Best time to visit Athens? December.
Because you will be able to enjoy the city without any queue, the weather it’s chill and because you’ll pay low season fare tickets! These factors will make your visit great!
How to get there
Athens is well connected with the main European airlines, lowcost and not. I used EasyJet from Milano Malpensa because the fares were even cheaper than Ryanair.
From the Airport every 30 minutes a metro is departing, the single fare is 10 euro. If you get there in group of 2-3-4 people you’ll get a proportional discount (2 people will pay 18, 3 will pay 24and so on). If you’ll fly in night hours and the metro will be closed, there are 24h buses:
– Χ93: Kifissos KTEL (long-distance buses) Station – Airport
– Χ95: Syntagma – Airport
– Χ96: Port of Piraeus – Airport
– Χ97: Eliniko Metro Station – Airport
All these buses run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And the ticket is 6 euro.
Sleeping
It is not difficult to find a good hotel in Athens during the winter. The prices are not impossible. My suggestion is always to look on Airbnb (30 euro free if you subscribe from the link). There you can find good opportunities like houses or rooms. I found a really nice room, 15 minutes from the city centre for just 8 euro/night.
Money
Bring with you cash, I know it is not safe, but Athens it the less cashless city I’ve been so far. To find an ATM it may be difficult. Even the best bar/restaurant will not accept cards.
Public Transport
Not needed. You can easily move between the main attractions by foot. If you want to reach the port of some other location outside the city centre, a single fare ticket is 1,40 euro or the daily ticket is 4,50. If you really don’t like to walk, my suggestion is to get the 3 days tourist ticket. For 22 euro you’ll have included a 2-way ticket for the airport.
Food & Nightlife
If your idea is to find some local cheap food and to get in the middle of the underground nightlife, you should definitely check Pl. Exarchion. Around the square is plenty of small streets that are full of pubs or bars. Maybe you’ll be able to find the Falafel of your life for only 1,50 Euro.
If you’re more interested in traditional places, I suggest you to eat in this restaurant:
Kouklis Ouzeri (To Yerani). Yes, it is a touristic place down the Acropolis, I know. But the food is not bad and the prices are good, especially if you are part of a group.
If you want to go to dance get to the metro stop of Kerameikos (10 minutes walking from the Acropolis) and have a walk around, for sure you’ll find what you are looking for.
What to see
Of course, we’re in the place where the modern History born, it is an amazing experience to go around all the ruins and make an immersion in ancient Greek culture.
Some must see:
- Acropolis
Ticket are 10 euro in the low season (student free) you’ll need 3-4 hours to visit everything.
- Acropolis Museum
It is a brand new structure; it could be the perfect refuge in case of bad weather.
P.S. At the first moment you’ll see a poor and dirty city (even more than you expect) but don’t give up. After some time, the city will show you all his beauties.
A big thanks to Tropix PH for the pictures.
