bigfootwanders
Where to go in January / Greece / January

A good place. At the right time.

Greece
in January.

Is January a good time?

Temperature unit

Only 1 of 13 scored regions rates very good or better for weather: Athens & Attica.

National overnight stays are 5% of the August peak.

Regional afternoon highs
46–60°F
Very good weather
1 / 13 regions

Check seasonal openings: 7 regions have an off-season warning this month.

Find your January base

Based on 13 statistical regions. Typical conditions, not a forecast for individual towns.

Illustration of Oia, Santorini: caldera, blue-domed church and whitewashed lanes
Oia, SantoriniDestination view, not month-specific.

One month. 13 possibilities.

Choose your January base.

The useful differences, side by side. Open a region for its full month guide.

What matters most?

Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%

Trip focus

13 of 13 regions · Best weather first

Overall scores use the Balanced mix. Choose a different priority to order the regions by that mix.

Illustration of Temple of Poseidon on Cape Sounion above the AegeanCityAthens & AtticaAthens · Acropolis · Cape SounionRead the January guide ↗ Overall8.0/10#8 month here · Balanced Weather7.0/10Very good56°F afternoons · 7 rain days Visitor seasonLow seasonvs its own yearLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Kastoria waterfront on Lake OrestiadaMountainsWestern MacedoniaKastoriaRead the January guide ↗ Overall7.0/10#11 month here · Balanced Weather5.3/10Good46°F afternoons · 7 rain days Visitor seasonModerate seasonvs its own yearNear usual price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Vikos Gorge from the Oxya viewpointMountainsEpirusIoannina · Zagori · PargaRead the January guide ↗ Overall7.0/10#9 month here · Balanced Weather5.0/10Good51°F afternoons · 13 rain days Visitor seasonLow seasonvs its own yearLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Balos Lagoon from the high footpath viewpointBeachCreteChania · HeraklionRead the January guide ↗ Overall5.4/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather4.5/10Fair60°F afternoons · 11 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Sarakiniko volcanic coast on MilosBeachSantorini, Mykonos & the Greek islandsSantorini · Mykonos · Rhodes · Kos · Naxos · Paros · MilosRead the January guide ↗ Overall5.2/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather4.1/10Fair60°F afternoons · 13 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Dense Vathia tower settlement in the Inner ManiBeachPeloponneseNafplio · Mani · MonemvasiaRead the January guide ↗ Overall5.2/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather3.5/10Fair56°F afternoons · 9 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Porto Timoni double beach below Afionas, CorfuBeachCorfu & the Ionian IslandsCorfu · Zakynthos · Kefalonia · LefkadaRead the January guide ↗ Overall4.8/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather3.2/10Fair58°F afternoons · 14 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Molyvos on Lesvos viewed across an olive groveBeachNorth Aegean islandsLesbos · Chios · Samos · LemnosRead the January guide ↗ Overall4.6/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather2.9/10Poor57°F afternoons · 11 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Geography-first Delphi sanctuary panorama on Mount ParnassusBeachCentral Greece & EviaDelphi · EviaRead the January guide ↗ Overall4.8/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather2.8/10Poor54°F afternoons · 10 rain days Visitor seasonLow seasonvs its own yearLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Geology-dominant Meteora panorama above KastrakiBeachMeteora, Pelion & the SporadesMeteora · Pelion · Skiathos · SkopelosRead the January guide ↗ Overall4.7/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather2.7/10Poor53°F afternoons · 8 rain days Visitor seasonLow seasonvs its own yearLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Messolonghi salt pans and lagoon at twilightBeachWestern GreecePatras · OlympiaRead the January guide ↗ Overall4.6/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather2.6/10Poor56°F afternoons · 11 rain days Visitor seasonLow seasonvs its own yearLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Thessaloniki White Tower and Thermaic Gulf promenadeBeachThessaloniki & HalkidikiThessaloniki · HalkidikiRead the January guide ↗ Overall4.4/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather2.5/10Poor51°F afternoons · 7 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level Illustration of Nestos River meanders from the Galani and Toxotes high viewpointBeachEastern Macedonia & ThraceKavala · ThassosRead the January guide ↗ Overall3.9/10#12 month here · Balanced Weather1.9/10Poor50°F afternoons · 8 rain days Visitor seasonOff seasonmany places closedLower price seasonhistorical estimated seasonal pattern; national price level

Cost words compare a published regional accommodation level with Greece's typical level, or describe a region's price season against its own year. The Cost score still uses Greece's price level on the Europe scale; where regional money levels are unavailable, a cheaper season does not establish which region has the cheapest rooms.

What goes into the scores?

Overall combines weather, crowds and cost. It is not a weather rating. By default, the list ranks weather first and shows Balanced Overall scores (50% weather, 30% crowds, 20% cost). Other priorities order it by your Overall mix. Missing cost is excluded and the available parts are reweighted.

Visitor season compares each region with its own year. A higher crowd score does not establish which place has fewer people in absolute terms. Regions cover whole statistical areas; open a guide for its geographic scope. Read the scoring method.

Weather across the country

January weather & packing.

Regional averages vary; check a forecast closer to your trip.

Typical afternoons
46–60°F
Typical nights
29–50°F
Rain days
7–14 days

Ranges span available regional monthly averages, not daily extremes. A dash means a measurement is unavailable or withheld; individual guides explain the gaps.

What to bring.

Santorini, Mykonos & the Greek islands: afternoons around 60°F (16°C): light layers; nights around 50°F (10°C): a sweater and a light jacket. Bring rain gear: about 13 days with at least 1 mm of rain. Western Macedonia: afternoons around 46°F (8°C): a warm coat; nights around 29°F (−1°C): a winter coat, hat and gloves.

Weather, region by region Afternoons, nights, rain & weather
Available regional monthly averages. Very good weather means a displayed score of at least 7.0/10.
RegionAfternoonNightRain daysWeather
Athens & Attica56°F43°F7very good
Western Macedonia46°F29°F7good
Epirus51°F36°F13good
Crete60°F47°F11fair
Santorini, Mykonos & the Greek islands60°F50°F13fair
Peloponnese56°F—9fair
Corfu & the Ionian Islands58°F—14fair
North Aegean islands57°F46°F11poor
Central Greece & Evia54°F39°F10poor
Meteora, Pelion & the Sporades53°F—8poor
Western Greece56°F42°F11poor
Thessaloniki & Halkidiki51°F36°F7poor
Eastern Macedonia & Thrace50°F35°F8poor

Before you go

Check the trip details.

The visitor season

Off season, nationally.

January records 5% of August's overnight stays. This measures overnight demand, not queues or day-trippers.

Hotel prices

Well below usual.

−16% on Greece's historical national hotel-price index, versus its usual month in 2024–2025. This describes a price season, not a live room quote.

The national index cannot tell you which region has the cheapest rooms.

Thinking about the coast?

Check the water, too.

Among beach-focused regions, the warmest measured seas this month are Santorini, Mykonos & the Greek islands (63°F), Crete (63°F), Peloponnese (62°F). Sea temperature is one part of a beach trip; open a region for weather and seasonal closures.

Events & holiday dates Check the year against your trip

Holidays: 23% of people in Greece live where schools are out on a typical January 2027 day. Public holidays: 1 Jan New Year's Day; 6 Jan Epiphany. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL, and the official calendars.)

Same country. A different chapter.

Dates still up in the air?

Greece through the year ↗

January is fixed, but the destination isn't? Find somewhere else in Europe ↗

How we know Sources, scope & limitations

Each row is a statistical region (NUTS 2); open it for the full month, the sources and what moving your dates would change. National lines are built from the regions: season is Greece's total tourist nights this month against its busiest month (Eurostat, primarily 2024–2025; earlier published years where needed); weather counts regions whose displayed Weather score is at least 7.0/10 (very good or better) rather than averaging across the country; visitors ranks overnight visitors per resident against all Europe's regions (for a region) or the other countries (for Greece) that month.

A regional accommodation level is shown only where publishable money data exists; elsewhere the cost words describe a regional season against its own year, and the score starts from the national price level. Separately, Greece's 2024 restaurants-and-hotels level is below EU average (86 where the EU average is 100). Full method.