Page 304 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Greek Islands

PRACTICAL
INFORMATION

NEED TO KNOW Practical Information find all the essential advice and information you will need during your stay.
A little local know-how goes a long way in the Greek Islands. Here you will

Personal Security
AT A GLANCE
Overall island crime rates are low, although car
EMERGENCY NUMBERS
break-ins are an increasing problem on both
Athens and in the island groups. If you suffer a
TOURIST POLICE
theft or are assaulted, report the crime as soon
(ATHENS ONLY)
POLICE
as possible to your nearest police station or
tourist police, if a branch exists on the island.
1571
100
The tourist police – often just one person
inside the main police station – should be
consulted for issues with taxi drivers, hoteliers,
shops and tavernas; they wear a uniform and
AMBULANCE FIRE speak at least one foreign language.
Pickpocketing is rife in the cities of Athens
166 171 and Thessaloníki, particularly on crowded buses
such as the X95 buses from the airport in Athens
to Sýndagma. Monastiráki station on the
Piraeus–Kifisiá metro line is notorious as a spot
targeted by thieves. If you are coming from
Piraeus (the port) towards the centre with
TIME ZONE luggage, it’s recommended to alight at Néo
EET/EEST: Eastern Fáliro, walk the short distance to the SEF
European Summer
Time runs from the last (Stathmós Irínis ke Filías) station, and continue
Sunday in March to the into town on a tram.
last Sunday in October.
Health
TAP WATER Pharmacies, indicated by a green cross,
Unless otherwise have both conventional and homeopathic
stated, tap water in the remedies available at accessible prices without
Greek Islands is safe to prescriptions. When they are shut, there will be
drink, though usually
extremely hard. Spring a duty pharmacist elsewhere (the rota should
water is avidly collected be posted on the door).
and the best fountains Emergency medical care is free for EU
often have queues. nationals with an EHIC (p299) at state-run clinics
or hospitals, provided you enter via the casualty
ward. If you have an EHIC card, be sure to
TIPPING present this as soon as possible.
For visitors outside the EU, payment of
Waiter 10 per cent medical expenses is the patient’s responsibility.
Organizing comprehensive medical insurance
before your trip is essential, as private doctors
Taxi Drivers Round up the bill or clinics are expensive.
Porters and
Chambermaids €2 each day of stay Smoking, Alcohol and Drugs
Concierge €1–2 In 2010, Greece introduced a law officially
banning smoking in enclosed public spaces,

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