At the foot of the Acropolis: lanes and neoclassical houses. The prettiest and most touristy, and the priciest.
TRAVEL GUIDE · Greece
Athens travel guide
How to get in from the airport, what a ticket costs, when the sights open and how to pay. Every item carries its official source and the date we checked it.
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01
THE CITY
What Athens is like
Athens is a flat, dense city built around a single hill, the Acropolis, with Syntagma Square below it as the centre of town and the arrival point from the airport. Everything a visitor comes for sits in one walkable ring around the Acropolis, and on the far side of that ring an ordinary residential city begins. You can see most of the sights on foot without public transport, which makes where you sleep a more important decision than how you get around.
Where you will actually be
A square, a flea market and the central metro interchange. Busy, well connected, loud at night.
The parliament square and the business centre. This is where the airport bus and metro arrive.
A residential area south of the Acropolis, walking distance from the sites and cheaper.
Next to Monastiraki, grittier, mostly bars and restaurants for the evening.
02
STEP 1 · AT HOME
Before you fly
Entry rules, when to go, and the one thing worth arranging while you are still at home.
Entry for Israeli passports
No visa required up to 90 days
Passport validity is set by the destination and changes without notice - check its embassy site before booking.
Full entry requirements ›When to go
Jan12°
Feb14°
Mar16°
Apr20°
May25°
Jun30°
Jul34°
Aug33°
Sep29°
Oct23°
Nov19°
Dec14°
July and August are the peak: average highs around 33°C, and on heatwave days the Acropolis closes over midday. April–May and September–October are far easier for walking the city and open-air sites.
Flying there
2h 10mflight time
89flights a week
10airlines
Direct from Tel Aviv, 1194 km. Blue Bird Airways · Arkia · Israir · El Al · Aegean · Sky Express
Live departures board ›Sort out data before the flight
You will want maps and a ride the moment you land. Installing at home takes a minute; doing it at the airport with no connection does not work.
Land in Greece and you're online right awaySwitch on when you land - no hunting for Wi-Fi.eSIM for Greece — how it works & what's included
- Also social media & photos - for a one- to two-week trip
- 30 days of validity, counted from your first connection at the destination
- Cancel for a refund as long as the plan hasn't been used
- Human support in Hebrew & English
Your eSIM order
- check_circle Your device supports eSIM: Every phone on this order needs eSIM support, not only this one.
Store terms
03
STEP 2 · THE FIRST HOUR
From the airport to the city
Published fares, compared. Open a row for where you board and when it runs.
HowPriceTimeBest for
subwayMetro Line 3 to Syntagma €9 35–45 min A predictable ride to Syntagma Square in the centre, especially when the roads are busy.
Follow the airport signs to Metro and buy an Airport Metro ticket before boarding.
Check the OASA timetable; airport services run every 36 minutes.
Official source ↗directions_busX95 Airport Express to Syntagma €5.5 55–70 min A late arrival, or anyone who prefers a cheap direct line to Syntagma Square.
At Arrivals, between exits 4 and 5. Look for X95 to Syntagma Square.
Operates 24 hours; journey time depends on traffic.
Official source ↗local_taxiAirport taxi (flat fare) €40€55 at night Traffic dependent Luggage, a door-to-door ride to the hotel, or a family that would rather not change vehicles with children.
The official taxi rank at Exit 3 in Arrivals. The fare to the inner city is flat, not metered.
The rank operates around the clock. The day fare applies 05:00–24:00 and the night fare 00:00–05:00.
Official source ↗Navigation
Save the map before you land
Download the area in Google Maps while you still have wi-fi, so directions work the moment you step out of arrivals.
Taxis and ride-hailing
Uber Taxi
Licensed taxis can be requested through Uber in Athens and at ATH. Check the in-app pickup point and price before confirming.
Official source ↗YOUR HOTEL
Open the route with the airport already filled in
Google Maps opens with Athens airport as the starting point. Type the hotel there and you have the route, the time and the price of a ride.
04
STEP 3 · DAY TO DAY
Getting around
Which travel ticket is worth buying, and what to use to find your way.
confirmation_number90-minute ticket€1.2
90 minutes of travel on all city transport (metro, tram, bus, trolleybus). Not valid for airport services or line X80. You can also simply tap a bank card or phone wallet at the gate, no pre-purchased ticket needed.
Official source ↗confirmation_number24-hour day ticket€4.1
Unlimited city travel for 24 hours, including line X80. Airport fares are not included.
Official source ↗smartphoneOASA Telematics
Real-time information for bus and trolleybus lines and stops.
Official source ↗05
PAYING
Paying, and how much things cost
The live rate, the card rules, and what a coffee actually costs.
EUR → ₪
Loading the current rate…
Cards are widely used, but keep a backup payment method for small businesses or a terminal problem.
At card terminals: If a terminal offers to charge you in ILS, choose EUR so your card issuer handles the conversion.
06
SIGHTS · HOURS AND PRICES
What to see, and the details people get wrong
Not a ranked list. Opening hours, real prices, closed days and whether you must book ahead.
One ticket for several sites
The Greek Ministry of Culture sells a single combined ticket at €30, valid five days, covering the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora, the Roman Agora, Kerameikos, the Temple of Olympian Zeus and Hadrian's Library. Since the Acropolis alone is €30, it pays off from the second site onwards. Worth knowing: there are reports it was discontinued and the official ticketing site blocks outside access, so confirm availability at a ticket office before relying on it.
Official source ↗Acropolis of Athens
The fortified hill above the city, crowned by the Parthenon. The one site everyone comes for, and the best view over Athens.
€30reduced €15
Toilets inside the site are closed for renovation, use the ones by the main entrance before going up.
Hours, closures and tickets
- Hours
- Summer: 08:00–20:00 (last entry 19:30). Winter: 08:00–17:00 (last entry 16:30). In September–October closing time shortens gradually by half an hour every two weeks.
- Closed / free
- Closed on Orthodox Easter Sunday and 1 May. Free admission: 6 Mar, 18 Apr, 18 May, the last weekend of September and 28 Oct.
- Tickets
- Tickets at the on-site offices or in advance at the official e-ticketing service hhticket.gr. In high season book ahead and arrive early.
Acropolis Museum
The museum holding the original sculptures taken down from the hill, above an exposed excavation visible through a glass floor.
€20reduced €10
The museum ticket is entirely separate from the Acropolis site ticket. One does not admit you to the other, and that is the most common mistake here.
Hours, closures and tickets
- Hours
- Summer (Apr–Oct): Mon 9:00–17:00, Tue–Sun 9:00–20:00, Fri until 22:00. Winter (Nov–Mar): Mon–Thu 9:00–17:00, Fri until 22:00, Sat–Sun until 20:00. Last entry 30 minutes before closing.
- Closed / free
- Closed 1 Jan, Orthodox Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25–26 Dec.
Ancient Agora of Athens
The civic square of classical Athens: market, court and politics, where Socrates taught. Today a large archaeological park with one fully preserved temple.
€10reduced €5
The entrance moved: since July 2025 visitors enter from the Thiseio Square gate, not Adrianou Street, because of works. Also, the ministry's museum page lists €20 for a combined site-and-museum ticket while the site page lists €10, so confirm at the gate.
Hours, closures and tickets
- Hours
- Winter: 08:00–17:00, last entry 16:30. Summer: 08:00 until 19:30–20:00. The museum in the Stoa of Attalos opens at 10:00 on winter Tuesdays.
Panathenaic Stadium (Kallimarmaro)
A restored white-marble stadium that hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.
€12reduced €6
This is the stadium of the first modern Olympics, built entirely of marble. You can stand on the podium and run the track.
Hours, closures and tickets
- Hours
- March–October: 08:00–19:00. November–February: 08:00–17:00.
- Tickets
- There is no online sale. Buy at the on-site desk, cash or card. An audio guide in 11 languages is included.
Cape Sounion and the Temple of Poseidon
A temple on a cliff above the sea at the tip of the Attica peninsula. The classic sunset trip out of the city.
€20reduced €10
This is a day trip from Athens: about an hour and a half to two hours on the KTEL bus from the Mavromateon terminal, or an hour and a quarter by car. Most people come for sunset, which is also when entry closes.
Hours, closures and tickets
- Hours
- Open from 9:30 until sunset, summer and winter. Last entry is 20 minutes before sunset, so closing time moves through the year.
- Closed / free
- Closed on 25 March.
National Archaeological Museum
The largest collection of Greek antiquities in the world, from the mask of Agamemnon to bronze statues raised from the sea.
The price is deliberately absent: the museum's own site blocks automated access and outside sources disagree between an old seasonal fare and a new flat 2026 fare. Check at the desk.
Hours, closures and tickets
- Hours
- Summer: Wed–Mon 08:00–20:00, Tue 13:00–20:00. Winter: Mon and Wed–Sun 08:30–15:30, Tue 13:00–20:00.
- Closed / free
- Closed 1 Jan, 25 March, Orthodox Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25–26 Dec.
Smaller sites you pass on the way
Temple of Olympian Zeus€6
The remains of the largest temple in ancient Greece. Fifteen enormous columns stand in an open field, minutes from the centre.
Hours, closures and tickets
A small site you can see in twenty minutes, right by Hadrian's Arch and the National Garden, so it fits into a walk rather than a dedicated trip.
- Hours
- Per the latest notice on the ministry's site: 08:00–15:00, last entry 14:30. No extended summer hours are published there, so confirm on the day.
Roman Agora and Tower of the Winds€10
The square the Romans built beside the Greek agora, containing an eight-sided tower that served as clock and weather vane.
Hours, closures and tickets
The Tower of the Winds is inside the site and covered by the same ticket. These state sites do close at short notice for events, so it is worth checking the ministry's site the day before.
- Hours
- Winter: 08:00–15:00, last entry 14:40. Summer: 08:00–20:00, last entry 19:30, shortening gradually through September and October.
Hadrian's Library€10
The remains of the library complex built by the emperor Hadrian, in the middle of Monastiraki. A small site you can see in passing.
Hours, closures and tickets
In summer 2025 the site closed between 12:00 and 17:00 on extreme-heat days, exactly like the Acropolis. In a heatwave, plan it for the morning.
- Hours
- Winter: 08:00–15:00, last entry 14:40. Summer: 08:00–20:00, last entry 19:30.
07
IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG
Safety, health and who to call
Emergency numbers
Staying safe
The main risk for a visitor in Athens is pickpocketing, not violence. Israel's embassy in Athens writes that highly professional pickpockets operate in Greece, and in Athens and Thessaloniki in particular, and asks travellers to keep personal bags with them and never leave them unattended. In practice: wallet and passport in an inside pocket or a bag held in front of you, never a back pocket or the outer pouch of a backpack, and extra attention in a packed carriage, in a queue and at the market. The embassy also advises carrying a photo of the passport on your phone rather than the passport itself, and never leaving it with anyone unofficial, hotels and car-hire firms included.
Official source ↗08
QUESTIONS
Frequently asked
What happens if a heatwave closes the Acropolis?
Through the summers of 2023–2025 the site repeatedly closed between 12:00 and 17:00 on extreme-heat days, decided day by day by the Ministry of Culture. A ticket bought for a closed window stays valid later that day. The decision is announced the same morning, so in summer plan an early visit.
Does the metro run at night?
Not on ordinary days. On Saturdays a permanent 24-hour programme runs on Lines 2 and 3, including the airport line. On other days service stops around midnight, leaving the airport express buses, which run around the clock.
Which sites close on Mondays?
None. Unlike many European cities, Athens's state sites and museums do not close on a fixed weekday. What does happen is a late Tuesday opening at some of them: the National Archaeological Museum at 13:00 and the Ancient Agora museum at 10:00 in winter. The real closures are holidays: 1 January, 25 March, Orthodox Easter Sunday, 1 May and 25–26 December.
Is Kerameikos open?
Not at present. The Kerameikos site and museum have been closed to the public since 5 May 2025 for infrastructure and accessibility works, with no stated reopening date. It still appears on the combined ticket's list of sites, so do not buy that ticket for it alone, and check the ministry's site before going.