Souvenirs/Budget/Food

You do not mention where in Greece you will be going. Like many places, cities are more expensive while smaller towns and villages are less so. 40e per day should be a good ballpark for tourist spots, especially if you have breakfast covered at your hotel. Coffee drinks will be 3-5e; snacks/meze about the same. Street food/souvlaki about 5-7e. Fruit and vegetables at markets are quite affordable and supermarkets have prices comparable to the US. This will leave you a nice amout for a multi course dinner with wine or beer. (Toiletries are much more expensive.)

Re gifts: you can find official logo/sport team shirts for high prices (40e +). There will also be lots of knock off shirts and generic Greece shirts for cheap. Touristy places will have lots of small souvenirs like magnets or small dishes. Another good gift item would be small sponge and olive oil soap gift sets. They are usually boxed nicely and are compact and unbreakable.

You will dine pretty well in Greece. We often filled on breakfast as we loved the Greek yogurt. There is usually a large bowl of very thick stuff which we ate generously with fruit. By the time lunch arrived, we often just had a souvlaki or a Greek salad. If you’ll be there when tomatoes are in season do not miss the Greek salad. Those tomatoes are the best you will ever eat! For dinner mousaka and similar dishes can be had for 7-9 Euros, fish a bit more. Wine is very cheap as is Mythos beer. Restaurant inflation is rampant in the US (we eat out often and are astounded by the rising prices) so Greece continues to be a dining bargain. We are not souvenir people but for our daughters we found many nice earrings which were inexpensive. Magnets and T-shirts are fine but they will be made in China. Olive oil soap is well made, local usually and inexpensive. Buy toward the end of your trip as it’s heavy!

Sorry about not mentioning where I will be staying. I will be in Santorini, Paros, and Athens. Also, I don't really drink, especially when I am alone, I am on medicine that makes me have very low tolerance for alcohol so don't drink unless at home or with others.

Thank you for the idea of olive oil soaps. I think that would actually work for some of the people I need/want to buy for.

Here is a place we dined in Athens twice. Near the Acropolis. You can navigate to the menu and see prices (except fish which varies). Maybe on the high end as a touristed area http://www.gods-restaurant.com/en/paradosiaki-kouzina/

You will find prices far below what you will pay in the US. In fact you can eat very well even in Athens and touristy islands like Santorini, if you go to where locals tend to go rather than tourists.

A great place to eat in Athens is in the Psiri District where locals tend to outnumber tourists. Authentic Greek food at great prices.

A classic street food in Athens is a Gyro at 2/euros which is a bargain. I've had them in the US that are over priced and don't come close to the quality you get in Greece.

T-shirts will be sold all over Greece. There will be numerous tourist shops with tacky stuff but every now and then you'll find a good shop with quality products. Prices will vary from shop to shop so don't buy the first one you see or in fact the first of anything you see until you see other prices.

There are quality Greek products including soap, skin lotion, packaged food, etc.

To save on eating out all the time I stop at local markets and buy cheese, olives, baked goods, etc. and have them for lunch. For the most part I only eat out at night, but occasionally will pay for lunch like a Gyro and Beer for around 5 euros.

Here are some links to help with food and souvenirs:

http://www.greecetravel.com/greek-food/index.html

https://www.athensguide.com/gifts.html

Thanks for the tips and advice! This is why I love posting on this forum!

Bargain!! If you're buying one magnet and one bar of soap, it won't work. But if you're buying several things, you can always knock the price down. But first do some comparison shopping so you know what the asking prices are.

Souvenirs: Worry Beads-- https://www.google.com/search?q=greek+worry+beads+history&ie=&oe=
-- come in all prices, sizes and material, but €5-6 is what I spent. More unique to Greece than a T-shirt, and recipient can have the fun of learning how to manipulate. Another easy-to-carry-home option are bookmarks. Get ones with pictures of places you visited.

Hi!!

That's awesome, you are going to some of the best destinations in Greece especially when it comes to food!!!
When you go out to a restaurant be prepared to pay at least 15-20 per person. Have in mind that in this total I have calculated a salad, a dish, 2-3 appetizers and maybe a beer or wine glass. The price depends on the place you are visiting as it was mentioned above. When you want a table with a view, usually you pay the equivalent amount.

Greece is definitely not cheap, especially not Athens. Clubs charge around €20 entrance fees. The Acropolis will cost you around €20 to enter and walk around + extra 5€ for the museum. 55€ would be the cost if you are going for budget travel in Athens, it is doable. If you are looking for a budget lunch: Caesar or Greek salad: 4€-5€, Fresh sandwich: 4€, Toasted cheese sandwich: 2.20€,
Pita kebab: 2.50€-3€, Souvlaki (pita bread, fried potatoes, vegetable, chicken) with gyro meat: 2€-4€

A basic Greek meal/dish can cost 5-10€. An upscale burger with fries is about 6€-9€.
The prices I wrote are from what I can remember in several restaurants in Athens. When on the islands, things change upwards...

Here are some ideas for gifts you could take back home
Top 10 greek souvenirs to take back home

I’m in Athens at the moment and yesterday spent (without drink) 8 euros on a substantial ‘soufflé’ - actually baked pasta, ham and egg with a cheese top - for lunch and 13 for a huge sausage, fried peppers and roast potatoes for dinner. These were both little neighbourhood places outside the centre.

Around Plaka I’d expect to spend more like 20 on an evening meal, so your 40 euros is about right.

Alan

Everyone has there own idea of what's "cheap" depending on your income.

Where you go to eat makes a difference. Expect higher prices in tourist areas and much lower prices for where the locals go.

Since I'm not a bar hopper I don't have to worry about entrance fees to a bar.

The multi-pass ticket for the Acropolis includes the Agora, Kerimikos Cemetery, Hadrian's Library/Roman Agora, and Temple to Zeus. At 30 euros it's a bargain to see some of the best world-class archeological sites anywhere in the world!

I've eaten in Athens and all over Greece for less than 12 euros for a full meal which includes 1/4 carafe of house wine. Sometimes I'll splurge but the most I've ever paid for a meal is 13 euros for a seafood medley which included calamari, swordfish, small fish, fried potatoes, octopus, salad and bread. Thrown in a 1/4 carafe of wine an it came to just a bit over 15 euros!