Safety in Greece: what overland travellers should know

Our summary of the country advice published by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Viaggiare Sicuri) on 9 August 2026.

Safety

Wildfires — Recent summers have brought particularly violent fires that in some cases killed residents and tourists, and large outbreaks are frequent through the season. Be careful in wooded areas, follow local media and the Greek civil protection site, which publishes fire-risk maps, and note the government app that lists assembly points.
Earthquakes — Seismic activity is high across the country at varying intensities, with the most active zones recently being the Cephalonia–Zakynthos–western Peloponnese arc, Kythira–Crete and the Dodecanese, the Gulf of Corinth and the northern Aegean. The state of emergency declared for Santorini, Anafi, Ios and Amorgos after the 2025 tremors ended on 15 May 2025 and preventive civil protection measures replaced it. On Santorini and some smaller islands the power can also cut out without warning.
Demonstrations and strikes — Protests and strikes, public sector ones in particular, remain likely and can spill into disorder and violence. In Athens they concentrate on Syntagma Square in front of parliament, Omonia and the adjoining Panepistimiou and Akademias streets, the Exarchia district, where anarchist groups are sometimes violent, and around the Polytechnic.
Theft — Petty crime against tourists is up, with wallets and documents taken both in the busy tourist areas and on public transport, above all the metro to and from Athens airport; break-ins at holiday accommodation are also rising. In Athens watch your belongings around Monastiraki and Plaka. Do not leave your vehicle overnight in unattended car parks, especially in the capital, keep documents and luggage out of a parked car, and consider cover against fire and vandalism.
Thrace — Take care when visiting Thrace and do not leave the main roads.
No lifts to strangers — If you are travelling in your own vehicle, and particularly when boarding a ferry back to Italy, do not give lifts to strangers even for payment and do not team up with people you have just met. The risk is ending up connected to drug or stolen-vehicle trafficking, or facing charges of assisting illegal immigration or conspiracy to smuggle — offences Greece treats as very serious and punishes severely.

Before you rely on this

This is our summary of advice written by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Italian travellers, published on 9 August 2026. We summarise in good faith, but we cannot guarantee it is accurate, current or complete, and we take no responsibility for decisions made on the basis of it. Rules change without notice and are applied by officials at the border, not by websites. Always read the original source and the travel advice your own government publishes for Greece before you travel. GuideMeet has no way of checking whether an individual guide meets any standard mentioned here — ask them directly.

Source: Viaggiare Sicuri — Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, updated 9 August 2026. Last checked by GuideMeet on 2026-09-20.