Strikes in Greece, trains delayed

It is no surprise that Greece is in the midst of another round of strikes that are causing delays to travel, greatly effecting tourism. A two-day strike is under-way, upsetting international train schedules between Greece and Bulgaria.

Those travelling between Sofia and Thessaloniki by train on January 26th and 27th, 2011 will have to make different arrangements as the morning international service will not run. Trains running to Bucharest, the Romanian capital, will only travel to Kulata (not Sofia), along the Greek-Bulgarian boarder. There will be a charter bus to transport passengers during the Greek leg of the journey from Kulata.

There are refunds available to all passengers who purchased tickets for these trains, available at the train stations in both Thessaloniki and Sofia.

The strikes will affect most all travel between Greece and other destinations, including Cyprus. Your best best for arriving in Athens is to grab flights to Greece rather than to travel by train, likewise if you are travelling onwards from Greece.

The strikes do not just effect the Greek Rail Service, but also many other industries in the debt-plagued country like lawyers associations, labour and civil servant unions, and pharmacists.

Have you been effected by a strike before? Was it easy to make alternative plans, did you ever receive compensation?

Unfortunately, when travelling through Balkan countries, you never know what will happen. Fortunately that is a major part of the fun, being able to go with the flow, so to speak and enjoy it!