I had been to Athens before and I remember thinking: yeah, the Acropolis is great but that’s it. So when we had a chance to stop in Athens on our way to our Greek Island break I left the choice up to Jono. Now Jono is a big fan of old Roman stuff – he gets a bit awed in a colosseum. So I did think we’d be going to check out the old Greek stuff. And flip I am so glad we did because visiting Athens a little older, a little wiser, and with a little more pocket money had me falling in love with the city. From London, with so many direct flights to Greece, it is SUPER tempting to fly directly to your island of choice but I am now a big advocate of first heading into Athens if you have a little more time.
Now I would be remiss in keeping you from your Island holiday so I would say one FULL day in Athens should cover you. But what this does mean is you need to wake up in Athens and go to sleep in Athens – two nights my friends! Fly into Athens in the evening, spend your busy busy day in Athens and ferry out the next morning to your Island paradise. My Southern Island recommendation of choice is Paros – “the Paros email”.
Restaurants we loved in Athens
Full disclaimer – I am going to follow my standard email post format because I am very A type. But our time in Athens was much more about the doing and the seeing and the exploring than the eating. However, both these guys are gems and I would recommend a visit if they fit into your plans.
– O Thanasis
Family-run and owned since 1965. Super popular. Grab a spot outside on Monastiraki Square. They’re known for traditional and affordable gyros, souvlakis, and kebabs.
Athens was our first Greek stop and we learnt some lessons.
1) Souvlaki vs Gyros – Souvlaki is small pieces of grilled meat skewered on a stick (see below). Gyros are slices of meat shaved from a vertical rotisserie.
2) These chaps by default come served on a plate, not in a pita. If you see souvlaki or gyros under main dishes or referred to as souvlaki platter / gyros platter then it’s a fair assumption it’s going to be a large portion serviced on a plate. You need to look for either a “wraps” or “pita” section of the menu or something listed as “souvlaki pita”. The easiest check is often the price. The pitas are usually much cheaper as they’re smaller portions with less meat.
I like this blog post on explaining the difference.
If you are a little confused don’t be embarrassed to ask – because if you are looking for a smaller (and cheaper) pita option then the arrival of these platters is a little overwhelming!
– Pnyka
Traditional Greek bakery. I absolutely loved it! There were so many choices I had never even seen or heard of before. The lady behind the counter tried to explain many of the pastries to us but would often just land on “It’s Greek! Try it!”. We grabbed lovely spinach and feta pies and a sausage roll to eat in the park. But the main event was the Greek orange cake (Portokalopita) which blew my mind and warranted a three minute voice note to my bestie trying to explain it. These Greek orange cakes are like nothing I have had before. I sat there eating this cake thinking – how does this make sense?? It’s of course super orangey but it is chewy and Dutch pancake’y and so light. I still don’t 100% understand. But after googling I understand it is made with scrunched up layers of phyllo flakes! Insane! You think you’ve tried all the things and then you travel somewhere and your mind is blown! What a privilege. This is the blog post that helped me understand this cake and I am hoping to try out the recipe.
Things we did when not eating
I know I am bossy. But I am about to be more bossy. This is the exact order I would recommend spending your perfect full day in Athens.
– The Acropolis and Parthenon
Okay, team – we’re going to take the same approach here as Monet’s water lilies in Paris. You can of course read about that over here in my Paris email but I am also going to repeat myself because I come from an ancient line of Irish women known for repeating themselves. You’re WELCOME!
Here’s the approach – it is grounded in organisation. We are going to be pre-booking our tickets for the earliest time slot (check as I think the time differs slightly in summer vs winter). And yes, it is going to be early and we’re going to be sad about it. But for a brief period of time, you will have a largely peaceful Acropolis experience and that’s really magical. Promise yourself an afternoon nap too.
We are going to be getting to the Acropolis before it opens so we’re near the front of the queue. And we’re going to have our tickets open and if we got coffee or snacks along the way then they will be finished before the doors open as they can’t be coming in with us. Once the doors are open – use your hoppy legs and hop up those stairs as quickly as possible. And then don’t be reading the information! Take those precious five to ten minutes to walk through a peaceful Acropolis. It is truly incredible. Once you’ve had your peaceful moment, you’ll end where you started. Read all the information and do another lap noting how much busier it has suddenly got. Your most smug moment will be when you’re heading down and you see hoards of people queueing on the stairs waiting to get to the top.
– Head down from the Acropolis through the Plaka neighbourhood
The Plaka neighbourhood is gorgeous and the check-in lady at our accommodation described it as like “being on the Islands when in Athens” and I can completely get that. It was calm and beautiful on our early morning stroll. Spot graffiti Greek Jono 🙂
– Eat really great orange cake in The National Garden
Cake pick-up spot flagged in “Restaurants we loved” above. Find a shading spot and take another peaceful moment. Honestly, these first three stops really put me in a zen-like mood. The gardens are lovely and free. Take a lazy stroll through once you’ve eaten your snacks. This of course is not a MUST visit but it flowed well with our day.
– Acropolis museum
This museum is fantastic and was still under construction when I was last in Athens. The museum is in easy walking distance of the Acropolis. If you only do two things in Athens it needs to be the Acropolis and the museum. It breaks my heart not to include the cake but the museum is that good.
The museum really brings the Acropolis and ancient Greek history to life. It is absolutely jam packed with treasures. I would recommend the audio guide but there is plenty of written information on offer too. One of my most mind blowing moments was that the Acropolis and its statues were once painted! Give yourself time here. The Greek aqueduct set up under the museum was fiiiine but Jono got pretty excited about it. So maybe it’s one for you too.
The timing is good here too as we skipped the hottest part of the day. The city is coooking in summer and the museum is gloriously air conditioned.
– Explore Monastiraki neighbourhood
(after that nap you promised yourself!)
We headed back out after a snooze into the Monastiraki neighbourhood. From here we explored the little boutiques, at great Souvlaki, found a fun cocktail bar and did a little damage in Sephora.
Where we stayed in Athens
This is one of my few MUST accommodation recommendations. We stayed at Athens Studios which was minutes from the Acropolis, the museum and these lovely neighbourhoods. We paid £108 for two nights which is such a bargain. The rooms are little but clean and modern. It is the perfect solution for a really quick trip where you need to be in the heart of the action. They’re part of a larger backpackers but there was no noise or bother. If you’re travelling on your own or on a tighter budget it might even be worth checking them out.
Have the best time in Athens
with all my love, Tahlia
