25+ Top Things to do in Athens, Greece

Athens wasn’t even the main event on my first trip to Greece. The plan was to island hop through the Cyclades, and Athens was just the entry point, a city I’d spend a couple of nights in before catching a ferry. I arrived after a flight of nearly 20 hours, exhausted, ready to collapse. But that afternoon, I made it up to the rooftop bar of my hotel in Plaka, ordered something cold, and looked up.

The Acropolis was right there. Lit by the late evening sun, still golden at 7pm the way only a Mediterranean summer can manage. I was dead on my feet and I couldn’t move and struggled to keep my eyes open, but that view kept me in my chair for another few hours!

Athens does that. It catches you off guard.

It’s not a city that tries to impress you. Parts of it are rough, gritty in places, and a bit chaotic around the edges. There are neighbourhoods that feel edgy, and you might spot riot police near Monastiraki on a busy day, which can unsettle you if you’re not expecting it. But underneath all of that is a city of extraordinary depth: 3,000 years of history playing out on street level, ancient ruins standing between apartment blocks and coffee shops, and a local culture that’s warm, opinionated, and completely alive.

I’ve visited Athens several times now, and what follows is a guide built from all my visits. Some entries are places and experiences I’ve personally tested. Others come from fellow travellers who know specific corners of the city better than I do, and I’ve included them where I think they genuinely add something. Either way, everything here is worth your time.

Here’s what to do in Athens.

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A roundup of the very best things to do in Athens, Greece

1. Visit the Acropolis

No other site in Athens prepares you for the Acropolis. You can see it from half the city, lit up at night from rooftop bars, glimpsed at the end of alleyways in Plaka. And then you actually go up.

We booked a private guided tour rather than going it alone, and it was genuinely worth the extra cost. Having someone walk you through the history of the Parthenon, the Erechtheion, and the Theatre of Dionysus while you’re standing in front of them changes the experience completely. Without a guide, it’s easy to walk around in awe but leave without really understanding what you’re looking at.

A few practical things worth knowing: timed entry is now mandatory, so book your tickets online in advance, especially in summer when slots sell out days ahead. The standard adult ticket is €30 in peak season. Go early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid the worst of the crowds and the heat.

And wear proper shoes. I learned this the hard way on my way out, wearing completely the wrong footwear, I slipped on the marble steps and went down hard enough that there was an audible gasp from the people around me. I was fine, mostly just my pride that didn’t recover. The marble is ancient, polished smooth, and completely unforgiving. Don’t be me.

Of course, if you’re staying in Plaka, find a rooftop bar to watch the Acropolis after dark. Seeing it illuminated against the night sky is one of those moments that stays with you many more years after visiting the city.

Want more detail on the history before you visit? Read our guide to the most interesting Acropolis facts worth knowing.

2. The Parthenon

The Parthenon is technically part of your Acropolis visit, but it deserves its own moment. Built between 447 and 438 BC and dedicated to the goddess Athena, it’s the largest Doric temple ever constructed in Greece and the centrepiece of the entire site.

What strikes you standing in front of it isn’t just the scale, it’s the age. This building has been a temple, a church, a mosque, and a treasury. It was largely destroyed by an explosion in 1687 and has been under almost continuous restoration ever since. What remains is still extraordinary. On a clear morning, with the sun hitting the marble columns from the east, it’s genuinely difficult to believe you’re looking at something nearly 2,500 years old.

Get there early, the crowds build fast, particularly from cruise ship arrivals late morning. The south entrance typically has a shorter queue than the main entrance, and timed tickets are now required so there’s no just-turning-up. 

3. Explore the Neighbourhood of Plaka

Plaka is where I stay every time I visit Athens, and I’d recommend it without hesitation as a base. It’s the old town, sitting directly below the Acropolis, a tangle of narrow alleys, neoclassical buildings, and cafes spilling out onto the street. After the intensity of a morning on the Acropolis, coming back down into Plaka for a long, slow coffee feels exactly right.

It’s tourist-facing, no point pretending otherwise, but it’s also genuinely charming. The souvenir shops are unavoidable but look past them and you’ll find small museums, good tavernas, and some of the best street-level views of the Acropolis in the city.

Worth seeking out inside Plaka is the tiny neighbourhood of Anafiotika, a cluster of whitewashed houses that looks like it was lifted directly from a Cycladic island and dropped onto the hillside. It’s quiet, pretty, and easy to miss if you don’t know it’s there.

4. Enjoy a Drink at Bar Brettos

By Baia, Red Fedora Diary

Bar Brettos is one of those places that earns its reputation. Established in 1909, it’s the oldest distillery in Athens and still operating out of the same Plaka address, producing ouzo and liqueurs using recipes that date back to the 19th century.

Walk in and you’re immediately hit by the interior: floor-to-ceiling shelves of coloured glass bottles backlit against the walls, original wooden barrels stacked behind the bar. It’s theatrical and completely genuine at the same time.

The menu runs to over 50 liqueurs and 200 Greek wines. The bartenders will guide you if you’re not sure where to start, but ordering a small ouzo and sitting at the bar for half an hour is as good an introduction to Athenian nightlife as you’ll find. It gets busy in the evening, so arrive early if you want a seat.

5. Hadrian’s Library

By Wendy, The Nomadic Vegan

Five minutes from Syntagma Square, Hadrian’s Library is one of those sites that gets overlooked because it sits in the shadow of the Acropolis. That’s a mistake. Built in the 2nd century AD by the Roman Emperor Hadrian, this was the largest structure he built anywhere in his empire, and it was far more than a library. It functioned as a full cultural centre with music rooms, lecture halls, and a courtyard garden.

And in case you’re wondering, yes, it’s named after the same guy who built Hadrian’s Wall across the north of England. 

The library itself was a marble building lined with wooden shelves holding thousands of papyrus scrolls. What remains is the ruined outer wall and interior foundations, cleared back to their Roman state in the 1950s. It’s worth 30 to 45 minutes of your time and pairs naturally with a walk through the Roman Agora next door.

Tickets: Each site in Athens now requires a separate ticket since the combined pass was discontinued in April 2025. Entry to Hadrian’s Library is €6. Book online at the Hellenic Heritage e-ticketing site.

6. Watch the Sunset at the Temple of Poseidon

Cape Sounion is about 70km south of Athens, and the journey is worth it. The Temple of Poseidon sits on a 60-metre cliff above the Aegean, built in 444 BC at the height of Athenian power. You can’t enter the ruins, but you can walk the perimeter and stand close enough to the columns to read Lord Byron’s name, which he carved there in 1810.

Go in the late afternoon. The sunset over the Aegean from this position is exceptional, and the drive down the coastal road from Athens is itself a pleasure. Most people book a half-day tour from the city, which is the easiest option, though public buses do run from central Athens if you prefer to go independently. 

7. National Archaeological Museum

The National Archaeological Museum is the largest in Greece and one of the most significant collections of ancient Greek art in the world. Founded in 1829, it holds everything from prehistoric artefacts to classical sculpture, with highlights including the gold funeral Mask of Agamemnon, dated around 1550 BC, and the bronze Artemision Jockey, one of the finest surviving examples of Hellenistic sculpture.

Allow at least two to three hours. It’s a large building and easy to rush through, but worth taking slowly. The prehistoric and Mycenaean collections on the ground floor alone justify the visit.

Practical info: Admission is €20 (from January 2026, year-round, no seasonal reduction). EU students under 25 enter free. The museum opens late on Tuesdays, from 1pm, and closes at 8pm, so check current hours before visiting. Free entry on the first Sunday of each month November through March, and on selected national holidays. 

8. Temple of Olympian Zeus

The Temple of Olympian Zeus took 638 years to complete. Begun in the 6th century BC and finally finished by Emperor Hadrian in 131 AD, it was once held up by 104 colossal columns. Fifteen still stand. A sixteenth lies on the ground where it fell during a storm in 1852.

What’s left is genuinely impressive: the columns are enormous, far larger than most photos suggest, and the scale of what the original structure must have looked like is staggering. It’s also visible from the Acropolis hill, so you get two views for the price of one.

Tickets: Entry is now sold separately. Check current pricing at the Hellenic Heritage e-ticketing site before your visit. 

9. Dinner at Taverna Klimataria

By Stephen, Asia Hikes

Taverna Klimataria in the Psirri neighbourhood is one of the best restaurants I’ve come across anywhere in Europe. It opened in 1927 and has stayed in the hands of two local families ever since. Old wine barrels line the walls, there’s a vine-shaded courtyard, and most evenings the house musicians play guitar, contrabass, and bouzouki while diners join in.

The food is traditional Greek: cheeses and chickpeas to start, baked meat dishes or fresh fish from the municipal market nearby.

Perhaps most surprisingly, it’s still good value. Expect to spend around €20-25 per person including wine, which for the quality and atmosphere is hard to argue with.

Note that live music runs Tuesday to Saturday from 10pm, with a €20 minimum spend per person during those sessions. If you’re going for the music, book ahead and arrive early to secure a table. You’ll hear the music before you see the restaurant. 

10. Panathenaic Stadium

By Sara, WanderMoore

Built in the 4th century BC and reconstructed for the first modern Olympics in 1896, the Panathenaic Stadium is the only stadium in the world built entirely of marble. Today it’s an open museum where you can walk the track, sit in the stands, and visit the Olympic museum inside, which holds torches, posters, and displays from Games past.

The audio guide is well done and takes about 20 minutes. It’s not the most dramatic site in Athens, but it’s one of the most accessible, and the combination of ancient history and modern Olympic heritage makes it worth an hour of your time.

Practical info: Adults €10, reduced €5 for students and seniors over 65. Free for children under 6 and visitors with disabilities. Open daily March-October 8am-7pm, November-February 8am-5pm. Audio guide included with admission. Tickets are only available on-site, not online. Closest metro: Syntagma or Evangelismos. 

Planning your time in the city? Our 2 days in Athens itinerary covers how to fit the main sites into a weekend visit.

11. Acropolis Museum

By Loredana, Destguides

Visit the Acropolis Museum before you go up to the Acropolis itself, not after. Knowing what you’re looking at, and what the site originally contained, makes the Acropolis significantly more rewarding.

The building itself is worth noting: it’s constructed over an ancient neighbourhood, and glass panels in the floor let you look down into excavated ruins as you walk through. The exhibits cover artefacts from the Acropolis and surrounding hillside, and the top floor holds the Parthenon frieze, partially original and partially cast where the originals are in London.

Allow two to three hours. No photos are allowed inside the main galleries. There’s a good cafe on the outdoor terrace with Acropolis views, slightly pricey but worth a quick coffee.

Tickets: €15 high season (April-October), €10 low season. Separate from the Acropolis site ticket. 

12. Daphni Monastery

By Bhushavali, My Travelogue

On the outskirts of Athens, Daphni Monastery is one of three Byzantine monasteries jointly listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Greece. The current structure dates from the 11th century and the interior mosaics from that period are the reason to visit: intricate, detailed work covering the dome and walls in the Middle Byzantine style, with Christ Pantocrator at the centre of the dome surrounded by angels, prophets, and saints.

Entry is free but the opening hours are unusual: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday only, 8am to 3pm. If you’re planning to visit, build it into your morning and combine it with a day trip to Delphi or Hosios Loukas, both of which are within reasonable driving distance. 

13. Athens Food on Foot Tour

By Dawn, 5 Lost Together

A food tour is the best way to spend your first morning in Athens. Not because the food is hard to find on your own, but because a good guide takes you into the kind of family-run places that have no online presence and no English signage, and tells you why what you’re eating matters.

The Athens Food on Foot tours, run by Anna, covers Anafiotika, the central market, and the Monastiraki flea market, with stops for Greek yoghurt, cured meats, olives bought from families who’ve been selling them for generations, and a hangover soup that’s apparently a local institution. It caters for vegetarians and can accommodate dietary restrictions. 

14. Temple of Hephaestus

The Temple of Hephaestus sits on the edge of the Ancient Agora and is arguably the best-preserved ancient Greek temple in existence. Built around 415 BC in the Doric style and dedicated to both Hephaestus and Athena, it served later as an Orthodox church and then as a burial site for non-Orthodox Europeans, which is partly why it survived intact while so many others didn’t.

The morning light on the columns is excellent for photography, but it’s worth a visit at any time of day. Entry is via the Ancient Agora ticket.

Tickets: Ancient Agora entry is now sold separately since the combined ticket was discontinued in April 2025. Check current pricing at the Hellenic Heritage e-ticketing site. 

While you’re there, don’t rush through the wider Ancient Agora site. The Stoa of Attalos, a reconstructed ancient marketplace now housing a small museum, is worth 30 minutes on its own and gives a clear sense of what daily civic life in ancient Athens actually looked like.

15. Lake Vouliagmeni

By Karolina, Lazy Travel Blog

Lake Vouliagmeni is about 25km south of central Athens, a brackish thermal lake enclosed by limestone cliffs with water that stays between 21 and 27 degrees year-round. It’s part spa, part natural wonder, and genuinely unlike anything else near the city.

The water is rich in salt and minerals, and the lake is famous for its small fish, Garra Rufa, which exfoliate dead skin if you stand still long enough to let them. It sounds gimmicky and somehow isn’t. There are sunbeds, a cafe, and a private area if you want a more spa-like experience.

The easiest way to get there is by taxi from central Athens. The 122 Saronida Express bus also runs from Ellinikon if you’re on a budget.

16. Lycabettus Hill

By Helena, Just For One Summer

At 277 metres, Lycabettus Hill is the highest point in central Athens and the best elevated view in the city. The Acropolis gets the headlines, but from Lycabettus you see the whole urban spread: rooftops, the coast, and on a clear day the islands.

You can walk up from Syntagma or take a taxi to the theatre near the top and walk the final stretch. There’s a funicular but it’s expensive for what it is. The viewing platform near the church at the summit gets very busy at sunset, and the flagpoles obscure some of the best angles. Better to find a spot on the southern slope path on the way up, the view is equally good and the crowd significantly thinner.

Stay after sunset. The blue hour, when the city lights come on and the Acropolis starts to glow, is the best moment of all. 

17. Museum of Ancient Greek Technology

The Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology is a small private museum near the Changing of the Guard that tends to get overlooked in favour of the bigger archaeological collections. It shouldn’t be. The founder has spent decades recreating ancient Greek inventions from original documents and archaeological remains, and the results are extraordinary.

There’s a burglar alarm operated by pulleys and weights, a whistling alarm clock, a cup designed to punish greedy wine drinkers, a barber’s mirror that plays music, and a robotic automaton built to serve wine at banquets. Alongside the curiosities sit the serious engineering: the mechanisms that lifted the marble blocks of the Acropolis, water pumps, geared winches, surgical tools.

It’s particularly good with children but genuinely fascinating for adults too.

Practical info: Main exhibition €5, basement €3.50 for ages 6-17. Open 9am-5pm. 

18. Free Walking Tour of Athens

By Kate and Kris, What Kate and Kris Did

A free walking tour is one of the best ways to orient yourself in Athens on day one. The guides are typically local or Athens-based, and the format lets you see not just the main sites but the connective tissue between them: the stories about specific streets, the mythology attached to particular buildings, the context that makes the ruins meaningful rather than just old.

The standard Athens free tour covers Hadrian’s Arch, the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the National Gardens, Plaka, and Monastiraki. You tip at the end based on what you thought it was worth. Book online in advance to confirm your spot. 

19. Monastiraki

Monastiraki is the chaotic, noisy, endlessly interesting commercial heart of Athens. It’s touristy in the way all great bazaar districts are touristy: because they’ve been trading centres for thousands of years and the tourists are just the latest customers. You can buy fresh produce, vintage clothing, antique watches, handmade ceramics, and cheap souvlaki within the same ten-minute walk.

It’s also the neighbourhood where you’re most likely to feel Athens’ rougher edges. There’s usually a police presence, particularly on weekends, and the flea market on Sunday mornings is both brilliant and chaotic. Go with that expectation and you’ll love it.

The area is within walking distance of the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora, and Plaka, so it slots naturally into a full day of exploring the historic centre. 

20. Byzantine and Christian Museum

The Byzantine and Christian Museum is one of the more overlooked collections in Athens, which is a shame because it’s housed in a beautiful Tuscan-style villa in Kolonaki with a proper garden courtyard that’s one of the quieter spots in the city.

The permanent exhibition runs from the 4th century through to the modern era and covers Byzantine art, early Christian artefacts, and the cultural legacy of the Eastern Roman Empire. It’s best appreciated after you’ve seen some of the major archaeological sites, when you have a sense of the timeline.

The courtyard cafe is a good place to rest after a morning of heavier sightseeing. 

21. Book a Sailing Day Trip

By Chantae, Chantae Reden

If you have a spare day, an all-day sailing trip through the Saronic Gulf is one of the best ways to spend it.

The standard itinerary stops at Agistri, where you can swim and cycle; Moni, a quieter island with rocky ledges good for snorkelling; and Aegina, which has a proper port town, a temple, and the best pistachios in Greece.

One practical tip: choose a smaller boat with fewer stops. The transit time between islands is significant, and on a large boat with 100 passengers getting on and off, you lose a lot of time waiting. A smaller tour costs a bit more but gives you real time on each island. 

22. Enjoy a Rooftop Drink Overlooking the Acropolis

This was the moment that changed my opinion of Athens. After a 20-hour journey, dragging myself up to the rooftop bar of the Central Hotel in Plaka at 7pm, ordering something cold, and sitting there watching the Acropolis turn golden in the evening light. I was exhausted, but I didn’t move for an hour.

Most hotels in the Plaka and Syntagma area have rooftop bars, and they range from casual to quite formal. The Central Hotel rooftop is unpretentious and well-positioned. The Electra Palace has a rooftop pool and restaurant if you want something more polished.

Either way, find a rooftop and spend an evening up there. It’s one of the things Athens does better than almost anywhere. 

23. Anafiotika

By Alexander, Engineer on Tour

Anafiotika is a handful of whitewashed houses clinging to the lower slopes of the Acropolis hill, built in the 1800s by workers from the island of Anafi who were brought to Athens for palace construction and given land in lieu of payment. They built the way they knew, and the result is a tiny Cycladic village dropped into the middle of a European capital.

It’s the quietest part of Plaka and easy to stumble into without realising it. Narrow paths, cats lazing about, the occasional street musician at the highest viewpoint. In summer it fills up, but go in the shoulder season or early morning and you can have most of it to yourself. 

24. Benaki Museum

By Tiffany, A Girl and Her Passport

The Benaki Museum covers Greek history from the prehistoric era through to the 20th century in a handsome neoclassical building in central Athens. It’s a private museum, founded in 1930, and the collection reflects that: personal, eclectic, and broader in scope than the state archaeological museums.

Gold jewellery, Byzantine art, traditional costumes, a full-size carved reception room from a Macedonian mansion, and Greek family heirlooms sit alongside more conventional historical artefacts.

The cafe on the covered balcony overlooks the National Gardens and is one of the calmer spots in the city for a mid-afternoon coffee.

25. Where to Eat in Athens: Mama Greek Breakfast & Beyond

Food in Athens is one of the great pleasures of the city and it doesn’t take much effort to eat well. I can honestly attest that I didn’t have a single bad meal during all my visits to the city. A few places worth knowing about from my personal experience include:

Mama Greek Breakfast, despite the name, serves dinner too and the moussaka is exceptional. On my last visit to Athens I went there on the final night, sat outside in the early June warmth, and ate what turned out to be one of the best meals of the trip. It’s relaxed, reasonably priced, and the kind of restaurant where you watch the evening unfold on the street around you. Perfect for a last-night dinner.

Taverna Klimataria in Psirri (see item 9) is the other essential table, particularly if you want live music with your food.

For something different, Cookoomela in the Exarchia neighbourhood does entirely plant-based mushroom gyros wrapped in paper and served on wooden trays – a perfect vegan foodie option in Athens. The chef is an avowed mushroom obsessive and it shows. The ‘yellow’ wrap with grilled mushrooms, mustard, potatoes, vegan mayo, and avocado is the one to order. Exarchia itself is worth a look for the street art. 

If you want one meal that feels nothing like anything else in the city, find Diporto. It’s a koutouki, a Greek basement taverna, hidden behind two unmarked wooden doors at the corner of Sokratous and Theatrou Streets, just behind the central food market. No sign outside, no menu inside.

You walk down steep stone stairs into a low-ceilinged basement lined with enormous wine barrels, sit at a paper-covered table, and eat whatever is cooking on the stove that day. Usually chickpeas, sardines, a simple salad, barrel wine poured into a tin carafe. The owner does everything and speaks no English.

Two people eat and drink for around €25-30. It has been operating since 1887 and feels completely unchanged. Go at lunch, arrive early, and bring cash.

26. Changing of the Guard at Syntagma Square

The Changing of the Guard at Syntagma Square is one of those things that sounds like a tourist cliché until you actually see it. The Evzones, the Greek presidential guard, wear a ceremonial uniform that takes around an hour to put on: a pleated white kilt called a foustanella, white tights, a tasselled cap, and shoes with enormous pompoms on the toes. The effect is extraordinary, somewhere between ancient warrior and national theatre.

The change happens every hour on the hour, every day, in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on the north side of Syntagma Square. At the top of each hour two guards rotate in a slow, precisely choreographed march. On Sundays at 11am the full ceremonial change takes place with the entire Evzone regiment in dress uniform, accompanied by a military band. If you’re in Athens on a Sunday that’s the one to see.

It’s free, takes about ten minutes, and is right in the centre of the city. Pair it with a drink in Syntagma Square before heading down to Plaka.

Where to Stay in Athens

My preference is always Plaka. If you’re planning a longer trip around Greece, our 5 days in Greece itinerary and island hopping guide are worth reading before you book.

On my first trip I stayed at the Central Hotel. The rooms are standard, nothing remarkable, but the rooftop bar with its direct Acropolis views is the reason to book it. It’s honest value and the location in the heart of Plaka is hard to fault. Worth considering if you’re not fussed about room design and just want a great base at a fair price.

If you want something more polished, the Electra Palace Athens is the Plaka splurge: a proper 5-star hotel with a rooftop pool and restaurant overlooking the Acropolis.

The Acropolis View Hotel is an excellent mid-range option with a rooftop terrace where breakfast is served with Parthenon views, strong reviews, and a quieter street position just a short walk from the Acropolis south entrance. 

Frequently Asked Questions: Things to Do in Athens

Before you go: Make sure you have everything you need for your trip. Read our European packing guide for a full list of travel essentials before you head to Greece.