Gazi, Keramikos & Metaxourgio
If the Kerameikos site sparks your curiosity, head to this small museum around the corner. In a lovely neoclassical building, it's dedicated to the…
Must-see attractions in Athens
Athens
Excavated only in 2011, this site is not much to look at – only building outlines are visible – but it is hallowed ground. Aristotle founded his school…
Church of Agia Marina Thission
Athens
Striped like a multilayered cake and bursting with red-tile domes, this 1931 church perches on the northwest side of the Hill of the Nymphs. Its murals,…
Athens
This ornate 1862 cathedral is the seat of the archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church of Athens. Far more significant, both historically and…
Syntagma & Plaka
This museum covers the general history of money, from ancient times on. There's a token nod to the euro era, but really this place is about that venerable…
Athens
Built in 1759, this building on the south side of Monastiraki is one of few surviving examples of a tzami (mosque) in Athens. It has not functioned as a…
Athens
On the summit of Lykavittos Hill is the little Chapel of Agios Georgios, all in white with a dainty dome. It's floodlit at night and looks like a vision…
Syntagma & Plaka
One of the few remnants of Athens' Ottoman period, this 17th-century hammam (Turkish bath) is also the only intact public bath building in the city –…
Athens
This 12m-high marble monument at the top of Filopappou Hill was built between AD 114 and 116 in honour of Julius Antiochus Filopappos, a prominent Roman…
Athens
This small 11th-century church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, stands smack in the middle of the Ermou shopping strip. It was saved from the bulldozers and…
Syntagma & Plaka
Inaugurated in 1888, the neoclassical Zappeio Hall is named after Evangelis Zappas, the tycoon who funded the first modern Olympics in 1896. Used to host…
National Museum of Contemporary Art
Acropolis Area
Set in the former Fix Brewery, this contemporary museum opened in 2015 but was closed for prolonged renovations at the time of research. In the past, it…
Museum of Greek Children’s Art
Syntagma & Plaka
Founded to cultivate a love of art and creative development, this space exhibits young artists' work and holds workshops for children.
Athens
Contemporary Greek artists. Look for the building entrance between the basket vendors that line this street.
Athens
On the south side of the National Archaeological Museum, this is an important collection of Greek inscriptions, but the main halls' tersely labelled…
Athens
To get a sense of how ancient ruins once looked, take a virtual-reality trip at this multimedia centre. The Tholos virtual-reality theatre takes you on an…
Gazi, Keramikos & Metaxourgio
Within Kerameikos, the Dipylon Gate, northeast of the Sacred Gate, was the main entrance to the ancient city of Athens, and the point where the…
Ileana Tounta Contemporary Art Centre
Athens
Established in 1988, this venerable arts hub in a warehouse is one of the more prestigious places to exhibit in the city. Shows include both Greek and…
Athens
Take the tram to this highly family-friendly park with loads of playground facilities and a summer puppet theatre, plus an open-air cinema. The coast just…
Melina Merkouri Cultural Centre
Athens
For anyone who loves the Greek tradition of karagiozi (shadow puppets), this free museum is a treat, packed with the creations of master puppeteer…
Museum of Greek Folk Art at 22 Panos
Syntagma & Plaka
While the main Museum of Greek Folk Art is being rebuilt (it's scheduled to reopen in 2020), this annexe houses the permanent collection Men & Tools,…
Gazi, Keramikos & Metaxourgio
This compact Romaniote synagogue, built in 1904 and renovated in 2010, is now used only for services on high holidays. The raised main hall is reached via…
Theocharakis Foundation for the Fine Arts & Music
Athens
This arts centre has good exhibitions spread across three levels of gallery space; they change around four or five times a year. For English details on…
Gazi, Keramikos & Metaxourgio
Inside the ancient site of Kerameikos lie the remains of the city wall built by Themistocles in 479 BC, then rebuilt by Konon in 394 BC. The wall is…
Gazi, Keramikos & Metaxourgio
Greek-American sculptor Deanna Maganias' concept for the city's memorial to the victims of the Holocaust is a fragmented Star of David, made from Egyptian…
Syntagma & Plaka
Opened after renovations in 2017, the 17th-century Benizelos home is a typical domestic structure from that period, with dirt-floor downstairs rooms with…
Syntagma & Plaka
When the German military occupied Athens in 1941, it requisitioned the Ethniki Insurance offices and for three years used the two-level basement as…
Museum of Folk Art & Tradition
Syntagma & Plaka
The 1920s mansion of folklorist Angeliki Hatzimichalis (1895–1965), who wrote more than 100 books and articles about Greek traditions, is a window into…
Athens
Drop by this free library, play space and social integration centre run by the NGO We Need Books, which helps marginalised and vulnerable people,…
Athens
Lest you think anarchism is all about riots and squats: this is a reclaimed parking lot, which locals occupied and planted with greenery in 2009. It's…
Agiou Dionysiou Aeropagitou Church
Athens
This massive church, named after Athens' patron saint, towers over a small plaza. Duck inside to see beautiful paintings by Spiros Vasiliou, splendid…
Athens
Just below the crest of Filopappou Hill, the ruined shrine to the goddesses of creative inspiration is carved into the bedrock.
Athens
This church has gone through several incarnations over the centuries and sits on the site of a former ancient monument. Just down the street is the oldest…
Ilias Lalaounis Jewellery Museum
Acropolis Area
A museum for fashionistas: Ilias Lalaounis adorned Elizabeth Taylor and Melina Mercouri, among many others, and is responsible for a singularly Greek…
Acropolis Area
Inside the main entrance of the Acropolis site, the path leads you up through the Beulé Gate, named after French archaeologist Ernest Beulé, who uncovered…
Athens
On the slopes of Filopappou Hill, follow the path to this warren of rooms carved into bedrock. It's said to have been the place Socrates was imprisoned in…
Syntagma & Plaka
Excavation work to create a ventilation shaft for the metro uncovered the well-preserved ruins of a large Roman bath complex, built in the 3rd century AD…
Syntagma & Plaka
Housed in two interconnected buildings, including the palace where King Otto lived between 1830 and 1846, this small museum is not so much about the city…
Athens
This university is infamous as the spot where the junta countered a student protest in 1973 by crashing in with a tank.
Athens
Northwest of Hill of the Pnyx, this hill is home to the old Athens observatory, built in 1842.
