From the school bench we know that Greece is the cradle of European civilization. And the capital of this country, the city of Athens, has three thousand years of eventful history behind it. But only if we come to Greece during the tourist season, we don’t have enough spirit to get acquainted with the sights - it’s too hot. In the subtropics, you want to stay on the seashore, swim in warm waves, sunbathe on the beach. So it turns out that Athens remains a "city of transit". Many tourists do not even leave the airport, but take a plane and rush to the islands or mainland seaside resorts in Greece. But what about historical and cultural attractions? In this article, we will discuss whether it is worth going to Athens in January. How does the birthplace of the Olympic Games, the city of the gods and the open-air museum meet tourists in the dead of winter?
Where Athens is located
The capital of Greece has now turned into a metropolis. UrbanThe Athens agglomeration has more than 3,100,000 people. That is, every third citizen of Greece can consider himself a resident of the capital. But back in the 1830s, after the Ottoman yoke, Athens was a small provincial village! The modern metropolis stretches to the coast of the Aegean Sea, including the ancient port of Piraeus in the city limits. But you can swim on the municipal beaches of Athens only out of desperation. The coast is diligently cleaned by special services, but people litter twice as fast. But when you arrive in Athens in January, you will find clean and, most importantly, deserted beaches. True, you can swim in the sea only if you are a seasoned nature. Athens lies in the extreme south of mainland Greece. From the north, the capital is reliably sheltered from the cold winds by mountains. It is not for nothing that people founded a settlement on a hill three thousand years before our era. They counted on a favorable climate.
Greece, Athens: weather in January
Winter in this city can be compared to September in Moscow. After all, the climate in Athens, according to the Köppen classification, is subtropical semi-desert. Summer here is hot, and even too hot. This circumstance becomes the reason that the beach tourist leaves home without visiting the Acropolis, the Temple of Zeus and Lycabettus Hill. The heat turns any land excursion under the open sky into a real torment. But if you come to Athens in January, you will find a completely different picture. No queues at the entrance to museums, no crowds at famous sights! And the weather is conducive to long walks in the fresh air. Like in September Moscowit can rain at times, sometimes there are cloudy days. But there are no dank winds, dampness and frost in Athens. Snow is rarely seen here, not every year. Sometimes nature can throw out such an incident, bringing a cloud far to the south. But the morning sun will quickly melt the snow.
Precipitation
Subtropics are characterized by hot dry summers and mild rainy winters. But long-term observations of the weather in Athens in January show that there is not so much precipitation in this month. Most of the rains are recorded in November and December (67 and 69 millimeters, respectively). And in the middle of winter they fall only 48 mm. True, compared with six millimeters in the summer months, this may seem like a lot. Let's characterize the weather in Athens in January a little differently. After all, these figures about millimeters of precipitation say little to a tourist. It is important for him to know if the rain will spoil the tour. So: meteorologists say that there are thirteen clear days in Athens in January. The same number of days with partly cloudy, when at one time or another there is intermittent rain. And, finally, there are three days when it rains from morning to evening in January. Thus, you can safely go on a sightseeing vacation to Athens in the dead of winter. But do not forget to put an umbrella in your suitcase.
Temperature readings
We repeat: winter in coastal Greece is more like early autumn in mid-latitudes. The average daily temperature in Athens in January is 10.3 degrees. What is itmeans? The fact that during the day the thermometer rises to 14 degrees in the shade, and at night it drops to + 7 C. And this is an average for the month. There are days when you can say that it's almost summer outside. The highest temperature ever recorded in Athens reached +21 degrees in the shade. But there are also opposite excesses. Sometimes, fortunately very rarely, Arctic air masses invade Greece. Then sub-zero temperatures are recorded in Athens. The lowest of all the years of weather observations was - 2 C! What follows from this? On excursions in the open air, the Russian will definitely not freeze. But taking an autumn jacket with you and a warm sweater to boot will not hurt. But mittens, earflaps and winter boots will be out of place.
Other climatic factors
What else can spoil an outdoor excursion or, on the contrary, make it pleasant and comfortable? Of course, the wind. Although Athens is a seaside city, there are few storms during the dead of winter. Meteorologists characterize the average wind speed in the first month of the year as low - 7.6 kilometers per hour. Most often there is a quiet, clear or partly cloudy weather in Athens in January. Reviews say that walking outdoors is pleasant and comfortable. Some days you can even strip down to your T-shirt. But in beachwear (in shorts and with bare shoulders) you no longer look like. Relative humidity is another climatic factor that directly affects the well-being of walking tourists. This figure in January is 68.7percent. Since Athens is a seaside city, fog is possible in the mornings. Then the relative humidity increases to 75 percent. It is important for tourists to know how much time passes from sunrise to sunset. Athens lies at 38 degrees north latitude. Therefore, daylight hours in winter there are longer than in high latitudes. It lasts ten hours and twenty minutes.
Events
From November to the end of March in Athens lasts a low season. This does not affect the cost of hotels. After all, the capital of Greece is a self-sufficient city, and there are always a lot of visitors there. But this means that tourists in the "low season" will not be bored. After all, the Greeks love different festivities and use any red day of the calendar to have fun. Christmas, which the Greeks and the rest of the world celebrate on December 25, smoothly passes into the New Year's Eve. If you are invited to a Greek house during this period, take a heavier stone with you. Crossing the threshold, throw it on the floor. According to tradition, the guest must say the magic words: "May your we alth be as heavy as this stone!". New Year's festivities smoothly turn into Epiphany. On the Day of Phot (Theophany), the priest throws the cross into the river, and the believing men rush into the water to get it. If you are a walrus and can hold your breath for a long time, take part in this religious competition. After all, the one who raises the cross from the bottom will have good luck all year. And after the feast of the Epiphany of Christ, the Ragutsarya carnival takes place. People put on all sorts of masquerade costumes.animals and walk singing carols.
Pros of holidays in winter Greece
Tourists who venture into Athens in January have several advantages over summer vacationers. Firstly, the weather itself is conducive to unhurried walks in the fresh air. The sun does not bake, but gently caresses the skin. And even if clouds cover the sky, the thought that it is 20 C in the native land now, and you are walking in a light sweater, already warms the soul. A winter tourist should not stand in line for several hours at museums. He can see the sights of the Greek capital at a leisurely pace, and if he takes a photo, it will be pictures of the Parthenon and the Temple of Zeus, and not a crowd of strangers in the foreground. A tourist who visited Athens in early January can witness the merry New Year's festivities. And finally, he can go to some ski resort in Greece!
Cons of a winter holiday in Athens
The beach season in these latitudes lasts long, but still not all year round. Only a seasoned person can afford to plunge into the sea, for whom + 17 C will be an acceptable temperature for swimming. Sunbathing on clear and windless days can work out: when in the shade + 17-20 degrees, in the sun - everything is + 25. But if you look at long-term weather reports, then such an opportunity may not present itself. It rains too often in Athens in January. Reviewers notice that on some days the situation is aggravated by a gale. Night walks can lead to a cold, because the thermometer at night falls to + 7degrees. In addition, the low season does not affect prices in hotels in Athens. The capital lives its own life, and there are always many visitors in it.
Athens in January: reviews of tourists
This ancient and young city is always happy to welcome guests. Tourists say that Athens in winter is good for self-guided tours. In order for them to give you maximum pleasure, you need to equip yourself appropriately: take warm clothes and be sure to take an umbrella. Rainy days can be spent in museums, which abound in Athens, and in good weather, wander through the ancient ruins.
