14 Common Tourist Scams to Avoid in Greece

With stunning beaches, superb weather, unique cuisine, historic locations and hospitable people, there are a million reasons to visit Greece. Being a cradle of Western civilisation, it is a wonderful destination to visit all year round. According to recent data, tourists travelling to Greece exceeded 1 million in the first quarter of 2023.

Like other countries, touristscams in Greece are a common experience, and you must know tips and tricks to avoid falling into the traps of the scammers.

Practically every tourist destination on this planet has its own set of tourist scams that people should be aware of, and Greece is no exception. Listed below are some of the top scams in Greece.

1. Photography Scam

Photography scam is one of the most common tourist scams in Greece. In this scenario, a local/ stranger will request you to take a picture of them and hand their camera to you. 

After you click a picture and return it, they will purposefully drop it and blame you for breaking their camera. They will demand money for the same and harass you if you disagree to pay.

Common Around: Athens, Santorini, Mykonos, Corfu and Rhodes.

2. Friendly Local Scam

In this situation, a local approaches you under the guise of being friendly. This person will offer to help you with suggestions for top attractions, restaurants and directions and convince you to take him as your guide. 

It is a trick to get close to tourists and steal valuables when they are distracted. 

Common Around: Athens, Corfu and Santorini

3. Taxi Scam

Taxi drivers in Greece take advantage of tourists not knowing their way around the location. Some of their tricks include overcharging, taking on another person along with you, and taking you to a tour operator or restaurant where they get a commission from. If you disagree with any of these, they will create a scene.

Common Around: Mainly near the airport areas and the famous tourist places in Greece.

4. Friendly ATM Help Scam

Another popular tourist scam in and around Greece is the friendly ATM help fraudery, where a person offers to help you when he notices you having an issue with your card. However, these tricksters intend to scan your credit or debit card with a card skimmer and view your PIN and other confidential details. They can empty your account moments after you leave the ATM.

Common Around: Most of the ATM centres in Greece

5. Bar Friends Scam

Bar friend fraud is one of the common scams in Santorini. 'Friendly' locals will approach you and suggest a bar or restaurant of their choice and invite you to have a drink with them. As you fall into this trap, you end up paying high bills for the drinks your 'friends' have had, too! 

Well, you will never find all these 'friends' around you when paying the bill. They were all working as a team to trick you.

Common Around: Athens, Santorini and Rhodes

6. Guessing Game Scam

Guessing game scam is perhaps one of the most common scams prevalent in most foreign countries. In this scenario, you are attracted to a group of people playing a game where one has to guess the correct answer. 

Remember, the group of people are all part of the scam as they work in a team. As they attempt to distract you with their show, they pickpocket you.

Common Around: Athens

7. Pigeon Drop Scam

One of the common tourist scams in Athens is the pigeon drop scam. Here, you will suddenly find a pigeon poop falling on you from behind. As you become busy cleaning yourself up, a man offers to help you, too. 

You get distracted by the conversation, and he pickpockets you. It was a fake bird poop that he had thrown on you to trap you.

Common Around: Syntagma Square in Athens

8. Vehicle Rent Fraudery

In this scam, you rent a motorbike, travel to the tourist spots and park your vehicle as usual. After you return, you see your vehicle broken, and the rental firm accuses you of damaging the vehicle and demands money for the repairs. 

The trick here is that an employee might have trailed you and damaged the rental when you were busy exploring the location.

Common Around: Most tourist locations in Greece.

9. Pickpocketing

Athens in Greece is a hotspot for thieves and pickpockets. The places to get pickpocketed are at the metro, on public buses and in a waiting line. Be aware if you find someone suddenly stumbling into you in a crowd. 

In trains, you will find well-dressed men crowding between you and the door and purposely blocking the way so that you need to push through them to pass. They intend to pickpocket you.

Common Around: Omonia, Metaxourgio, Monastiraki and Syntagma in Athens.

10. Mobile Snatchers

In this trick, a scammer approaches you, asking for the time. When an unsuspecting tourist takes out his mobile phone to look, this trickster snatches it and runs away. When you notice such a person approaching you, simply avoid having a conversation and move away from that place.

Common Around: Most tourist spots in Greece

11. Fake Policeman

One of the common scams in Greece and also in other countries, in this trick, plain-clothes police impersonators stop unsuspecting tourists on the street. They will then showcase a fake police badge and ask to see your passport or identity card. 

Next, they will ask to see the money you have on you and change it with the counterfeit money that they had while you were distracted.

Common Around: Athens and Santorini

12. Toy Scam

Prevalent in local restaurants around Greece, you will notice people wandering around the restaurant and putting things on the table, such as flowers or toys. Once you take these or even just pick them up, they will demand you to pay money!

Common Around: Local restaurants in and around Greece.

13. Fake Trip Scam

Selling fake trip tickets is perhaps the most common tourist scam in Greece. Local tourist operators will trick you by explaining that they are selling tickets to an island at a discounted rate. 

Once you fall prey to such advances, you pay for it only to find that these trips never existed! The tour operator will never contact you back.

Common Around: Athens, Santorini and Rhodes

14. Free Gifts and Roses Scam

There will be people wandering around the tourist spots with buckets of roses and other 'gifts'. You'll see them giving them out to people, and as you happily accept them, they'll expect you to pay for it. They work in groups. 

So, if you disagree, they will create a scene.

Common Around: Athens, Rhodes, Santorini

Before making your travel plans, it is essential to avail travel insurance to Greece before you begin your journey. This will ensure the safety of your finances if there is an unexpected event arising.

• If you see someone approaching you and trying to be friendly or requesting you to click their photo, avoid indulging in any conversation with that person.
• If you lose your passport in Greece, you can get it replaced by the Indian embassy in Greece.
• Request the taxi drivers to turn on the meter. Refuse their suggestions and insist that they take you to your intended destination.
• When entering an ATM and using it, cover the keypad when entering your PIN to prevent someone or hidden cameras from capturing the details.
• Avoid visiting a restaurant suggested by a 'friendly' local. Ensure to research the place before visiting it. Also, ask for the bar menu so you can see the prices yourself before making a purchase.
• When you are in crowded areas or on public transport, sling your bag on the front of your body to avoid pickpocketing.
• Keep your debit/credit card in a secure place to avoid pickpocketing.
• Opting for travel insurance with a financial emergency cash plan rescues you in emergencies in a foreign land.
• If you are unsure whether a person claiming to be a police officer is the one, ask for their ID as well. Ask him to take you to the station instead of giving them money on the street.

If you face unforeseen or challenging situations when in Greece, you can always contact the tourist police by dialling the emergency number 112.

Below are some more necessary contacts which are useful to have in case of any emergencies when in this country:

• Ambulance - 166
• Fire Department - 199
• Police - 100
• Anti-drug Police - 109
• Coast Guard - 108
• Tourist Police - 171
• Pharmacies - 107
• Hospitals – 106
• Embassy of India, Athens, Greece - 00 30 210 7216227 & 30 210 7216481

So, now you have an idea about the common tourist scams in Greece that are also prevalent in other foreign countries but with different approaches. Follow the tips and tricks mentioned above to avoid falling prey to such scams. Also, research about a particular location and read reviews before visiting it. Keep the details of the local embassy and the police station in case any emergency arises.