It is probably fair to say that many visitors expect to only stay in Athens
for a day or two - perhaps whilst sat waiting for flights out or awaiting ferry connections
at either end of an island-hopping holiday - and use the opportunity to do some sightseeing and
visit the Temple of Olympian Zeus, Keramikos, Parthenon and The Acropolis as
well as other famous ancient sites in the City.
Our Athens travel, holiday and touring guide refers to our visit in July 2009 - any
prices and so on mentioned are therefore in relation to then and might well
change i.e. likely to increase.
Travelling to Athens.
Flying to Athens. As the capital of Greece Athens is
serviced by many types of airlines - from charter flights through low-cost to
"proper" scheduled flights such as BA. The flight time from London Heathrow to
Athens international Elefterios Venizelos Airport is around 3 hours 45 minutes. The very modern
spacey airport - which was opened in 2001 - is located near Markopoulo and around 30 kms by road
from the centre of Athens and around 45 kms from Piraeus. Getting from the
airport to either of those destinations is quite easy - various "X" bus
services leave frequently from the Terminal 24 hours a day, or the metro provides non-stop
services and of course there are taxis available. Typical taxi cost (as of July
2009) down to the Ferry Terminal area of Piraeus is 35 Euros and the price into
the centre of Athens is around 35 Euros. Both these taxi rates increase by
around 10 Euros for journeys between midnight and 0500hrs.
By Ferry
to Athens. There are several ferry terminals near
Athens with the huge port at Piraeus being the busiest - apart from the main
route out to any of The Cyclades Islands it is possible to get
boats to and from just about any Greek Island (as well as to Italy etc.).
Note: there is a superfast ferry providing a service to Kea from Piraeus - this
then goes on to Syros etc.). Ferries also leave from Rafina (particularly to the
Northern and Eastern Cyclades) and from Lavrio (mainly to Kea) - note Lavrio is around 60kms from the Airport so transferring is quite
expensive and the above-mentioned islands can be reached by using Piraeus.
Getting information about ferry schedules can be a little difficult - several
web-sites give information and let you buy tickets on-line but these only
mention confirmed ferry-schedules - often Greek islands have local services
perhaps just plying between two or three local islands and these are not
published.
Where to Stay in Athens.
There are of course many hotels in the City - with the most expensive generally
within walking distance of the Acropolis - and where prices for a 5 star go
anywhere from 130 Euros upwards and although rated 5 star can vary enormously in
what you get. 2 and 3 star hotels are obviously way cheaper but you should not
expect too much if you only want or are able to pay 40 or so Euros a night. If
travelling in or out via Piraeus - which is seamlessly connected to Athens -
then perhaps staying down at the port is a consideration however it's not the
best place in the world to wander around and you will not get anything very nice
to stay in unless you pay well over 80 euros a night (although deals can be had
by using the web or perhaps a Greek travel agent).
Eating and Drinking. Much of the night-life in
the city is centred around the Plaka area right in the heart of the old sites -
the Acropolis itself is sat up on a small hill and the narrow streets below are
lined with drinks bars, cafes and tavernas all offering views - and often
charging accordingly. However there are plenty of places to eat where you do not
have to pay a fortune for the view if you look around - with a meal for two plus
wine easily possible at around 25 euros or so. Similarly with the various bars -
it's best not to buy any drink at one unless you know the price beforehand.
Warning - pickpockets. This quite a problem especially round Plaka, the tourist sites and on the Metro - the answer is not carry anything with you such as passports, credit cards and so on - just take a bit of cash and make sure it's well zipped up somewhere.
Entrance
Tickets: You can buy individual tickets to the various locations which is fine
if you only want to go to one or two sites.
The alternative is to get a multi-site ticket - in July 2009 this cost 12 Euros
and is valid for 7 days - note that anyone under 18 is allowed in free
(according to the ticket office). This allows you to visit seven different places including The Acropolis, the Theatre of Dionysos, Keramikos
Cemetery and the Temple of Olympian Zeus. If you are an EEC resident
and 65 or over the ticket becomes half price but you obviously need to have
proof of your age. Similarly E.U. students are able to visit the sites free of
charge but do need a student identity card - students from elsewhere can get the
entry ticket for 6 Euros but need to have the same proof. There are several
Metro stations to pick from if you are not staying at Plaka - Acropolis Station
has Hadrian's Arch and the Temple of Olympian Zeus close by as well as of course
the Acropolis itself. If you go to Monastiraki Station its just a short walk
down via the Stoa of Attalus and Ancient Agora to then reach the entrance to the
Acropolis. Syntagma Station is close to the Parliament which is itself situated within
the extensive National Garden.
Note: All of the sites are easy to reach by foot but it can get
very hot wandering around after a while - nearly all of the locations have
drinking water available from "coolers". It is well worth buying your bottle of
water (which you really do need to have) at a supermarket or drinks machine
before getting anywhere near the Acropolis since prices demanded there are
totally outrageous.
The Acropolis of Athens - The Parthenon, Temple of
Athena Nike and Erechtheion. There is only one way
into the Acropolis itself and that is on it's western side - and getting up to it
involves a fair bit of climbing up steps and walkways. When we visited it one
side of the Parthenon was covered in scafolding and also had a huge crane
alongside - although there did not seem to be any work actually going on.
Additionally other parts of the area were closed off to the public - but you can
still get a pretty good idea of what it all must have once looked like. The
views of the sprawling city of Athens spread out below are excellent.
Theatre of Herodes Atticus, Stoa of Eumenes and Theatre of Dionysos.
These are located just outside of The Acropolis and can be seen on the way up to the Parthenon.
The Theatre of Herodes Atticus is named after it's builder - who was a Roman
Consul - and was constructed between 161 and 174 AD in memory of his wife Aspasia Annia Regilla.
Originally constructed of wood and earth The Theatre of
Dionysos was later re-built by Lykourgos and was the first threatre to be
built of stone. The Romans enlarged the theatre so that it could seat 17000 or
so people and then used it for their gladiators.
Ancient Agora (Market Place). The Ancient Agora is situated beneath the walls of the
Acropolis. Originally it was a self-contained centre for just about all activity
- with shops, temples, libraries, schools, law courts, pottery shops and
factories - and the city mint. The only buildings to remain today are the Temple
of Hephaisteion (also known as The Temple of Hephaestus and Athena Ergane) which was built around 440 BC
and the Stoa of Attalos (which has been re-built and now contains a museum).
The following historical sites to visit are all within the Monastiraki area of Athens - i.e. easily reached by using the Metro. Also in the area are several markets, lots of shops and of course plenty of tavernas and cafes.
Pantanassa Church - Monastiraki - Little Monastery.
This beautifully shaped church and monastery gave it's name to this area of
Athens. It is located opposite the metro station at Plateia Monastirakiou and
was built during the 10th century.
Tsistaraki Mosque.
Originally constructed by the Turkish Governor Tsistaraki in 1759 several of the
columns from the Temple of Olympian Zeus were crushed to make lime for the
brickwork. This was somewhat unpopular as turkish law did not allow the
destruction of ancient monuments and ultimately led to his downfall. The mosque
was restored in 1981 following an earthquake and now contains the Kyriazopoulos
Folk Ceramic Museum.
Hadrian's Library.
Located in the same part of Monastiraki as the above two buildings Hadrian's Library
was built in 132 AD> The almost square building (it measures 120 metres x 80
metres) was mostly built from limestone although the front/main entrance is of
marble as are the columns. The square inside had gardens and a pool and was
surrounded by more marble columns.
The Roman Agora.
The Roman Agora became the commercial and administrative centre of Athens after
Athens was partially
destroyed in 267 AD by the Heruli tribe who were in the pay of the Romans. During
Athen's Byzantine
period and also when the Ottomans were in occupation workshops, houses and churches were constructed within the Agora - including the domed Fethiye Mosque.
Tower of Winds (or Horologion of Kyrrhestos). Situated within the Roman
Agora, the octagonal Tower of Winds is 12 metres high, has a diameter of 8
metres and was built by the astronomer Andronikos. The tower was a combination
of weather vane and internal water clock (the water clock was used for time
calculations during cloudy days). Each of it's eight sides represents a
different wind.
The Fethiye Mosque (Mosque of the Conqueror). The Mosque is beleived to have
been built in the late 17th century by the Ottomans.
Keramikos Cemetery. Located a little to the
northwest of the Acropolis near to Thiseio Metro station this quite extensive
ancient cemetery - which has been a burial ground since at least the 12th
century BC - also has a small but very interesting museum (The Oberlander) which contains several statues,
various toys which had been discovered in the graves and a lot of pottery.
The Sacred Way (Eleusinian) was one of the most ancient roads in Athens - it
went from The Acropolis then through the Ancient Agora and Kerameikos and on to
Eleusis - a distance of around 20 kilometres - and was used for the procession
of the Eleusinian Mysteries. The bed of a small river called The Eridanos still
runs through the site - so there are lots of flowers and reeds (plus attendant
wildlife)around. The Eridanos starts in the Lykabettos foothills and runs
through the The Agora and Roman Baths and on into Kerameikos.We actually spent nearly two hours looking around whilst there - it was very peaceful at this site as seemingly many
tourists don't bother or have the energy to walk to it - their loss.
Temple of Olympian Zeus. Located to the south
of the National Gardens in the Plaka area of Athens the Temple of Olympian Zeus
is the largest temple in Greece. Originally started by the tyrant Peisistratos
the temple took over 600 years to complete - finally being finsihed by the Roman
Emporer Hadrian who dedicated it to Zeus. There are only 15 collonades still
standing - originally there were 104 of them - however you do get a good idea of just
how impressive the original structure would have looked.
Within this site there are quite extensive remains of Roman Baths and also there are still
several mosaics to look at as well as the water systems which were built by the
Romans to move water around the area.
Just outside of the Temple area is Hadrian's Arch which was constructed between 131 - 132 AD as a triumphal arch
in honour of the Roman Emporer Hadrian. Standing 18 metres high and 13.5 metres wide the monument was
placed on the road which linked the city with Llissian sanctuaries and marked
the boundary between the old and new cities. (During 1778 the arch was converted
into a Gate and named Vasilopoula's Gate or Kamaroporta.)
These are just a few other photos from around Athens.
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