Getting There
With a total of 66 Airports, Greece has never been more accessible. Greece is well served by charter and scheduled airlines. Many airlines fly direct to airports on the islands, but it is always possible to fly in to Athens and either take a connecting flight or ferry. Major airlines serving Greece include: Air Scotland, British Airways, Excel Airways, easyJet, flyglobespan, KLM, My Travel Airways, Olympic Airlines, Thomsonfly and Thomas Cook Airlines. Flights are easy to obtain between islands or from Athens to the islands. Olympic Airlines and Aegean Airlines fly domestically.

Passports / Visas
British and all other EU passport holders travelling to Greece do not require a visa provided that the passport is valid for the intended period of stay in Greece. British Passport holders are permitted to stay in Greece up to the last day of the validity of their passports. There is no requirement for the passport to be valid longer than the period of stay in Greece. Children up to the age of 16 are permitted to travel to Greece on their parents’ passport.

Restaurants
Restaurants and tavernas serve up a large variety of Greek specialities such as dolmades, feta cheese salads, squid, moussaka, souvlaki and, of course, the fresh catch of the day.

Greeks say that pleasure and happiness passes through the stomach, thus food and drink are very important. Bread is served with most meals, and Greeks will often eat the bread with Tzatziki as opposed to butter. Tzatziki is a yoghurt dish served with cucumbers and garlic.

Without doubt, the restaurants in Samos are extremely proud of their fish, which is nearly always caught fresh that day. The food is extremely reasonably priced and it is a tradition on the island to feed the fish bread when eating by the water. Shoals of small fish will flock to the morsels much to the diners delight.

Social Etiquette
Greeks are very demonstrative and affectionate. Nodding your head “yes” is not polite; say “yes” instead. “Yes” is signified by a slight downward nod of the head; “no” is a slight upward nod of the head. It can also be useful to remember the “O.K.” sign is a rude gesture; “thumbs up” means O.K.

Legal System
The Greek legal system is a member of the family of European laws and is especially influenced by German and French law. Based on codified Roman law; judiciary divided into civil, criminal, and administrative courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations.

Money
The currency of Greece is the Euro. There are numerous ATM’s on the island and most hotels will also change Sterling to Euros at the reception. Most items are cheaper than the UK and tipping is normal but should be no more than 10%.