One week in Athens, Greece
mdwest
Recent holiday in Athens
Sep 30, 2008
based on 6 votes
Many people spend one or two days in Athens, on their way to the islands. Is it possible to stay an entire week in Athens and still have a good time?
Absolutely! This is the story of our eight days in and around Athens.
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Explore locations featured in this Traveler List:
Athens, Delphi, Poros, Hydra, Corinth, Mycenae, Plaka
- Category: Recent trip
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Traveler type: Culture, Sightseeing
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Appeals to: Couples/romantics, Singles, Tourists
- Seasons: Fall
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1. O&B (Ochre & Brown) Boutique Hotel
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Ave price:
$292
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We stayed at the O&B Hotel for seven nights in September 2008. It was our base during the entire trip. Located in the Psyrri district, it is centrally located in the historic center of Athens, and perfect for a great week of walking and metro rides around the area. |
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Day 1: Upon arrival in Athens (got to the hotel about 10:30am) we immediately set out on foot for the Acropolis of Athens. We walked through a lovely park with lots of ancient ruins, and then found our way up to Parthenon. Lots of tourists, but hey, it's a cool place to start your trip. The views were impressive.
Unfortunately for us the New Museum was still not open, it's been delayed until March 2009. Don't hold your breath... the opening has been delayed several times. |
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3. National Archaeological Museum (Ethniko Archaiologiko Museo)
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Day 2: This museum is incredible. We chose a rainy day to go there, and spent about three hours looking at everything. If historical museums are your thing, you could spend a day here.
Access from the Omonia metro (red line), and walk north on 28 Oktovriou Street about five blocks to the museum (on the right). |
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4. Ancient Agora of Athens
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| Day 3: The Ancient Agora of Athens is the most well-known example of agora, located in Athens, Greece. |
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| The Library of Hadrian is located on the north side of the Acropolis, immediately north of the Roman Agora. The complex was built by the Roman emperor Hadrian in 131/2 A.D. It was visited by Pausanias (1.18.9) who provides a brief description. |
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6. Greek Folk Art Museum (Museo Ellinikis Laikis Technis)
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| Five floors of displays, ranging from clothing (costume) to jewelry, to weaving and other arts. Take the elevator to the top floor and walk down. |
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7. Temple of Olympian Zeus (Stiles Olymbiou Dios / Olymbion)
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| The scale of this building is impressive. Another ruin (and you can get tired of them) but worth a visit and another view of the Parthenon -- this time from the south-east side. |
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| This is a well-preserved area which was just outside the gates to the city of Athens, and is now located just 5 minutes from the Thissio metro station. Lots of see and read about, we spent about an hour walking around. Excellent museum. |
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Day 4: Ancient Delphi is the site of the Oracle and her priests, who influenced the political and military order of the city-states of Greece throughout antiquity.
Delphi is about 2.5 hours drive north and west of Athens. We hired a driver to take us there. |
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| Day 5: Poros is a "family" island, where the principle industries are fishing and tourism, located just off the coast of the Pelopponese. Access by fast boat from the port of Pireaus. |
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Hydra is an island in the Saronic Gulf, inhabited by writers, artists, and visited by many tourists. Set into the steep hillside leading from the harbor, the main city is striking. No cars allowed on the island, the primary modes of transport are 1) your feet, and 2) donkey.
We combined a visit to Poros and Hydra in one day, and returned to Athens that night. |
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| Day 6: Ancient Corinth is another well-preserved ancient city with, you guessed it, an Acropolis. The ancient city is about 2 km from the modern city of Korinthos. There is a good museum and it's interesting to walk around. |
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| After visiting Ancient Corinth, drive up to the Acropolis, then walk the last 600 foot vertical climb to the top. Bring your climbing shoes, because the walkway is steep! |
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| Ancient Mycenae is about 30 minutes south of Ancient Corinth, and well worth the visit. Dating to well into 15th century BC, the tombs are not to be missed. |
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| We visited this beautiful sea-side town, which was the first capital of Greece after the War of Independence in 1821 for a few years, until the capital was moved to Athens. Lovely buildings, downtown square, hilltop castles and water-front dining. You can make this part of a circle drive in the Peloponnese with Corinth and Mycenae. |
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| Day 7: We started our day by walking to the Central Market, arriving about 9:30am. This is where Athenians shop! Incredible sights, sounds, and (in the fish market) interesting smells. No one should visit Athens without seeing the Market building, which covers a city block and then continues on neighboring blocks in every direction. |
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17. Byzantine Museum (Vizantino Museo)
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| After the market, we took the metro to Evangelismos station and walked to the Byzantine Museum. This has a very nice exhibit on the history of Athens after the end of antiquity (roughly 467 AD when the Western Roman Empire fell) until the 1200's when the Ottoman Empire took Constantinople. |
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| The former home of a mayor of Athens, displaying the private collection of the Benaki family. Wow! Both the building, and it's contents, are impressive. |
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The Plaka district of Athens is a maze of small streets, filled with shops and restaurants, and lots of tourists. We walked into, around and through the district many times during our week.
The cruise ship people leave about 5pm, making the evenings in Plaka some of the best times to be there. Don't miss Antifiotika, a neighborhood of a just a few streets located on the hillside between Plaka and the Acropolis. It's very quaint. |
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Compliment mdwest
