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So hitchhiking is an unpredictable way to travel which is fun but tonight I find myself in downtown Ioannina, Greece.

Usually I'm pretty good at finding cheap lodgings but it turns out I'm not very good at Greece and my usual tricks don't work here. HostelBookers and HostelWorld show no hostels though one does show hotels which are way higher than hostel prices, plus a couple of places that are quite a distance away from the city.

I've also looked on TripAdvisor and I've searched Google and Google maps for all kinds of things like "cheap hotel", "hostel", "backpackers", "guest house", "cheap accommodation", "camping", etc. There are lots of annoying links to booking sites which then require further searches with no better results if you do bother going through them. I decided they were too spammy to waste much more time on.

The cheapest place I could find was about 50 euro! I would expect a hostel to be in the range of 10-15 euro.

What is the cheapest accommodation in Ioannina, Greece?

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6 Answers 6

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It turned out there was a campground just a couple of minutes walk from the KTEL bus station where I posted my question from!

Limnopoula Camping

It didn't show up when I used Google Web or Maps for "camping" or "campground". I fluked finding it by Googling for "Lonely Planet Ioannina" where they listed its name and no other details. Then Googling for its name led to some skimpy details with no info on prices or how late I could check in. And of course I walked in the wrong directions around the city for about an hour since Google Maps must've been showing me some other bus station.

Camping Limnopoula does have a very basic English website where they even make it seem like there is some possibility of getting a bed or room.

It turned out to be €9 per tent and €2 per person but I was given a €3 discount because it was the low season. So the cheapest option in Ioannina in early October is €8!

High season prices: price list (Note this sign does not mention anything about beds or rooms that are mentioned on the website)

Contact details: business card

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couchsurfing.org or hospitalityclub.org would be the cheapest option imho. According to this page, Ioannina is the #7 most popular couch surfing destination in Greece, so your chances might be quite good.

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  • I had no luck at all trying to get a last minute couch on CouchSurfing last year in Xanthi, it's especially bad because I don't have a phone. But I didn't include those details so you still get a +1 (-:
    – hippietrail
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 7:04
  • I did some searching on CS while in Ioannina, and I think there were relatively few active users there. But you should try, of course, at least if you know a few days earlier you're going there. (In my case, I didn't try to get last minute couch; just contacted some people about going for drinks – got even some replies but that particular night was no good for them and next day I was off to Albania.)
    – Jonik
    Commented Oct 26, 2011 at 19:59
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Wow, cheapest place you saw was 50 €. I was in Ioannina in August, and just by walking from the bus station towards the centre I stumbled into a nice little hotel and inquired about prices. It was 25€ for a single room, and I took that. The room was comfy, air-conditioned, etc. No breakfast though.

The place was called Hotel Elpis.

Hotel Elpis

Address: Neoptolemou 10. About 1 km, or 15 min very easy walk, away from bus station.
Phone: +30 265 10 26 209 or +30 697 55 21 573

Googling around, their website should be at www.hotelelpis.com, but that doesn't seem to work now.

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  • Wow that's not bad at all considering hostels in Greece (when you can find them) are usually about 15 €.
    – hippietrail
    Commented Oct 27, 2011 at 22:38
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If you prefer to splurge rather than spend the night outside…

A site I often use for hotel bookings (it goes from hostels to palaces, usually comes out reasonably cheap for hotels but doesn't list many hostels) still lists single rooms at €30 for tonight. Hotel Tourist (Kolleti 18) has air conditioning and free wifi in the lounge. Egnatia (Dagli 20 & Aravadinou) has air conditioning and the price includes breakfast. That's assuming the places are still open at this time of night.

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  • Wow not bad. I'll try booking.com next time thanks!
    – hippietrail
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 7:03
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Try this link:

hostelzoo listings for Ioannina

It shows all the accommodation on one site and compares all the prices. And it's FREE to use. Yes I am one of the employees but it might help as it checks all the booking engines, not just one. Hope it helps with wherever you are traveling. Enjoy.

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I went there in the summer for a couple of nights and I slept under a kiosk, right outside a church. 100% free! :D I have done this in Greece quite often. For some reason I get the feeling of the area that says me if it's safe or not. Still alive!

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