Getting the best out of a city break in Athens

Experiencing everything magical about Athens, with the Acropolis as your backdrop
Experiencing everything magical about Athens, with the Acropolis as your backdrop
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The Athens of history, culture, festivals, fun and a vibrant nightlife: Welcome to a city that knows just how to entice you with its infectious rhythm

With so many sights and attractions, monuments, museums, neighbourhoods, colourful markets and bazaars with a vintage feel around you, Athens has everything and more to fill a summer holiday let alone a city break. From the Acropolis Museum to the Ancient Agora, the memories of Ancient Greece are found in every corner. Begin with a stroll from Thiseion to Monastiraki and discover the authentic spirit of the city in little shops filled with treasures from the past. You’ll find elegant jewellery, vinyl records, comic books from the 1960s and rare volumes from the interwar years.

Sundays are a great opportunity to explore more: Dozens of vendors set up on the streets and squares, flooding the centre of Athens with their merchandise. A little further up, in aristocratic Plaka and Anafiotika, you’ll feel like you’re on an island. Walk through the cobblestone streets and discover picturesque corners, grand neoclassical buildings, charming cafes and shops with souvenirs. And at night, enjoy the city’s vibrant nightlife and the infinite options for fun and entertainment that promise to etch this experience into your memory forever!

A city that is one big stroll

In a city that boasts more than 2,880 hours of sunlight a year, walking makes perfect sense. Begin your journey in the green oasis of the National Garden, strolling beneath the Acropolis, to discover the secrets hidden in the pedestrian streets of Dionysios Areopagitis and Apostolos Pavlos. Then move onto the paths that wrap themselves around Filopappou Hill and enjoy the view, the sunset and the history hidden on Pnyx Hill and in the National Observatory of Athens.

Athens of culture and art

Athens isn’t just monuments and hidden secrets, but living art that demands your attention. As you’re walking, be sure to turn and look at its walls. On these unique urban canvases, street artists have captured their vision of the city. They are all still works in progress, to be added to, modified, enriched with new adaptations of the story of this ever-changing city. 

But if its indoor exhibits you are looking for, Kolonaki, Keramikos and Metaxourgio are the neighbourhoods where you’ll find the most art galleries.

Discover Athens through its art!

 

Shopping in the centre of the city

A modern capital inevitably has shopping of suitably high standards. During your holidays here, you’ll have plenty of time to experience the city’s shopping extravaganza. Start in the pedestrian shopping avenue of Ermou and its surrounding streets and move on to famed Kolonaki. All around you, the opportunities open up to browse brand-name stores and high-end boutiques. Streets such as Skoufa, Patriarchou Ioakeim and Voukourestiou, as well as the surrounding roads, are filled with shops for all tastes and styles, whether couture, classic, trendy or street fashion. 

And if you want to pack your suitcase with the traditional flavours and fragrances of Greece, head to the Central Market of Athens, on Evripidou Street, where you’ll find herbs, spices and products from local producers, giving you the chance to bottle some of the essence of this multicultural capital for your journey home.

Nightlife in the capital 

And when the natural light fades and the city is illuminated with the colourful lights of the bars and clubs in the centre, you will experience another side to the city. A bohemian side that emerges in the hotspots of Athens’ vibrant nightlife. A side of the city that is evolving and transforming constantly. Aside from the classic hangouts, such as Kolonaki, Exarchia and Gazi, there are other alternative neighbourhoods that are popping up as the new ‘ultimate destinations’ for nightlife in Athens. The latest being Agia Irini Square, vibrant with life and attracting all the hype. New entertainment venues, bars, cafes, restaurants and street food stalls are constantly opening here.

Later on, from your hotel pool bar, you’ll see the Acropolis lit up, sending out the signal that it’s time to have fun! You sip your cocktail slowly, while the music gets you into the groove, the city beckons, inviting you to join in. Time to paint the town red! You’ll discover thousands of ways to spend the evening: hip bars, open-air clubs and dancing on tables at bouzoukia, with live Greek music interspersed with DJ sets. No matter where you end up, you’re bound to have an unforgettable time.