Athens Riviera: Beaches and Lake Vouliagmeni

A short walk from the beach brought us to Lake Vouliagmeni, and it turned out to be the most unusual stop of the day. Lake Vouliagmeni is a natural mineral lake at the foot of limestone cliffs, and people come to it as a thermal spa: what it is known for is water that stays mild all year.

As soon as you step in, tiny fish gather around your feet and start nibbling the dead skin. We let the fish have their lunch; people were swimming in the lake all around us.

At the entrance we were told 16 euros on weekdays and 19 at weekends; because we had hop-on hop-off tickets they took 2 euros off, and we paid 17 euros each. On the current tariff general entry is €17 on weekdays and €19 at weekends and public holidays; children aged 6 to 12 pay €14 and €17, and under-5s go free (official info, October 2026).

The lake is open all year: 8:00 to 20:00 from 27 April to 13 September, and 8:30 to 16:30 from 10 November to 1 March, when only the main deck is open. At Lake Vouliagmeni, sunbeds and cabanas cost extra, and same-day reservations are not taken (official info, October 2026).

While we were eating fries by the water, the birds went for our plates and Umut ended up with none. The waiter told us the birds had once lifted a whole pizza and dropped it into the lake, so do not leave food out in the open.

Want to stay nearby? Staying in Vouliagmeni you can walk to both the lake and the beach and be in the water early, before the crowds.

We did not like the sea at Kavouri, so we moved on to this beach in the bay, and this is where we finally swam. In the video we called it "Kavouri Beach", but the price board at the entrance shows it is Vouliagmeni Beach, Akti Vouliagmenis in Greek. We paid 15 euros each; a sunbed and umbrella were included and you sit wherever you find a free spot.

Inside it is really nice. It was busy, but everything was very clean, the toilets were big and the whole place smelled of bleach. There are tennis courts and kiosks selling fries and snacks. Some areas are kept separate; the board lists a Gold Beach set at €50 on weekdays and €65 at weekends.

Astir Beach, on the other side of the peninsula, is a separate private beach; we did not go there. Our only regret was arriving late: had we come early in the morning, we would have stayed much longer.

On the current tariff entry is €10 on weekdays and €15 at weekends and public holidays; reduced tickets are €5 and €8, and under-5s go free. From 1 November to 30 April entry is €5 every day. The beach is open all year: 8:00 to 21:00 from June to August, and 9:00 to 17:00 from 17 October to 30 March (official info, October 2026).

Want to stay nearby? The beach is in Vouliagmeni itself; stay here and you can walk to the beach in the morning and to the lake in the afternoon.

Glyfada is the first big suburb on the coast road as you head south from Athens; we passed through it on the hop-on hop-off bus on our way to Vouliagmeni.

It has cafés, restaurants, boutiques and a long seafront that is good for a late afternoon walk, and of the Athens beaches it is the first stop along the coast. Come here in summer and it feels less like Athens and more like a seaside resort.

Glyfada beach is pebbly at the front, with umbrellas along the shore and people in the water. Do not mix it up with the beach of the same name on Thassos. We did not swim in Glyfada but a little further south, at Vouliagmeni Beach.

The easiest way to Glyfada is the tram: it runs past the Glyfada seafront, about 15 km from the center by road, and goes on to Voula; for Vouliagmeni, change at the last stop to a bus or a taxi.

Want to stay nearby? Stay in Glyfada and you can walk along the seafront in the evening and ride the tram back into town. Prefer a base in the centre with one beach day? Pick a hotel near the T6 tram or a hop-on stop; we compare the city areas on our hotels page, where to stay in Athens.

When the hop-on hop-off bus dropped us in the Vouliagmeni area, we first sat down at a seafront restaurant on the Kavouri side. The place was stylish and the view was lovely, and we planned to swim right in front of it.

Everyone praised it, but that day the water looked a bit cloudy and full of seaweed to us. Maybe it was the waves, we do not know; we did not feel like going in, so we moved on to Vouliagmeni Beach in the bay.

Stop at Kavouri for the view, but do not count on a swim. If you are looking for free beaches in Athens, note that Lake Vouliagmeni and Vouliagmeni Beach on this page charge entry; we did not check whether parts of the Kavouri and Glyfada shore are free on this trip.

From here the coast road carries on south to Cape Sounion and the Temple of Poseidon. We did not go to Sounion on this trip; people go by tour or by car.

Want to stay nearby? Kavouri is part of Vouliagmeni; staying here, you are a short ride from the beach and the lake.

By hop-on hop-off bus: We came down from the center on the hop-on hop-off bus; its Riviera route stops at Glyfada, Kavouri and Lake Vouliagmeni. Showing the hop-on ticket at the lake gave us €2 off each.

The last bus back on our route was at 18:30, so ask about the return time when you get on. Ticket types and the city routes are in our Athens transportation guide .

By tram: the T6 tram from Syntagma runs down to the coast, and the T7 carries on along the seafront to Glyfada and Voula. If you take a bus down to the coast you use the same ticket as the metro: one ride (90 minutes) €1.20, a full day (24 hours) €4.10 (official info, October 2026).

From Voula, the last tram stop, take a bus or a taxi to Vouliagmeni; that is how to get to Lake Vouliagmeni from Athens without a car or a tour.

By car: the Poseidonos coast road runs through Glyfada and Vouliagmeni and on to Sounion. If you want Sounion the same day, a car is the easiest; you set the stops to your own schedule: See Athens car rental prices  Ad

For the islands close to Athens you leave from this same coast. We did Aegina, Poros and Hydra in a day on a boat trip from Delta Marina; the pier is in our Athens transportation guide . The Acropolis and the rest of the city are in our Athens travel guide  and things to do in Athens .

Agora Riviera (Kavouri): When the hop-on dropped us in the Vouliagmeni area, this seafront restaurant was our first stop. It is stylish with a lovely view, a good place to catch your breath before a swim. Why we did not like the sea in front of it that day is in the Kavouri card.

At the lake and on the beach: both Lake Vouliagmeni and Vouliagmeni Beach have kiosks selling fries and snacks, so you can spend the day there without going to a separate restaurant.

Walking the coast road from the beach to the lake we passed seafront restaurants in Vouliagmeni such as En Plo and Blue Fish; we did not eat there. Do not leave food out at the lake; the reason is in the lake card.

Before you set off: we had breakfast in the center before heading down to the Riviera, at Cafe Veneti in Omonia: hand-rolled spinach pie and cheese pie. For everything else we ate in Athens, open our food page: where to eat in Athens .