Things to Do in Athens: Sights, Tickets, Hours

Parthenon, Erechtheion and Tickets

Seen from Plaka or Monastiraki, the Acropolis fills the sky above the rooftops, and the Parthenon sits on its summit. We went up early in the morning: the gates open at 8:00, and by midday it gets both crowded and hot. We entered through the Propylaia and walked past the Temple of Athena Nike, the Parthenon and the Erechtheion with its Caryatids.

From the top you see the Odeon of Herodes Atticus below and the whole city out to Piraeus; on the way down, the long queue at the gate showed us why going early matters.

• Gates open at 8: 00

Glass Floors, Caryatids and the Parthenon Gallery

See the museum before you climb the Acropolis: the sculptures and pieces of the buildings you will see on the hill are here, and they make the ruins up there much easier to read. Through the glass floor at the entrance you look down onto houses of ancient Athens, and the original Caryatids of the Erechtheion stand inside.

Upstairs, the Parthenon Gallery copies the temple's footprint, and the frieze runs around it in its original order.

• Fridays until 22: 00

Temple of Hephaestus and Stoa of Attalos

The Ancient Agora was the square where Athenians met, shopped and argued; this is where democracy played out day to day. At the back stands the Temple of Hephaestus, almost whole, because people kept using the building for other purposes over the centuries. The rebuilt Stoa of Attalos holds a small museum.

• Museum in the Stoa of Attalos

Hadrian's Arch was built for the Roman emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century AD; one side reads "this is Athens, the city of Theseus", the other "this is the city of Hadrian". It stands by the road and costs nothing to see.

Building the Temple of Olympian Zeus right behind it took centuries and was only finished under Hadrian; the giant Corinthian columns still standing show how huge it once was. We did not go into the temple site; we looked at the columns from the fence next to Hadrian's Arch.

• Hadrian's Arch is free

Mnisikleous and Adrianou Streets

Plaka is the old quarter right under the Acropolis: narrow lanes, stone and colourful houses, little squares. The best part is that whichever corner you turn, the Acropolis shows up somewhere above you.

The stepped Mnisikleous Street is, for us, one of the prettiest and liveliest streets in Athens, lined with cafés and tavernas. Adrianou Street runs from the Ancient Agora into Plaka along an old trade route.

Monastiraki is the busiest, most mixed-up square in Athens: the flea market on one side, cafés, street musicians and souvenir shops on the other, and the Acropolis always in the background. The Tzistarakis Mosque on the square dates from the Ottoman period and now houses a folk art museum; we came on a winter Sunday and went in for free.

• Shops daily, antiques on Sundays

the Marble Stadium of the First Modern Olympics

This is where the modern Olympics began: the first modern Games were held here in 1896. The whole stadium is marble, and you can walk out onto the track and climb the stands. Even if you are not into sport, it shows how Athens links the ancient and the modern world. We paid €12, which felt a bit steep to us.

• 15 min walk from Syntagma
• Museum included

Parliament and the Changing of the Guard

Syntagma Square is the centre of both political and everyday life in Athens, Greece, the place locals mean when they say "let's meet". The Greek Parliament above the square was once the royal palace. In front of it, at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Evzone guards change every hour on the hour; that slow, controlled step is deliberate.

• Guard changes every hour

Funicular and Sunset

Athens is a city of hills, and Lycabettus is the most famous of them. We rode the funicular up from Kolonaki and paid €13 each for the return trip. Come close to sunset and the view gets even better; it is a calm way to end a day of sightseeing. We liked the restaurant at the top, so in summer stay for dinner with the view.

• Go near sunset
• Starts in Kolonaki

the Theatre Below the Acropolis

Herodes Atticus built this open-air theatre right under the Acropolis in Roman times, in memory of his wife Regilla. It is still a stage for concerts and shows, with events mostly in summer, and the stone seating has superb acoustics.

• Summer concerts
• Best view from the Acropolis

the Island Village Under the Acropolis

Anafiotika, above Plaka, sits in the middle of Athens yet feels cut off from it. In the 19th century builders from the Cycladic islands came to work in the city and built their homes the way they knew from home: white walls, narrow steps, blue details.

• Narrow stepped lanes

the Park Behind Syntagma

Right behind the Parliament, the National Garden was laid out in the 19th century as the palace garden of Queen Amalia and is now a public park. There are shaded paths, ponds and palm trees, and the noise of the city drops the moment you step in. On our summer trip we saw ducks, turtles, goats and a small excavation site, and had a freddo at the café.

• Open-air cinema in summer

Roman Ruins in Monastiraki

As the name says, Hadrian's Library was a great centre of learning in Hadrian's time. Only ruins are left today, but the size of the site shows how much it mattered. Walking from Monastiraki Square to Plaka you see its columned wall and arches from the street.

• Behind Monastiraki Square

Athens' Upmarket Neighbourhood

Kolonaki is the wealthy side of central Athens: boutiques, cafés and quieter streets. It is a good place to watch how Athenians actually live day to day, and the paths and the funicular up Mount Lycabettus start here.

• 10 min walk from Syntagma
• Start of the Lycabettus climb

Tower of the Winds and Fethiye Mosque

The Roman Agora of Athens, Greece shows that the city kept its importance under Rome. Its standout building is the Tower of the Winds, which once worked as both a clock and a weather station.

Right next to it, the Fethiye Mosque was built in the late 15th century after the Ottoman conquest of Athens; it later served as a prison and a warehouse and is now an exhibition space. We went inside too: ancient Greek, Roman and Ottoman layers all sit together here.

• Fethiye Mosque next door

Street Art, Bars and Food Stops

Psiri used to be a working-class quarter and is now one of the liveliest parts of Athens. The walls are covered in street art, and small bars, restaurants and cafés follow one another; in the evening it takes on a completely different mood. Walking it is one of the cool things to do in Athens if you want the young, alternative side of the city.

• Livelier in the evening

Ermou Street is the main shopping street of Athens, running from Syntagma down to Monastiraki and lined with shops, cafés and street performers. In the middle of the street stands the little Kapnikarea Church, with the crowd flowing past on both sides.

• Syntagma to Monastiraki
• Shopping street

The Metropolitan Cathedral is the main church of the Greek Orthodox Church in Athens, built in the 19th century. It looks plain from outside, but the details come out once you step in; weddings, state ceremonies and religious holidays are held here.

• Mitropoleos Square

Academy, University and National Library

The three neoclassical buildings side by side on Panepistimiou Street are known as the Athens Trilogy. The statues in front of the Academy of Athens are Plato and Socrates; the building was designed as a tribute to ancient Greece when modern Athens was being built.

The University of Athens in the middle is the oldest university in Greece, and the National Library with its long staircase completes the trio.

• Free from outside
• National Historical Museum nearby

Athens' Transport Hub

Omonia is one of the oldest squares in Athens; it has seen good times and hard times, and it is still one of the city's main transport hubs. We stayed in a hotel here once: in the evening the square can feel a bit uneasy, so keep your wits about you.

• Take care at night

Sunset Facing the Acropolis

Filopappou Hill faces the Acropolis head-on and gives one of the widest views over Athens. It is also called the Hill of the Muses. The Philopappos Monument at the top is a tomb built in the early 2nd century AD in honour of Julius Philopappos.

• Sunset

Athens' Central Fish and Meat Market

Varvakios is the best-known central food market in Athens: fish and meat halls inside, with spice, cheese and deli shops around it. One of the best stops to see local life and the real pace of the city. On our summer trip we found seafood prices very reasonable, and at the fruit and vegetable market opposite, okra for pickling was €3 a kilo.

• Athinas Street
• Fruit and veg market opposite