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How to Get WiFi in Athens for Your Holidays
23 July 2024
pocket wifi
Joseph Philipson
Athens is full of historical and cultural sites, but that doesn’t mean you must live like the Ancient Greeks and go without an internet connection.
In particular, travelers to Greece and Athens will benefit significantly from a fast and stable internet connection.
Staying connected is essential for keeping family and friends up to date back home (and bragging about what a good time you’re having), navigating Athens, and looking up restaurants, cafés, and things to do in the Greek capital.
Even though Hippocketwifi is the most cost-effective of the browsing solutions for travelers, let’s look at all the ways you can get WiFi or an internet connection for your vacation in Athens.
The Best Ways of Getting WiFi in Athens
There are several ways to get WiFi or an internet connection in Athens: pocket WiFi, prepaid travel SIM cards, eSIM cards, international data roaming plans, or connecting to the local free WiFi networks.
Each type of connection has pros and cons and an inherent cost (even the free solutions).
It’s also important to consider the security of the connection, especially when using public WiFi networks. Using a VPN or other security measures can help protect your data when using these networks.
Let’s take a closer look at each one.
Pocket WiFi
For many, pocket WiFi is the best solution for travelers. With pocket WiFi, you rent a dedicated device to connect you to the internet.
This pocket WiFi router (sometimes called MiFi) connects to a mobile data connection like a smartphone. It then creates a WiFi network that allows you and your fellow travelers to connect and browse.
These devices can also maintain good connections in rural areas since their antennae are usually higher quality than those found in smartphones designed for more general use.
With pocket WiFi, you rent the device from a provider and return it at the end of your trip. Popular pocket WiFi providers in Athens and Greece include Hippocketwifi, TravelWiFi, MioWiFi, Rentnconnect, and MyWebspot.
Most providers will offer country-specific solutions as well as pocket WiFi for most of Europe.
Pros
Pocket WiFi is popular because it allows multiple users or devices to stay connected simultaneously (typically up to 10 devices). It’s great for groups of travelers, friends, and families since you only need to pay for the pocket WiFi rather than SIM cards or data roaming for each device or user.
Pocket WiFi is cheaper than most SIM solutions and international data roaming packages.
Cons
The only real downside to pocket WiFi is that you have another device on you to remember and keep charged. However, these devices are usually smaller than smartphones and can last most of the day on a single charge.
Cost
The cost of pocket WiFi is cheaper than most other solutions.
Hippocketwifi offers pocket WiFi at prices starting at €3.90 per day. Renting a device for 10 days in Greece and across Europe costs €5.90 per day for a 1GB daily limit. This is the best value option on the market.
TravelWiFi offers options for between €8.25 and €12.25 per day on a two-week trip, depending on the data limits you choose.
MioWiFi costs €8 a day for unlimited access, but the device only supports 5 devices simultaneously.
MyWebspot charges €9.50 each day for an unlimited 4G connection.
from
3.95€
per day
Your rental must be at least 3 days
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€For days in with data plan
SIM Cards
Your SIM card lets your smartphone connect to your mobile network carrier to make calls, send and receive messages, and access a data connection.
You can replace your domestic SIM with a prepaid travel SIM that works in Athens and across Greece.
Each of these carriers offers good network coverage in Athens and across Greece. It’s worth checking their coverage maps to ensure you’ll have a signal in the areas you plan to visit.
Pros
For solo travelers who wish to access the internet using only one device, a prepaid SIM card is a simple way to stay connected without carrying an extra device.
SIM cards can be purchased in Greece at the network carriers’ official stores, kiosks, and metro stations.
Cons
If your phone doesn’t have two SIM card slots, you must remove your everyday SIM card to use the prepaid SIM card for Athens and Greece. This means you won’t be reachable on your usual number for calls and messages.
Some network carriers also lock phones just to their network. If your smartphone was provided by your network carrier, check it isn’t locked to a single provider.
SIM cards or any solution that uses a smartphone to connect to the network will be slower and less stable than pocket WiFi. Suppose you’re heading outside Athens to Nafplio, Monemvasia, or the Mani Peninsula. In that case, it might be worth considering pocket WiFi to stay connected.
Cost
The pricing for prepaid SIMs is needlessly complicated, with all of Greece’s providers offering various top-up packs at various prices.
For Cosmote, this starts at €1.50 for 6GB of data over 24 hours and goes to €5 for 6GB over 30 days.
Tazamobile provides 500MB and 100 local minutes when you buy the SIM card. Top-ups start at €1 for 1GB daily and €10.50 for 7GB over 25 days.
eSIM
While a SIM card is a tiny card you can insert into a smartphone, an eSIM is an integrated circuity that acts like a SIM card. This allows you to “change” SIM cards without inserting or removing any physical components.
All you have to do to change an eSIM is pay for the service you want and then use the carrier’s settings, setting up your eSIM by simply following some instructions or scanning a QR code.
For those visiting Athens with an eSIM-compatible smartphone, Airalo, Holafly, and Cosmote provide popular solutions.
Pros
The main advantage of an eSIM is convenience. You can easily set up an eSIM before you land at Athens Airport.
Cons
An eSIM isn’t great for working on other devices as the connection comes through your smartphone, which is slower and less stable than pocket WiFi, especially in rural areas outside of Athens.
If you want to use your internet connection for a tablet or laptop, you’ll need to tether them to your smartphone, which is ultimately even slower and will quickly drain your device’s battery.
Cost
Airalo offers the Meraki Mobile range of eSIM products. These start at $5 for 1GB over 7 days and go up to $12 for 3GB over 30 days.
Holafly charges a flat rate of $6 per day for unlimited data.
Cosmote’s eSIM solutions are available for between $5 for 3GB over 5 days and $35 for 40GB over 5 days.
Data Roaming International Plan
Data roaming is simply using your everyday SIM card while abroad. You can contract this before you travel to Athens or use an unplanned roaming solution when you land
(not recommended).
Your domestic carrier will provide this through partner networks in Greece.
Pros
You can set up this solution before you go to Athens. You can also get this if you don’t prepare any other data solution before your trip, but the costs make this worth avoiding.
Cons
As a “guest” on a partner network, these connections are rarely good or reliable, and the price is usually higher than for any other solution available on the market.
Cost
The cost varies significantly by service provider. Check with your mobile network carrier for prices. Be sure to carefully read how much they’ll charge you for unplanned data roaming, which could result in a phone bill in the thousands!
Use Free WiFi
Your last option in Athens is to use free WiFi connections. These are typically provided by cafés, restaurants, shopping centers, and specific public buildings and spaces.
In this case, you connect to a WiFi network provided and start browsing. However, you should know the inherent risks of using public networks.
Pros
If you don’t have any other data solution, connecting to free WiFi networks is an affordable and easy way to quickly check something online.
Cons
Public WiFi networks can be unsecure and are at risk of cyber attacks. Be careful how you browse on these, and ensure your devices are secured using antivirus software and a VPN while avoiding sharing sensitive information.
Also, free WiFiWi-Fi networks can be slow and unreliable if many other users are connected.
Cost
As the name suggests, these networks are free. However, you may be expected to pay for a faster version of the network, be limited to a certain amount of time, or have to hand over an email address or sign up for a mailing list.
How to Choose the Best WiFi Option for Your Athens Trip
Pocket WiFi will likely be the best solution for most travelers, but consider the following factors before you decide.
Rental Duration
Almost every solution becomes cheaper the longer you need it. For very short trips or even a day in Athens, it’s easier to contract international data roaming or rely on free WiFi.
For much longer trips, pocket WiFi tends to win out, with providers like Hippocketwifi offering rentals for up to almost a year (360 days!).
Usage
How you intend to use your internet connection affects which option will be best for you.
Users in groups will prefer pocket WiFi, which offers fast and stable connections for several devices at once. Similarly, solo travelers with multiple devices, such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops, can ensure all their devices stay connected through a single solution.
Connectivity
Users wishing to travel outside of Athens and into areas with limited connectivity may want to avoid any solution that uses their phone’s antenna to connect to the data network. Renting a pocket WiFi in Greece is the best option for connectivity in areas with spotty coverage.
Data Limit
Check how much data you typically use and plan a solution that will provide enough without paying for plenty of data you’ll never use.
Your typical data use can be found in your phone’s settings. Most devices will indicate which data was consumed over a mobile data connection or through a home or office WiFi connection.
