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Most journeys to Greece begin in Athens. Travelers and travel guides will probably tell you not to spend too much time there, that it’s not much of a city. But Greeks, several expats, and a long tradition of travel writers will argue otherwise. Even if you don’t spend 5-7 days there like we usually do, you should at least consider a long layover to explore this ancient-meets-modern metropolis before you run off to the islands.

See the ruins of the Acropolis

On your first morning in Athens, get up early enough to have a coffee and a yogurt by your hotel, hostel, or home stay. Traditional Greek coffee is hearty and warming, but if you prefer iced coffee try a frappe. My go to order is: “ena frappe me fresco gala kai ligo zachary,” a frappe with fresh (instead of condensed) milk and a little sugar.

Once you are properly caffeinated, head to the Acropolis. I like to walk up through the neighborhoods from Monastiraki Square. This scenic city hike gets your blood pumping, so vendors sell water bottles at varying heights along the uphill path. Once you level into the forest leading up to this archaeological icon’s official entrance, follow the path to the right instead of buying your tickets on the left. This diversion will take you up some rickety metal stairs to the top of a giant marble slab called the Areopagus, where Yia Yia tells me St. Paul evangelized the Athenians. It also has a magnificent view of Athens in all directions, especially the Acropolis herself. Take your fancy camera for some landscape shooting or just grab your cell phone for a nice old-fashioned selfie. One word of warning: wear shoes with good grip, aka not the flimsy sandals pictured below.

When the photo shoot is over, grab your tickets and begin exploring. The top of the mount, the Agora, is the hottest and most famous part of the site, but friends and family have told me they really enjoyed the amphitheater and smaller temples as well.

…then see the originals at the Acropolis Museum

The Acropolis Museum offers a chance to really contextualize your understanding of the ruins while you look out on them. First, the place itself has a history you should know: Back in the early 1800s, the British Lord Elgin looted one of the Caryatids, the six sisters who held up the Temple of Erechtheus in the Agora, and it has since been held hostage at the British Museum for over two centuries. One long-serving argument for the imperial power refusing to return these patrimonial artifacts was that “it is universally recognised that the sculptures that survive are best seen and conserved in museums“¹ and there was no facility with sufficient air conditioning or other preservation technologies available in Greece. So Greece built the Acropolis Museum and said, now can we have our ancient statue back please? Unswayed by this investment and several generations of Greek protest, the U.K. holds that they still own the so-called “Elgin marbles” and now five Caryatids stand at the center of the Acropolis Museum with a placard explaining the absence of the sixth. That’s that historic kind of beef.

Climb Mt. Lycabettus

Around sunset, take the funicular up to Mount Lycabettus for another vista of Athens and the Acropolis. Have an espresso or a frappe (addicted yet?) at the cafe on top and then hike down while you ooh and aah over the shining eternal city before you.

Shop in Plaka

First, some of my favorite gifts and souvenirs have come from haggling in Plaka. Second, some of my favorite memories of getting lost, laughing it off, sending post cards, and getting mid-afternoon tipsy for no reason have come from Plaka. It’s touristy for sure, but you might find a trinket or at least an aperitif that you love — we like Ipitou for craft cocktails al fresco. On Sundays, double the bargaining trouble with a trip to the flea market off Monastiraki Square.

Syntagma Square + National Gardens

The changing of the guard at Syntagma Square is a proper cheesy photo op to prove you’ve been to Athens. Plus, it’s a kick (lol get it) to watch those mustachio’d men slow-motion can-can across the plaza in front of Greek Parliament. Maybe I should have more national pride and/or cultural respect, but watch them and tell me I’m wrong.

Once you’ve watched a shift change, grab a coffee or postage in the square if you need it or just head straight to the National Gardens next to the Parliament building. It’s fun to get lost in this little park, which holds ruins, turtle ponds, and petting zoos. (Okay, technically it is not a petting zoo, and technically there are several “no petting” signs, but we’re all out here petting them anyway.) Follow it through to the other side and you can walk past the Prime Minister’s residence and more mustaches. At the end of that block, you can pay 5 euro for a walk through the original Olympic stadium, but don’t be like me and try to do so in the high noon heat.

Rooftop drinks in Monastiraki

This is the most touristy yet gratifying tradition that we’ve developed in Athens. There are rooftop bars in other neighborhoods with different perspectives on the Acropolis, but Monastiraki Square is my favorite. We frequent A is for Athens at the top of the Hotel Atenas. It has delicious cocktails and a vibe that’s just snobby enough.

Explore a suburb

Yia Yia lives in Neo Psychiko, a suburb to the Northeast of the city center. We like to walk to nearby Xalandri for gyros and loukoumades, which are sort of Greek beignets. There is also a little shopping center and neighborhood square where you can hang out “me parea” like real Greek young people. The family also recommends Kifissiá to get a sense of a fancier neighborhood with an outdoor mall. We haven’t gone yet ourselves, but NBA fans can try to see Giannis Antetokoumpo’s customized court is in another outskirts neighborhood, Sepolia, 30 minutes or so walking from the city center.

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1. “Contested objects from the collection: The Parthenon Sculptures.” The British Museum. Accessed online on July 21, 2023 at <https://www.britishmuseum.org/about-us/british-museum-story/contested-objects-collection/parthenon-sculptures>. ↩︎