Summer Work in the Greek Islands

Each year in Greece, along with the holidaymakers, come an influx of workers who spend anywhere from 2 to 7 months working on the Greek islands in tourist related services. There are numerous seasonal jobs in hotels, cafes, bars, tavernas, travel agencies and car rental offices, to name just a few. For most of these jobs in the tourist areas Greek is not required.

So how do you go about finding summer work? The majority of jobs are advertised locally and by word of mouth. Workers who come to the islands for the summer season usually arrive between April and June to search on the spot for work.

Many North Europeans book a two week holiday at the beginning of the season and start searching the bar, café & taverna windows for ‘staff wanted’ notices. Chat to local bar and taverna owners, make connections, and they will very likely point you in the direction of places looking for staff. In the busy resorts this is the norm and hundreds of young people turn up looking for jobs each year. For bartending you will normally need some experience while ‘PR’ jobs are plentiful(handing out flyers for a bar or club, and hanging around that bar encouraging passers-by to go in). Other job options include waitressing, cooking or washing up in a bar, café or taverna.

It’s not just the busy resorts who take on staff, many taverns, pensions and beach bars in quieter locations across the islands also seek English speaking workers, and in remote spots you are very likely to have accommodation thrown in. Just choose your location, head there and ask around.

The advantage of searching for a job locally, rather than over the internet, is that you will see exactly where you will be working, and for whom. But if you prefer to have a job waiting for you when you get there then you’ll find a number of vacancies advertised on the internet on various job websites and in general Greek forums. An internet search will bring up plenty of relevant websites.

Other job possibilities exist with tour operators, the larger of which employ reps, office administration staff and transfer reps, both from their home bases and locally. Generally vacancies are advertised January to March, but late - starters may still be looking for staff in May and June. Some vacancies may also arise mid season, particularly during July and August when tour operators have an extra workload. Check out the tour operators’ websites.