As a child, if you ever asked me the one place I wanted to see I would have said Athens. I finally made it this Easter holidays. Its really odd we hadn’t been to Athens yet since we have very good friends who live there. Before we went my friend Dimitra sent me a super professional itinerary for our stay there. I saw it and knew I had to use it for the blog – it was perfect. Where else are you going to have the chance to see a city from the perspective of someone who grew up there? Most of her itinerary is reproduced here with my comments and suggestions which is more on the practical side of things. However, this is the not the exact itinerary we followed (you will read why). I have split it into days for the most convenient way to see everything. I also tried to include comments and anecdotes your friends Dimitra and Nik narrated which I thought was interesting and gives you a good feel of the city.
Athens is a very casual and relaxed city. Half the joy is in ambling about it steep streets and markets. I would suggest divide your day into structured sight seeing in the first half and then general walking about in the second half of the day. The first day we had dinner at Ama Lachei, which is an old school turned into a restaurant.
Day 1 – Visit the Acropolis and the Acropolis museum.
I would actually recommend visiting the Acropolis Museum first and then going to the Acropolis. The museum provides a great bit of detail and background to the history and architecture of the Acropolis as well as a lot of context so its easy to understand the special place the Acropolis holds in Greek culture and history. The museum is beautiful and extremely well located – it is bordered by the Acropolis on one side. A tip: get into the line to enter the museum but once you enter book tickets online so you can just go through instead of standing in line once again to book your tickets in person.
Before you go to the Acropolis go to the nearby hill, Pnyka to see some views and get some beautiful photos. A tip when buying tickets for the Acropolis: don’t buy tickets in advance.
For instance, the first day we went (which was World Monuments Day and so the entry to the Acropolis was free) they shut down entry due to thunder warnings and since two tourists had been injured the day before. We also heard there are usually no refunds given if you buy tickets and you cannot enter – your tickets is only valid for a day. So do as we did – I stood in line for the tickets while DJ went and checked out if they are letting people enter and once we confirmed this we bought tickets online and went straight in instead of continuing to stand in the line.
Around the Acropolis you will also find the Dionyses Theatre, Roman Agora, the Ancient Agora and Hadrian’s Library.
You can also buy a multi visit tickets for about €30 which will allow you entry into the Acropolis as well as these sites. However, note the Acropolis Museum is not included and you will have to separately pay €10 for this. Although we went into the Roman Agora (since entry was free!) I would not recommend paying to enter either this or the Ancient Agora and Hadrian’s Library. Not because they are not interesting to see but because whatever you see of it without going in is all there is to it. Since this was confirmed by Nik, we were glad to have not bought the tickets to multiple sites. The Acropolis is the only site you need to actually get a ticket to see.
In Greece by law you are required to expose and ensure ancient ruins are being seen. For instance, even while walking around in the streets you will see pathways in glass. When I asked my friend Dimitra about it she mentioned this fact – if you find ruins while building or otherwise, under law in Greece you are required to ensure they can be viewed by the public. How fantastic is that? You will notice that even in front of the Acropolis museum you can see a glass platform through which you can see ruins below.
Walk to Yiasemi for lunch after you get down from the Acropolis. Its a lovely cafe with interesting nicknacks all around and lovely plants all over.
Also if you haven’t had your fill of museums the National Archaeological Museum is also highly recommended. We skipped this and just walked around the area near the Acropolis. We saw an interesting (if somewhat depressing) photography exhibit in the church/ mosque near the Roman Agora about the German invasion of Athens.
We ate at the fantastic wine bar, Oinoscent (order the baby potatoes) and then went to an even more fantastic cocktail bar, Baba Au Rum which has a major Cuban vibe. My cocktail was dreamy – I can still almost taste and smell it!
Day 2 – City Tour
We actually didn’t end up doing this tour since we went up to the Acropolis on the second day after our first unsuccessful attempt. Dimitra recommend this free tour of the city which I think is the perfect way to start off the trip. We always end up doing a walking tour in every European city we go to but honestly since we were always walking around with Dimitra and Nik who were pointing out the sights like the Parliament, the Universities and so on, we managed to get a good feel of the city anyway.
We went for coffee and lunch at Warehouse (Valtetsiou 21) which was great. After lunch we went off for a tour of the street art in Exarchia. This is known as the ‘anarchist’ neighbourhood in Greece and there is a lot of art and political messages to see. The street art we saw was of extremely high quality – not the few random graffitis that you would expect.
I could not include all the pictures of the street art in this post since it was too heavy – I have included them on my Instagram stories so check these out there.
We ended the day by having dinner at a traditional Greek taverna, Metaxou (we had originally decided to go to another taverna – choose whichever picks your fancy). Most of them have live music and Greek wine which is lovely.
Day 3 – Market Day
We tagged along with Dimitra and Nik when they went to their local farmer’s market for their weekly groceries in Exarchia. Its a lovely street – you can see down the street which goes downhill, its full of orange umbrellas with vegetables and fruits packed underneath. This is a travelling farmers market and is in a different location of the city everyday. Its located in Kalidromio Street in Exarchia on Saturday but do a basic Google search and you will be able to find where it is located the day your plan to go.
You can eat some fruits and nuts walking along the market. Make sure you pick up some oranges – the oranges in Greece are divine. You have not tasted anyting so perfectly sweet. We stopped for a coffee (a Freddo Cappuccino for me which is cold coffee with milk) at Au Grand Zinc which I am sure is an Instagram hit! Its just next to the market and a lovely spot for a quick coffee.
Walk around the old city of Athens and visit the Central Market. The meat side of the market is best avoided by vegetarians. But other than meat there is so much to see – all the spices, so many shops selling daily items made of wood, lots of fruits and vegetables, sausages and almost everything else you can think of.
We were planning to go for lunch at the oldest Athenian taverna (it’s like time travelling!) but this was super crowded so we didn’t get a table. However, I don’t think we regretted our second choice, Atlantikos, one of the best sea-food places in Athens. We ate some amazing sea food here – make sure to eat the fish soup.
We went for drinks at Couleur Locale (you can also go to A for Athens but locals seem to prefer Couleur Locale) in the evening to enjoy the view before the sun sets and had street souvlaki. Soulaki is the street food in Greece and is a must try.
Day 4 – Day Trip to Nafplio
Nafplio is a two hour drive from Athens and we went there for a day trip on a sunny Sunday. It was perfect.
Visit the fortress and explore.
Once you are out of the fort, walk around the town square and check the cute shops all over the town and sit down for lunch somewhere away from the square. We had a great lunch at a traditional restaurant in one of the narrow roads.
Make sure to get some ice cream at the famous Italian gelato place and walk along the promenade.
Day 5: Climb to Lycabettus Hill
Now I won’t say this isn’t an effort but its hardly a climb as such. It will take you about 20 minutes or so to climb up and about half of that to get down.
All worth it is what I would say.
There is an expensive cafe at the top – Dimitra’s tip is just have a coffee there to enjoy the view and then make your way down. Its a lovely place to take some pictures so make sure you do. There is also a theatre there and there are plans for it to open in the summer so if you are going anytime later in the year keep an eye out for it and see if you can take in a show.
I hope this is a useful post and makes you excited to visit or revisit Athens! Please ask me any questions you may have – I will be referring them to Dimitra or Nik! We love reading comments on our blog so we really appreciate anything you have to say. Come and say hi on our Twitter, check out our Instagram and like our Facebook page! Till next time 🙂
Nice post!
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Thank you!
Wow this is a packed itinary and it looks excellent, I’d love to visit Athens. Mich x
Please don’t be intimidated – its not hectic at all! Its a lovely city and would highly recommend.
Beautiful country and it looks like you had a most lovely visit. I enjoyed looking at all the nice photos you posted as well…
Athens has been on my wishlist to visit for a long time and this is really interesting to hear from a local. Looks like you had a great time x
Athens has been on my list FOREVER. It looks incredible. I love the law that ancient architecture must be exposed for everyone to see, that’s so wonderful! 🙂
Same – it had been on my list forever. But its not a really short or cheap flight so does take more planning than other European city breaks but so well worth it!
I was always told if I ever got the chance to visit, then do as you have suggested and start with the Acropolis Museum first and then go to the Acropolis x
Yes – it made so much more sense to me. You have more information and look at the monument in a different way.
I didn’t know that by law it is required to display any historical evidence and display it. That is amazing and a great way of protecting ancient sites. I would love to visit Anthens and see the acropolis. Interesting to know not to buy tickets in advance though hope those who were injured were ok.
I never knew that it was a law to show and protect the ancient findings and ensure they are displayed. That is really cool. I hope those who were injured at the acropolis were ok and it’s handy to know that you shouldn’t book tickets in advance.
Yes – its such a great idea and so important for culture and history. I love that! I dont think there were serious injuries so thats good.
This has got me wanting to visit Athens even more, it is always a city that has fascinated me
Please go – its a lovely city. Maybe spend a few days in Athens and then off to one of the islands!
Oh, I would absolutely LOVE to visit Athens. It looks breathtaking. One day I’m going to actually get myself a passport and start travelling the world 🙂
Louise x
Athens has been on the bucket list for me so long. Hope you get the passport done and go travelling all over – keen to know the first place you get get to!
This looks amazing. there is so much to see and do. Athens looks fab xx
There is a lot of do and lots to see but its also the perfect city to walk around in.
WOW, this looks fabulous. I am even more excited now. I am going in October so thank you so much for these tips, especially the free tour and not paying for some of the sites.
You are going to have a glorious time! OCtober is a great time to go to Greece since the tourists have left and the locals are back. Let me know if you want any other tips and cant wait to see your photos.