Welcome to Athens! The capital of Greece and the birthplace of modern democracy. If you’re trying to plan your itinerary for this historical city, I’ve got you covered. In this post you’ll find information on all the main attractions and activities in Athens.
- An Overview of Athens
- Sightseeing & Activities in Athens
- Ancient Sites of Athens
- Museums of Athens
- My Recommendations
- Conclusion
An Overview of Athens
Athens is the capital city of Greece. It is located in the Attica region, on the southeastern side of the Greek mainland and has been continuously inhabited for 5,000 years. In fact, it is almost unanimously considered the birthplace of Western civilization. The city attracts visitors from around the world who are eager to learn more about the history and culture of the ancient Greek civilization that called this city home.
Personally, I enjoyed my visit to Athens but I wouldn’t say there’s a huge charm to the city itself. The ancient sites and museums are the main draw – they truly are amazing. But once you’ve seen all of the main sites, the vibe of the city isn’t especially attractive. That being said, I think Athens is definitely worth visiting and I had a great time while I was there!
How Long to Visit
I spent five full days in Athens, but I think that three days is a good amount of time for the average person to visit. If you’re very interested in Greek history or would like to take some day trips (to Delphi or the Temple of Poseidon), then I would tack on a day or two on your itinerary.
Sightseeing & Activities in Athens
Syntagma Square (Changing of the Guard)
Syntagma square is where the Hellenic Parliament building is located. The tomb of the unknown soldier is housed at this building and is watched over 24/7 by presidential guards called Evzones. They wear very unique outfits and follow a specific routine for changing of the guard. The most interesting part is that their shoes have nails in the bottom that scrape loudly against the floor as they perform the changing. You can watch the changing of the guard every hour, on the hour.
Philopappos Hill
This hill, also known as the Hill of the Muses, is located just southwest of the Acropolis. It’s a nice spot for a picnic or to watch the sunset. It has excellent views of the Acropolis from one side, and views of the Aegean coastline, and the sunset, from the other side. There’s also a tiny church, St. Demetrius Loumpadiaris, near the bottom of the hill.
Mount Lycabettus
If there’s one hill I would recommend climbing in Athens, it’s this one. Mount Lycabettus is the highest point in central Athens and has excellent views of the city and Aegean Sea. It only takes 20-30 minutes to climb to the top and isn’t as busy as the other hills in central Athens. I went during the day but I can imagine it has wonderful views of the sunset.
Tip: Make this one of the first stops on your trip to Athens. From above you’ll be able to look down on all the ancient sites you’re going to visit and it will help orient yourself.
Areopagus
You guessed it, another hill – kind of. The Areopagus is really more of a giant rock that was formerly the headquarters for the judicial court of ancient Athens. It was also mentioned in the bible as the place where the apostle Paul preached from. The Areopagus is located very close to the Acropolis so it gets insanely busy, especially at sunset. Be cautious, the rock surface is VERY SLIPPERY!
Panathenaic Stadium
Price: €10
The Panathenaic stadium was the home of the first modern olympics in 1896. It is the world’s only stadium built completely out of marble. It’s located at the same site that the original games of the Panathenaea took place in ancient Greece.
From what I researched and saw, I don’t think it’s worth paying to get inside. From the outside, you can get a pretty good view of what’s inside without actually going in. I think the only benefit of paying to visit is that you can get photos and visit an exhibition on Olympic posters and torches.
Monastiraki Flea Market
You guessed it, another hill – kind of. The areopagus is really more of a giant rock that Unfortunately, like a lot of other markets in popular tourist destinations, this market has been overrun with mass produced souvenir shops. There are a couple of shops down the side streets that are selling thrifted and antique looking items. But apart from those, it’s mostly a bunch of shops targeted at tourists. I read that on Sundays it actually turns into a flea market but I didn’t have the chance to see it on a Sunday.
Plaka & Anafiotika Neighborhoods
These neighborhoods are a nice place to walk around and explore. There are also some shops, cafes, and restaurants in colorful buildings. Plaka is the oldest neighborhood in Athens and feels like a village within a city. Anafiotika is a very small cluster of houses that mimic the decor of the Greek islands. It’s a nice place to grab an ice cream and stroll around for a while.
Ancient Sites of Athens
Acropolis and Slopes
Price: €20 summer, €10 winter, €30 combination ticket
The real reason that everyone comes to Athens – the Acropolis. Situated on a hill overlooking the entire city, it truly is something to marvel at. Just to clarify, the Acropolis is the name of the complex that sits atop the hill. It is not the name of any particular building. The buildings located within the archaeological site include: the Parthenon, the Erechtheion, the Propylaea, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Odeon of Herodes atticus, and the Theater of Dionysus.
Ancient Agora
Price: €10 summer, €5 winter, €30 combination ticket
The ancient agora, located below the Acropolis, was the center of ancient Athens. Within this agora is where all social, political, religious, administrative, and commercial activities took place. The archaeological site itself houses the temple of Hephaestus, which is the best preserved temple in all of Greece.There is also a fully reconstructed stoa, housing a small museum, which helps you get a better idea of what the area might have looked like in ancient times. If you only have time to visit one thing other than the Acropolis, let it be the ancient agora.
Tips: The Rick Steve’s Audio Europe app has a free audio guide for the ancient agora. To stay on a budget and still get a tour, I would suggest bringing your own headphones and downloading this audio guide.
Hadrian’s Library
Price: €6 summer, €3 winter, €30 combination ticket
As the name suggests, Hadrian’s Library was a library built by Roman emperor Hadrian. The library itself housed important literary works, legal documents, and administrative documents. It also contained philosophical schools and lecture rooms.
Kerameikos
Price: €8 summer, €4 winter, €30 combination ticket
Of all the ancient sites in Athens, this one is the least visited. Kerameikos was originally a settlement full of vase and pot makers. However, it was eventually converted into a cemetery used for burials. In fact, it was the most important cemetery in ancient Athens. There is a small museum on site you can visit.
Lyceum (Aristotle’s School)
Price: €4 summer, €2 winter, €30 combination ticket
This site is a small park which was the location of Aristotle’s philosophy school. In my opinion, this is the site that requires the most imagination from its visitors. All that’s left is a very small amount of ruins. My partner is studying philosophy so this was non-negotiable to visit. I’ll leave you with what he had to say about the Lyceum: “you will learn more about Aristotle reading his works than you ever will standing in the ruins of his school”.
Olympieion (Temple of Zeus)
Price: €6 summer, €3 winter, €30 combination ticket.
The Olympieion was one of the largest temples built in the ancient world. You can tell just how unusually large the columns are when you’re looking up at them. Originally there were 104 columns and inside were enormous statues of Zeus made of gold and ivory. Today all that’s left are 15 columns plus a 16th that toppled over in the 1800’s.
Roman Agora
Price: €8 summer, €4 winter, €30 combination ticket
The Roman agora served as an open air market in its time. It was actually connected to the ancient agora via a paved path. At one end of the site is the Tower of Winds which, in my opinion, is the most interesting ruin in the agora. It was an ancient time and weather station. Inside was a mechanism that regulated water flow in order to tell the time – plainly speaking, a water clock. Besides the tower, the site mostly consists of stone and marble ruins.
Museums of Athens
Acropolis Museum
Price: €15 summer, €15 winter
As the name states, the Acropolis museum houses archaeological finds from the Acropolis. The museum is located about 300 meters from the Acropolis and has amazing views of the Acropolis across the way. The most interesting aspect is the third floor which was designed to house the sculptures of the Parthenon. There is a rectangle area in the center of the floor, which you walk around, that matches the Parthenon’s dimensions and orientation exactly.
Tip: Admission includes an audio guide that you use on your own phone via a QR code. Be sure to bring your own headphones so you can listen to the guide.
National Archaeological Museum
Price: €12 summer, €6 winter
The national archaeological museum is the largest archaeological museum in Greece. It houses collections of prehistoric antiquities, sculptures, metalwork, vases, and more. This museum is located a bit out of the city center, so depending on where you’re staying you might want to take public transport to get here.
During my research I consistently read that if you had to choose between the Acropolis museum and the archaeological museum that this one is better. Maybe under ideal circumstances this would be the case. However, when I visited (April 2024) the museum was grossly understaffed and over half of the rooms, 37 of them, were closed. In addition, I had to wait in line for 40 minutes to get in. Based on this experience, I would choose the Acropolis museum over this one.
Tip: I downloaded the Rick Steve’s Audio Europe app which has a very informational free audio guide for this museum. I would recommend bringing your own headphones and using it as a guide.
My Recommendations
I stayed in Athens for five days. I visited everything on this list and took a day trip to the Temple of Poseidon. That being said if you are trying to squeeze everything into a shorter itinerary here’s what I would recommend:
- Firstly, if you don’t want to visit all of the ancient sites, I would recommend seeing at the very least: the Acropolis, the ancient agora, and the Olympieion. I think these sites give you a pretty well rounded view of the ancient sites in Athens.
- Secondly, make a choice between the Acropolis museum or the archaeological museum. If you’re leaning towards the archaeological museum, I would check their website, as well as the most recent Google and/or TripAdvisor reviews to see if all of their exhibitions are open before you make that commitment. I personally preferred the Acropolis museum.
- And lastly, between all the viewpoints in the city, I think Mount Lycabettus has the best one. It’s slightly more difficult to access than the hills closer to the acropolis (in terms of distance and hiking time) but this means there are fewer crowds. It also gives you a panoramic view of the entire city due to its height. So if you’re choosing between viewpoints, I would choose Mount Lycabettus
Conclusion
Athens is a city jam packed with ancient history and culture. What it lacks in traditional charm it makes up for in sheer density of historical and archaeological sites. If you’re planning a trip to Athens, be sure to check out my other posts to help plan your trip!
How to Visit the Temple of Poseidon – Sounion
Courtney Plans Travels 
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