Athens travel guide
In this Athens travel guide you will find major tourist attractions, money-saving travel tips, eating suggestions, and more. This is the ultimate travel guide to Athens. Here we go.
Special tips for Athens
- Acropolis is free of charge fırst sunday of the month during winter time (November-March).
- Many tourist attractions have different entry price for winter and summer time. Visiting off peak times can cut your costs to half.
- Stay away from Euronet ATM’s as they have very bad conversion rate and higher process fee. Avoid it at all cost. Instead, use the local banks for money withdrawal.
- Read before you visit Athens as your understanding will be better.
- Avoid restaurants at major squares for eating. They are overpriced.
- If you wanna save few bucks you can get gyros for dinner and lunch for very good price in Athens.
- Watch out pickpockets in major squares and in metro especially during peak times.
- Before going to Athens check out these travels scams.
Athens travel guide: Major attractions in Athens
See
Visit
See
Hike up
Athens travel guide: Typical costs
Is AthenscityPass a good deal?
In Athens, it really depends. If you are planning to visit during winter times (Nov-April) then you pay 50% of the normal cost for each site. In this case, it wouldn’t make too much sense to get a combined ticket. On the other hand, if you are planning to visit 3 of the places below, then it is recommended to get a combined ticket for 30€. It will be more expensive to visit them individually in the summer. You can get the combine tickets right at the spot.
The Acropolis of Athens
The Ancient Agora of Athens and the Museum of the Ancient Agora
Kerameikos and the Archaeological Museum of Kerameikos
The Temple of Olympian Zeus
The Roman Agora of Athens and the Tower of the Winds
Hadrian’s Library
Aristotle’s Lyceum (Archaeological site of Lykeion)
If you want to visit more museums then you can go for a full ticket (54€+). You can check the places here.
Low budget will get you a bed in a mixed dorm (6 or 8 bed) you can see Acropolis and eat budget foods like gyros or souvlaki.
Mid-range budget will get you a room (for two) in a 3star hotel. You can get some decent food and see the entire Acropolis area and some more museums or attractions.
With a luxury budget, you can stay in a nice 4-star hotel. Eat at a decent restaurant. Not much to say when you have that amount. The sky is the limit.
Expect higher prices during peak times.
Beer:2-4€ / Coffee:2-4€ / Cocktails:8-12€ / A bottle of wine: 4-5€ / Gyros: 4-5€
Athens travel guide: Weather
Summers are hot and packed with tourists and accommodation is more expensive. In winter, the temperature drops to 7℃ still not uncomfortable. Before June would be ideal times to visit. I dropped the yearly climate data of Athens for your reference.
Athens travel guide: Transport
Airport to/from city center:
By bus: you can take X95 (express bus) to Syntagma square (main square). It takes around 1 hour depends on the traffic and costs 6 € one way.
By metro: You need to take a blue line and get off at Syntagma station. It takes around 50min and costs 10€.
Getting around in Athens
Public transport in Athens is convenient. You might need to use the metro a few times depending on your hotel location. I did not take the bus but you can use the same ticket for all means of public transport. It costs 1.5€ a single ticket and valid for 90 min. If you think you will use it more often, then you can opt for a daily ticket which costs 4.5€
Athens travel guide: More things to see and do
Explore Excarhia
Rebellious part of the city. Loads of political/non-political mural works can be found. You may read that it is dangerous to visit but I had no problem at all. In fact, there are some nice cafes there.
National Archeological Museum
It is considered one of the best museums that shed light on ancient times. You can find many ancient collections in fact, some of them were transported (stolen) to other museums in Europe.
Monastiraki square
Just in front of the metro there is a young girl who sells the best sesame ring in Athens. You will find some landmarks such as the tower of the wind and the remainings of Hadrian’s library.
Discover Plaka
One of the scenic neighborhood in Athens. You can feel the warm atmosphere in Plaka.
Roman agora
Agora means a place to gather. Ancient life was centered in the agora. If you get a combined ticket it will cove the entrance to this site.
National Garden and Zappeion
Zappeion is the exhibition hall in the national garden. You can take a relaxing walk to the garden and see the building.
Visit the National Museum of Contemporary Art
Founded in 2000. It might be interesting for art lovers.
Temple of Hephaistos
Refers to the son of Hera and Zeus in mythology. He is known as the ugliest (I am not sure how to put this) god due to his limbs.
Athens travel guide: Eating and drinking in Athens
What to eat in Athens?
Gyros: Greek kebab in bread. Cheap dining alternative.
Souvlaki: Meat grilled on a skewer. Usually comes with a special bread
Baklava: Sweet pastry filled with chopped nuts and syrup.
Saganaki: Melting cheese good as an appetizer.
Sfougata: cheese balls made by local cheese that melt in your mouth.
Dolmathakia: Stuffed rice, sometimes with meat into grape leaves.
Where to eat?
Eating out in Athens usually does not hurt your pocket. It means you will have a chance to try many at a relatively lower price. Narrow roads open up to major squares can hide some good restaurants and cafes. So don’t be afraid to walk a little bit. You can start your tour near Plaka stairs, Monastiraki square or Exarchia district. I put the ones I tried below.
Kostas: located near Syntagma square. It’s a rather cheap eating suggestion. You can get nice souvlaki there.
Rififi: Located in the Excarchia district. They had different Interpretations of greek cuisine.
Oineas: Slightly more expensive than the other two but worths it.
Bar/Cafe
A for Athens: Rooftop of the hotel has a nice bar where you can have a nice view of Athens. The view of illuminated Acropolis is especially good at night.
Momix: They have an interesting concept of molecular mixing (cocktails 10€). It’s a nice bar worth checking.
Six D.o.g.s: They have nice cocktails (9-13€).
Athens travel guide: Map of the main attractions
In this Athens travel guide, I showed major locations that you must see, how to get around, typical costs and some money saving tips. If you have a specific question you can ask me below.