gezielciniz

Athens is one of the best destinations for a weekend getaway. City is full of life, and you are guaranteed to have nice time day or night in full 2 days. So buckle up and get ready for a gezielciniz Athens guide weekend version!

This trip was my first with Turkey’s Traveller Club members. We were 3 people and one of us already saw Athens many times before but he joined because Athens on weekends is always a good idea! We got our tickets arriving early Saturday and returning late Sunday giving us perfect time management on a weekend trip.

I have been to Greece before but not to Athens and as you might already know by now I just “have to” see the capitals  😀 And moreover I was really looking forward to see Parthenon as I was a fan of Xena and Hercules when I was a child and really interested in Greek mythology. So seeing Parthenon was on my lifetime bucket list and I was really excited for that.

So enough chit chat, let’s start with summary Athens guide version as usual and then dive into details:

Travel: Athens, being the capital of Greece, very easy to reach as you can find many daily flights. And usually at good prices as well.  Also many cruise tours have a stop on nearest shore (outside Athens) and take a half day to see Acropolis and return on the same day.

Airport Transfer: Athens Elefterios Venizelos International airport is 22 km to the city center. You can take the subway and it would cost you 8€, or with taxi 40 €.

Visa: Schengen. One thing to note though, if you have Norther Cyprus visa on your passport this may cause you trouble as this is sensitive topic for Greece.

Food: It is very likely that you encountered delicious Greek food before, but if not get ready for a feast. You have to try Gyros (similar to Turkish doner), souvlaki (similar to Turkish kebab), Greek salad, any kinds of sea food, Greek coffee(similar to Turkish coffee), Greek alcohol drink ouzo (similar to Turkish rakı). Yeap Greeks and Turks are neighbors and we have similar testes in food. So if you like Greek or Turkish food you will really enjoy here.

What to see: Acropolis, Syntagma Square, Ermou Street, Monastiraki Square (Plaka),  fleemarket  (Ifestaau and Astiggos streets), Aga Irini Palatz , Psiri, Adrianou Street, Acropolis Museum, National Archeology Museum, Kolonaki street (luxury shopping street)

Where to stay: Especially central places such as Syntagma or Monastiraki would be convenient. Prices are usually reasonable, you should be able to find a decent room for two around 40-60 euro in these central places. Even more cheaper if you get it early reservation.

Prices: Compared to rest of the Europe food and drink prices are really cheap. (Well unless you go to high end luxurious restaurants). You can actually have a really nice lunch or dinner per 5-6 euro per person.  (Take that Norway!) And taxi prices are not bad as well if you are traveling in a group. For taxis you can see fixed prices for certain distances such as from airport or central places so you have a piece of mind that you won’t get screwed over distance and prices. Though most likely you can also walk through the city unless it is airport journey.

Alright now detail version of Athens guide below!

Obviously first thing you should do in Athens is visit Acropolis. Actually we went right away from airport without checking in to our hotel as we only had small backpacks. Entry is 12 euro and frankly a bit higher then expected but you haven’t been to Athens if you don’t visit here so it is a necessary cost. (Hence I start Athens guide with this place first!)

So Acropolis is basically an ancient citadel where now you can see remains of historical building next to each other. You have to walk a bit to a hill because “Acropolis” is literally city above and it was built on top of a hill where you can see rest of the city. Parthenon, Theater of Herodes Atticus and Dionysos, couple of temples are some of the historical building you can see here.

Well more accurately whatever remained from these buildings because these are structures from 2500 years ago so currently not very much left to see save for some columns and stones…There seems to be restoration ongoing but since this restoration has started in 1975, chances are it will be ongoing for quite some time.

Though it is a bit unfortunate, especially if you are expecting to see old temples and such ( like myself) considering history of these buildings (multiple huge fires, destruction from war as it was used as an explosive weaponry storage at the time and got hit..etc) it is actually amazing there are any standing columns remained.  

I liked theater of Herodes Atticus most because despite its age of 2000 years, it somehow still has a proper condition and actually can still be used as a concert place time to time! You will be surprised to hear who had concerts here; from Frank Sinatra to Sting, Jethro Tull to Andrea Bocelli and even Elton John! Not to mention lots of Greek artists and ballet and symphony orchestras. It is very nice to take a picture here and made me want to come in another summer time where I can watch a show here!

Before moving on to city center and other areas of Athens guide, one side note, Acropolis museum is not in Acropolis! It is close but museum is on the street you will probably pass through to come to Acropolis. Entry was 5 or 6 euro if I recall. Again not to expect much from this museum as it doesn’t have much to offer to its visitors because most of the salvaged art pieces were smuggled to many other countries and exhibited in their museums (We are looking at you UK!).

But the entry of the museum you can see an ongoing archaeological excavation ongoing under glass floor and it was cool. And museum has a nice café where you can see sit outside and watch Acropolis and city landscape.

So, let’s have a look at the city center.

Syntagma Square (Syntagma Plaka) is one of the most known squares as it hosts Parliament building. It is a popular tourist attraction to watch soldiers waiting in front of no name soldier monument to exchange places. Well I’m not very into watching this soldier change place things but I can say Greek version was interesting as soldiers walked to each other in steps with 90 degree and they had interesting uniform with cute shoes! But that’s about all the action in this square.

After having a look at Syntagma Square, you should take Ermou street and come to the real main square which is Monastiraki Square.

On your way through Ermou Street, you will notice that it is one of the main shopping streets. This street is usually crowded with lots of people as many shops, cafes and restaurants are side by side all along it.  Monastiraki Square can be called main square because it is crossroads for different part of the city such as Plaka and Acropolis. One of the most eye catching building in this square is a mosque named Mustafa Ağa Tsisdarakis Camii. Well more accurately it was a mosque as you can still tell from its architecture but today it is used as Greek Folk Art museum.

If you want to have an Acropolis photo where you stand in front and Acropolis behind you, this square is the place to take one. And you should definitely check out many streets around this area one being Adrianou Street to also have a small café break. And actually there is a flea market nearby so you will also probably stumble upon that.

But mentioning of flea markets, (and this being the weekend get away version of Athens guide ), if you are here on a Sunday you should check Abyssinia Square and around as you will see streets full of side by side open market hand crafted goods, natural stones, one of a kind handmade t-shirts, really interesting accessories and antique sellers.

I have been to many flea markets but I can say they really had different artisans. In fact we even stumbled upon a couple with their small kid who were on the roads for years and having a corner and asking for donations and selling their hand made goods. For non Greeks (as Greeks already know!) if you like something in these markets do not forget to haggle 😉

Another must check out place is Plaka area. This area is home to Greek style entertainment and food with stone roads and old houses- and most likely your evening stop.

And Kolonaki is the area to go if you are into high end neighborhood with brand shopping in mind!

Alright now best part of Athens guide, food and drinks!

Gyros is made of meat and very similar to popular Turkish fast food doner as I assume you must have tested it at some point of your life 🙂

Souvlaki is simply Greek kebab and they have two versions one with yogurt one without.

Greek salad is a must to try and in fact any kind of sea food is also good. But seriously they are masters in salad! And good thing is their portions are generous and prices are really reasonable.

Mythos is Greek beer brand and it will be good company on your first break while exploring the city.

Obviously another popular Greek drink is ouzo but we will come to that in a minute. If you are not into alcohol, Athens might be good place to try Frappe as it is a Greek invention. (Though it is from Thessaloniki not Athens)

As for the desserts, one thing that stuck to me was a dessert place where they have this fried dough and you chose to put various sweet sauces and chocolate and ice cream into it. It is a simple idea but results are just perfect! And you can but dried fruits covered in chocolates in many shops as it is also popular.

But as for all of the restaurants, though they are certainly friendly, do not expect fast service 🙂 They are easy going relaxed people and service industry, especially if you are from USA, might be different then you expected in sense of speed!  

So no Athens guide is complete without mentioning Greek entertainment, but first you have to make a decision! Do you want to try classical Greek tavern style entertainment or do you want modern pub/club entertainment?

“I want to break some plates and play me sirtaki all night” people should head to Plaka Monastiraki area where they can pick a place and enjoy a night of Greek music, food and ouzo. And if you are a crowded group you may want to negotiate first and have a nice deal.

And if you want to see modern entertainment in Athens, you should head to where young people usually goes such as Gazi area and near seaside. Psyrri ve Metaxuorgio areas have nice places to check out.

Let me know if you have questions or some suggestions to add to Athens guide in the comments!