Here are the details.

Your options

1. Roaming with your home SIM: Greece is in the EU, but EU roaming only helps EU SIMs. A UK line pays here since 2021, by a daily fee or a capped allowance depending on the carrier; a US, Canadian or Australian line pays an international day pass, roughly ten dollars a day, or steep pay-as-you-go rates. Either way the cost per GB is many times the eSIM's, and overage fees are the real risk (our roaming vs eSIM guide).

2. Local SIM: Cosmote, Vodafone and Nova shops sell tourist SIMs. But SIM registration is compulsory in Greece: you go to a shop with your passport and fill in a form. Finding a dealer in an island town and waiting your turn takes an hour out of your holiday.

3. eSIM: You install it at home, on Wi-Fi; no registration, no passport. When you land in Greece, the phone connects to one of the local networks by itself.

Coverage, honestly

• Athens, Thessaloniki and the popular islands (Rhodes, Crete, Santorini, Mykonos, Corfu) have strong coverage; 5G is common in the big cities and on the busy islands.
• Small coves and mountain villages can lose signal; download the map before a beach day.
• On the ferry: Near the coast the phone picks up the Greek land network; in open water the signal drops. Ferry "satellite Wi-Fi" is usually paid and slow, so book your next crossing while you are still in port, whether that is Piraeus, Rafina or an island harbour.

Practical tips

• Wi-Fi is common in tavernas and cafés but slows down in island hotels in the evening; keep mobile data as a backup.
• On the islands closest to Turkey (Kos, Rhodes, Samos, Lesbos) your phone may pick up a Turkish network: switch data roaming off for your home line, or you meet a non-EU roaming charge.
• Island hopping? Our Greek Islands route guide walks through the ferry scenario step by step; for Athens plus the mainland, see the Greece Tour.

Ready? See the Greece eSIM plans: from a 1 GB weekend plan to monthly options.