Two Days in Athens

While two days will just scratch the surface of this storied city, it's two days you won't forget and will leave you hungry for more. Athens is a gritty but charming city and lacks the subtle menace of somewhere like Naples or Marseille. Like almost everywhere in Greece you are made to feel very welcome.

Athens from the Parthenon. The Acropolis Museum is in the foreground.

Getting There

No complaints with Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos (AIA) for either arrivals or departures. We booked return transfers through my transfers.com which was simple and would have been seamless but for the fact the provider Clevertryp Transfers was MIA on arrival. To their credit, they scrambled another car for us quickly so it was only an additional 30 minute wait in the end. Aegean Airlines was also a pleasant experience - new planes, efficient operations and friendly staff.

Aegean Airlines Airbus A320

Where to Stay

If this is your first time in Athens you will want to visit the Acropolis and the new Acropolis Museum - and you should - so it makes sense to stay somewhere reasonably close particularly if visiting in the middle of summer as we did. Taxis are easy to come by and cheap (see below) so getting around wasn't difficult. A hotel with an Acropolis view from the rooftop bar is really worthwhile or even better, from your room as well. It's worth paying for and evening drinks looking over the illuminated Parthenon is a highlight.

There are many excellent hotels on the Athens Riviera but you will need to plan on spending more time in cars getting to the places you are likely to want to see as a first time visitor (e.g. around 45 mins from The Four Seasons to the Acropolis). Not recommended is the area around the Pedion Areos (one of the largest public parks in Athens). The park itself looks nice enough (although it was closed due to fire risk when we were there) but the surrounding area has nothing to recommend it unless you plan to spend a couple of days in the National Archaeological Museum.

Acropolis views from Hotel Grande Bretagne (Photo: Hotel Grande Bretagne)

An Antiquities Masterclass

Acropolis Musuem

This stunning museum opened in 2009 and is an extraordinary piece of architecture as well as being home to an unsurpassed collection of ancient treasures. It may seem a little counter-intuitive but we decided to visit the Museum on our first day before the Acropolis itself which turned out to be a good way to do it as having all of the background to the Acropolis and the Parthenon helped make a lot more sense of what we were seeing. Allow a couple of hours for the museum and don't miss the excavations under the building which you can access with your ticket from the entrance courtyard. The area around the museum is surprisingly light on tourist tat and rip-off restaurants. In fact, it's a nice spot to have lunch after visiting the museum in the morning.

The Acropolis

There is always the potential to be underwhelmed when visiting iconic landmarks but this isn't one of those times. It's truly magnificent even after having been blown up, looted and otherwise desecrated by the Persians, Turks, British and others over the centuries. If visiting in the summer I highly recommend having pre-booked tickets and arriving at or before opening at 8:00am. You will beat the worst of the heat and crowds and walking up the hill and seeing the Parthenon without hordes of tourists in front of it is a special moment. It gets busy quickly so the earlier the better. BYO water and hats as there is limited shade. You can walk up to the Acropolis or take the easy option and have a taxi drop you near the entrance (save your energy and walk down instead).

The Parthenon

To see more of the Acropolis sights it is worth getting a combo ticket. We walked down the Pantheonaic Way to the Roman and Ancient Agora, Hadrian's Library etc. You need a bit of stamina to hit all the ancient sites in one day in summer but there are some great restaurants in the Monastiraki area near the Ancient Agora for a well-deserved lunch-time pit stop. The nearby Athens Flea Market is also worth a wander through.

The Roman Agora

National Archeological Museum

If you want to round out the antiquities experience then this is the place to do it. If ancient Greek amphora and vases are your thing then there's a whole floor to keep you busy otherwise this is a very good classical style museum. It's unlikely to keep young visitors occupied for long but there is plenty for everyone else. The highlight, for me at least, was probably the ground-floor collections of prehistoric (Neolithic, Cycladic and Mycenaean) antiquities from around the 7th - 1st millennium BC. If you are the type of museum-goer that likes to read every sign then plan a good few hours but even if you only have time for a walk through it's definitely worth adding to the itinerary if you have the time.

National Museum of Contemporary Art (https://www.emst.gr/en/)

An article in Aegean Air's in-flight magazine peaked our interest for this Museum which might not find itself on the standard two-day hit-list but nonetheless is highly recommended if you have any interest in contemporary art. A exhibition of Cold War era Eastern Europe architecture might not be for everyone but we throughly enjoyed it, teens included.

Exploring the Neighbourhoods

The worst part of two days in a fabulous city like Athens is leaving knowing you didn't have the time to explore the local neighbourhoods properly. However a quick brush was enough to have Athens on our must-return list.

• Omonia Square - this area in central Athens in nothing to get excited about but two places are worth visiting if you happen to find yourself here:

  • Athēnaïkon Taverna (Themistokleous 2, Κέντρο 106 78). Feeling a bit lost on our first day straight off the plane this traditional taverna was a god-send for an excellent late lunch.

  • Central Municipal Athens Market - housed in a beautiful old market hall this is a must-do for food market lovers.
    

• Syntagma Square - even if you don't plan to spend any time here, chances are you will drive past on the way to the Acropolis. Home to the Hellenic Parliament, the tomb of the unknown solider and the traditional honour guard. Behind the parliament buildings you will find the National Garden.

Syntagma Square - Photo by sun Ping chieh on Unsplash

• Plaka - lying between the Acropolis and Syntagma Square this is a good place to find the tourist knick knacks but also home to Hadrian's Arch where Plaka borders the National Garden. Some great laneways and restaurants to be found here as well.

Plaka Restaurants

• Monastiraki - home to a range of historic sites that will be part of any combo ticket including the Ancient Agora and Musuem (worth visiting), the Roman Agora (not a lot left of this one) and Hadrian's Library. After the Acropolis and a couple of hot dusty agoras, a cold Mythos tasted pretty good at one of the restaurants on Adrianou looking over the Ancient Agora. Athens Flea Market and its laneways is right behind on Ifestou.
  

• Kolonaki - cool vibes on the hills of Kolonaki known for its local and international designer shops along with a range of mid and high-end restaurants. This would be a fun area to stay and looking forward to spending more time here on our next visit.

• Gazi & Psyri - A Greek friend recommended these areas as 'hipper' areas for teens and evening dining, clubs etc. We didn't make it there but no doubt worth checking out.

Getting Around

Taxis are ubiquitous and cheap in Athens are probably the easiest, if not a particularly luxurious, way to get around. They tend to be a bit loose with use of the meter for visitors which can go either way - we experienced both - so worth confirming a price up-front unless they switch it on. One helpful driver shared that there is a network that works with hotels in Athens and charges low fixed-rate prices for trips which is worth knowing. You can also book taxis via the Uber app which is a good way to order a car and lock in the trip price.

Athens also has a metro system which we didn't try but looks to be a low-cost and efficient way of getting around including from the airport. The same ticket can be used on all modes of public transport.

Overall

Athens is definitely on the return visit list. While we loved the classic sites and antiquities, it's clear there is much more to explore and getting to know the local neighbourhoods and areas outside the main tourist sites would be a priority. Visiting the Acropolis for a second time would be on the agenda as well as it's hard to take it all in seeing it just once. Overall Athens is a brilliant city brimming with hospitality, culture and personality.

Temple of Athena