Anda
Athens is one of my favorite cities. I love the food, the weather, exploring the old streets, and visiting the many tourist attractions in Athens.
About Athens, the Capital of Greece
Athens is one of the oldest cities in the world and the oldest capital in Europe. It’s even older than Rome. In its more than 3400 years of recorded history, Athens played a most important role in cultural development, education, and politics. This is the place where the concept of democracy was born. Philosophy and modern theatre also began in Athens.
When to visit Athens?
With all that history and many tourist attractions, Athens is a very popular destination. It is also the warmest major city in Europe, so consider that, when planning your trip there. July and August, even June lately, are too hot for a comfortable trip where you spend a lot of time outside. The weather from November to February isn’t very cold, but it can be rainy. Spring and Autumn are the best times to visit the attractions of Athens, Greece.
Tourist Attractions in Athens
These are my top 10 tourist attractions in Athens, Greece, including a couple of less touristy places to discover in the city.
The Acropolis of Athens – Top Tourist Attractions in Athens
The Parthenon on the Acropolis is definitely the most famous place in Athens and the first landmark you will want to visit when you first visit the city. I’ve dedicated a full post to the Acropolis of Athens, a quick guide to help you plan your visit there.
The Acropolis Museum
I covered the Acropolis Museum in the same post about the Acropolis of Athens. It is a great museum hosting many finds from the Acropolis Hill, including the original Caryatids of the Erechtheion. You should include the museum on your itinerary and learn more about the golden age of Ancient Athens.
The Panathenaic Stadium – Impressive Tourist Attraction in Athens
This amazing ancient stadium could seat 50000 people and it is entirely covered in marble. The stadium was abandoned for about 15 centuries before being excavated, rebuilt, and used again as an Olympic venue, as well as for the Olympic flame handover ceremony. It is also the finish point of the Athens Authentic Marathon every year.
You can visit the Stadium every day starting at 8 a.m. and even run on the track around the stadium. The general entrance fee is 10€. Find out more about the opening hours and events on the official website.
There’s a special experience you can try, a proper Olympic workout on the ancient Stadium:
Plaka – A beautiful neighborhood of Athens
Plaka is the best part of Athens, in my opinion. It is an old part of the city, just below the Acropolis, full of restaurants, cafes, and small souvenir and jewelry shops. It is also close to everything you want to visit so staying in this area is probably your best option.
I plan to explore more of the Plaka neighborhood in a separate post focusing on food in Athens.
The Agoras of Athens
There are two agoras in Athens: the ancient Greek Agora and the Roman Agora, the Roman next to the Greek one, but built a few centuries later. The Agora was a marketplace, as well as a place of gathering. People used to come here to meet and discuss. It is what a Forum in Roman cities was some years later.
A must-see in the Ancient Agora is the Temple of Hephaestus. It’s a very well-preserved Doric temple dating from the 5th century BC.
A ticket to enter the Ancient Agora is 10€. You can also buy a combined 30€ ticket, including a few more sites like the Acropolis and Olympieion.
Monastiraki and the Flea Market
Just at the end of the Plaka neighborhood, you come across Monastiraki (the small Monastery), named after the small 10th-century basilica in the square. Starting here, the flea market occupies the whole Adrianou street and a few adjacent smaller streets.
You will come across antique shops, as well as hand-made souvenirs, leather sandals, bars, and places to eat. It is a very colorful and lively area of the city.
Olympieion: The Temple of Olympian Zeus – Tourist Attractions in Athens
Zeus was the king of the Gods living on Mount Olympus. Its temple was, of course, the largest in Ancient Greece. A walk around the standing columns of the temple will give you an idea of its original grandeur. You will also get a good view of Acropolis Hill.
Just in front of the entrance to the Olympieion site stands Hadrian’s Arch. The triumphal arch was built to celebrate the arrival of the Roman Emperor Hadrian. It also divides symbolically old Athens to the new city expanded by the emperor.
The Guard Change at Syntagma Square – Tourist Attractions in Athens
Syntagma is the main square in Athens. It’s a large square in front of the Greek Parliament Palace, with a few luxury hotels on each side. On Sundays, at 11 AM, there is a ceremonial guard change in front of the Parliament Building. Crowds gather every Sunday for this ceremony, so if you want some good photos, you should get there early and find a good place to watch the change.
A Trip to Piraeus
Piraeus is the largest port in Greece, and it’s less than 10km from Athens. From Piraeus, you can travel by boat to almost all Greek islands. For instance, you can get to Santorini by ferry in about 5 hours.
The easiest way to get to Piraeus from central Athens is by subway. The ride from Monastiraki station takes about 15 minutes, and a ticket is 2€.
Piraeus, however, is a huge port. The subway station is close to the ferry hub, where there isn’t really much to see. You can take a bus and go for a walk in the impressive yacht marina or to one of the beaches.
Non Touristy Things to do in Athens
Those above are the main tourist attractions in Athens. However, I have a couple of less touristy things to recommend.
The Numismatic Museum of Heinrich Schliemann
I’ve been wanting to visit this museum since reading Irving Stone’s – The Greek Treasure. It’s the story of Heinrich Schliemann, the man who excavated the site believed to be legendary Troy, as well as other Greek sites. The museum is hosted in the house Schliemann built for himself and his Greek wife, Sophia. The building itself is as interesting as the coins collections within. The mansion’s interior was inspired by the mosaics and colors found in Pompeii.
I probably wouldn’t have visited this particular museum if it weren’t for the story, but I am glad I did.
The museum is a short walk from Syntagma Square, and it is open Tuesday to Sunday from 8:30 AM to 3 PM. The entrance ticket is 3€, and you will probably spend about an hour and a half there. In the courtyard, there is also a nice coffee shop. Find out more about the collections and events on the museum website.
The National Gardens of Athens
This was an accidental discovery for me. The National Garden is a public park in the center of Athens. It has the Parliament building on one side, one exit at the Olympieion site, and one other corner exit in front of the Panathenaic Stadium.
I went there for a run in the morning, but you can very well walk between these sites through the luxuriant gardens, avoiding the sun.
These were my top 10 attractions in Athens, Greece. Of course, there are many more sites and museums to explore. Have you been to Athens? What was your favorite place?
As long as we are talking about Greece, check out my 3 days itinerary for Thessaloniki.
Disclosure
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Sadly I haven’t been to Athens yet. It’s high up on my list though. I like that this post includes a couple of lesser known places that I can add to my list to visit 🙂
Thanks for stopping by Jason, I hope you can get to Athens soon 🙂
I really enjoyed my visit to Athens. It has quite a history. And the food is to die for. looking forward to your post on Plaka
I love that Greek food! 🙂 Thanks for commenting, John.
Greece is on my bucket list! Thanks for sharing these places in Athens. I had no idea it’s the warmest major city in Europe. I’ll keep that in mind when I eventually plan a trip there. – Briana @ https://www.nextdestinationunknown.com/
Hey Briana, thanks for reading-I hope my post will help you plan a trip to Athens soon 🙂
This was a great post and I loved all the tourist attractions. Hopefully one day I can visit Athens. *crosses fingers*
Thank you, I hope you get to visit Athens soon after this crisis is over.
Nice post – I’ve never been to Greece but high on the list for post-Covid-19 adventures. I’ll bookmark this and hope to implement your detailed advice soon!
Thank you, Peter. It’s great to know my writing will actually help someone explore a new place. 🙂
Athens looks so beautiful with lots to do! Would love to visit someday
It is a fun place to explore, I’m sure you’ll love it.
You have wetted the appetite for me to visit today this historic city one day when this is all over! Very detailed
🙂 Thank you Mark, I hope you get to visit Athens soon.
Thank you for the excellent post. My wife wants to go to Europe and mentions the islands of Greece a lot. We need to see Athens as well.
You should spend a couple of nights in Athens too, there’s a lot to explore. Thank you for reading, Ryan.
I have always wanted to visit Athens, and this just makes me want to visit more. Does landing int he airport from Mykonos for 1/2 hour count?! 🤣
Thanks for all of your information, will bookmark this post for when I finally get to visit!
Aimsy xoxo
Not if you didn’t leave the airport, it doesn’t 🙂 You have to go back for a proper visit. I hope you get to do that soon. Thanks for stopping by.
I loved it….definitely on my to go list/
Glad you liked it, hope you get to visit soon 🙂
Hopefully I will get to visit Athens in the future lovely post and I like that you added non touristy things as well.
I love exploring the hidden and less touristy places. You can’t understand a place just by visiting the main attractions. I hope you visit Athens soon 🙂
I agree with you and thank you Athens is on my neverending travel list😂
I have one of those too 🙂
Athens sounds like a great city to spend some time and explore. I’ve always wanted to visit. Hopefully I’ll make it there in the future.
I hope you will make it to Athens soon, Stephanie. Thanks for reading! 🙂
I had a flight booked to Athens last year, but for unforeseen circumstances I cancelled it. These tourist attractions are making me want to book another one 🙁
You should, when things go back to normal. There’s so much history and it is also a good base to explore more of Greece 🙂
Great, thanks for sharing this informative post! Greece is the famous in history, love to read this post.
Thank you for reading.
Athens has been on my bucket list for years, but for some reason I’ve never went. I’m glad you pointed out when it’s a good (or not so good) time to visit the city. The National Gardens sounds like somewhere I’d love to go to!
John
I loved spending some time in that park and discovering something amazing at every exit. Maybe you will plan a visit when things calm down and we can start traveling again. Thanks for stopping by!
Excellent post and introduction to Athens. Still can’t believe I haven’t visited Greece yet in all my travels. Definitely on the top of my Bucket List for sure when things return to normal. 🙂
Thank you so much, Robert! I hope you get to visit Greece soon and come back with some fresh impressions 🙂
Oh wow……. Athens is a very beautiful city. I haven’t been there. My uncle and auntie have been there. They bought me a lovely fridge magnet.
Hey Fadima! It is a beautiful place with a lot of history and many things to discover. Maybe you’ll visit sometime and buy some fridge magnets for your loved ones yourself 🙂 Thanks for reading.
Thanks for the informative post! Greece is actually going to be my next holiday, so I’m using this time to plan things out!
Great, glad I could help. Are you visiting any islands too?
I’m mostly focusing on the mainland, but hoping to visit Santorini atleast
Oh, I’d love to visit Santorini, it’s at the top of my bucket list.
Oh my goodness I am now desperate to visit Athens. I’m a sucker for beautiful architecture, but then you throw in antique stores and a flea market! This city really does have it all!! I can see why you loved it so much.
Quinn x
It does have it all, and I didn’t even start talking about Greek food! 🙂
Very detailed post! I’ll need to come back when we can travel again and take notes. Thanks!
I hope things get back to normal soon, my feet are itching already 🙂