Transportation: Metro Acropolis

Hours: Summer: 8:0am- 7:00pm, Winter: 8:30am- 2:30pm

Tickets: €12, €6 students

    Acropolis means “higher city,” and although there are many of them in Greece (hills), this one holds the most famous cluster of buildings in Athens. The following four structures reside on the Acropolis and are included in the ticket price.

    The focal point of the Acropolis complex, the Parthenon, stands majestically over the city of Athens. The temple gets its name from the goddess for whom it was dedicated: Athena Parthenos; her statue of gold and ivory was protected by the temple. The structure was built in the 5^th century BC in the Doric order, with columns and metopes, or the decorative rectangles above the columns  depicting scenes from ancient Greece.  On the east side, you can see the battle of the Greek gods against Gigantomachy (the giants), on the west side, the battle between Athenians and the Amazons, on the south side, the battle of the Lapiths and the Centaurs, and on the north side, the Greek victory over Troy.

Hours: 10:00am- 6:00pm

Tickets: Museum doesn't open til Mar. 09 and ticket prices are undecided

    The Acropolis Museum will house over 4,000 artifacts on completion of the glass, steel and cement building in 2009.  On the ground floor, you can view lower archeological excavations through large windows. The exhibits will include finds from Acropolis, the Archaic period, the Classical period and the Roman period.

    A different temple used to stand on this site before the Persians destroyed it in 480 BC.  The temple that we see today was built in 427 BC in the Ionic style, the first of its kind to be built on the Acropolis,. The statue of Athena Nike was kept inside the inner chamber of the temple; it was made of wood  and depicted the goddess holding a pomegranate and a helmet.  Although Nike was a winged goddess, this statue had no wings so that it could not flee the city and would remain there to ensure Athens’ victory.

    This Ionic temple has two chambers that face in opposite directions; one is dedicated to Athena Polias and the other to Poseidon. The temple was built between 412 and 407 BC, and was named after Erichthonius, an early king of Athens who was raised by Athena (or possibly his grandson, Erectheus, who was buried nearby). 

    On the northwest side of the Agora, this Doric temple was built between 449 and 415 BC and held statues of Athena Ergani (god of crafts workers) and Hephaestus (god of metal workers).  On the friezes you can view illustrations of stories of Hercules and Theseus. Beginning in the 7^th century, the temple became a Greek Orthodox Christian church dedicated to St. George.  In 1834, it became a museum under King Otto, and it was declared an ancient monument in 1934 and now welcomes tourists and archeologists.

    This building originally erected in the 2^nd century BC was restored during the 1950s. The Heruli destroyed the building in 267, but the foundation still stood. It originally served as a multi-purpose building with several shops. Today it holds a museum that displays archeological findings from Agora. The collection includes clay, bone, bronze, ivory and glass objects from workshops, burials, and around the city center.  Greek coins, lamps, pottery, and other items used in day-to-day life by ancient Greeks are also on display, and the museum provides a good idea of what life was like during this thriving time in Athens’ history. You can find the Stoa of Attalos in the Agora.

Transportation: Metro Monastirak

Hours: Winter: 8:30am- 3:00pm, Summer: 8:00am- 6:00pm

Tickets: €2, €1 students

    This agora was built with a donation from Julius Caesar and Augustus.  Much of the Ancient Agora’s commercial center moved here after the Heruli invaded in 267. One of the most captivating structures in the Roman Agora is the Tower of Winds, erected by the astronomer Andronikos in 50 BC. The marble, octagonal tower was once topped by a weather vane, and you can find sundials on the exterior and a water clock inside, which displayed hours, days, and moon phases.  

   The Gate of Athena Archegetis stands on the west side of the square and served as a meeting place.  By the east entrance you can see the remains of public toilets, with dozens of “seating” constructed in the 1^st century BC.  The Roman Agora also holds a mosque that commemorates the Turkish capture of Athens.

Address: Ermou St.

Transportation: Bus no. 25, metro Thisseio

Hours: Winter: 8:30am- 3:00pm, Summer: 8:00- 7:30pm, closed Mondays

    This ancient cemetery is named after Keramos, the patron of potters and son of Dionysios and Ariadne.  On the grounds resides the Sacred Gate, which marked the Sacred Way on the road to Eleusis.  The second gate is called the Dipylon Gate, the largest gate of ancient Athens You can also explore the cemetery museum, which houses some remarkable pottery and burial site objects.

Address: Amallias

Transportation: Metro Acropolis

    The massive Temple of Olympian Zeus was once the largest temple in Greece. Construction for the temple began in the 6^th century BC and wasn’t completed until the 2^nd century AD when Roman Emperor Hadrian ruled. To commemorate his work on the temple, Hadrian built an arch that displays a different inscription on each side: “This is Athens, the ancient city of Theseus” and “This is the city of Hadrian, and not of Theseus.”  The arch is said to mark the boundary between ancient Greece and the new Roman, Hadrian Greece.

Location: just east of the National Gardens

    Also known as “Kallimarmaron,” this stadium was built entirely of white marble, and it used to hold the Panathenaic Games in ancient times. The stadium was refurbished to hold the 1986 Summer Olympics, the first Olympics in the modern age. In the 2004 Olympics, the archery competitions were held here, as well as the marathon finish line.

Address: 44 Patission St.

Transportation: between metro Omonia and Victoria

Hours: Mon. 1:00- 7:30pm, Tues.- Sun. 8:00am- 7:30pm

Tickets: €7, €3 students

    This beautiful neoclassic building hosts the greatest and largest archeological collections from Greece, dating back to pre-history times.  The over 20,000 exhibits include vases, figurines, and other artifacts trace through the rich development of Greece.  The Sculpture Garden filled with Greek marble figures is especially intriguing. In the Metal Collection, you can find the larger-than-life intimidating bronze statue of either Zeus of Poseidon.  Experts cannot agree on who the statue depicts because the object held in his hand is no longer there.  For Zeus, it would be a lightning bolt, and for Poseidon a trident. But possibly the most remarkable artifacts in the museum come from the Mycenaean culture, which contains the Mask of Agamemnon. This gold funeral mask dates back to 1500 BC, earlier than even Agamemnon lived.  The archeologist Heinrich Shliemann discovered the mask in 1876 over the face of a body in a Mycenaen grave.

Address: 22 Ag. Asomaton and 12 Dipilou St.

Transportation: Metro Monastiraki

Hours: 9:00am- 3:00pm, open until 9:00pm on Wed., closed Mondays

Tickets: €5, €3 students, free on Wednesdays

    The Museum of Islamic Art contains works from India, Persia, Mesopotamia, the Middle East, Arabia, Egypt, and many more. More than 8,000 works trace the history of Islam from its beginning to the 19^th century. Some of the most revered pieces include carved wooden door panels from the 8^th century and the velvet saddle from 16^th century Bursa.

Address: 4 Neophytou Douka

Hours: Mon., Wed., Fri. Sat. 10:00am- 5:00pm, Thurs. 10:00am- 8:00pm, Sun. 11:00am- 5:00pm, closed Tuesdays

Tickets: €7, €2,50 students.

    Founded by the Goulandris family, this museum features the ancient cultures of the Aegean and Cyprus during the Early Bronze Age. Beautiful marble statues and bowls from 5000 years ago share the space with ornate gold and bronze jewelry from the Cypriot culture.  Be sure to visit the temporary exhibits in The Stathatos Mansion, a beautiful structure built in 1895 by Bavarian architect Ernst Ziller.

Flights: Greece’s international airport, Eleftherios Venizelou (ATH), is where students looking to backpack Greece will likely begin.  A suburban rail system transports backpackers from the airport to the center of Athens in about 30 minutes. 

Trains: For backpackers looking to head to Thessaloniki by train (7hr), go to Larisis Train Station and book a train through Hellenic Railways. 

Buses: Backpackers can take buses from Terminal A in Athens to Patras (3hr), Thessaloniki (6hr), Corfu (10hr), and Corinth (1.5hr).  Terminal B departs for Delphi (3hr).

Ferries: Head to Piraeus Port if you want to take a ferry to Mykonos, Hania, Crete, Iraklion, Rethymno, Lesvos, Ios, Chios, Kos, Milos, Paros, Patmos, Naxos, Rhodes, Samos, Santorini, and even Turkey. 

Public Transportation: Those backpacking in Athens can get around the city by bus, tram, trolley, or the metro.  The metro operates 3 lines (5am-midnight) and one way tickets cost less than €1.  The orange signs represent the bus stations for the routes that stay in the area backpackers will likely travel.  Bus and trolley tickets are also a good deal costing less than €0,75 for a single ticket. 

Taxis: Athens also has taxis available, although the public transportation is sufficient and will save backpackers some euros. 

Address: 41 Kydathineon, in Plaka

Hours: 10:00am- midnight

    For home made ouzo, the Greek anise liqueur, Vretto’s has it for under €2 a glass. The wall shelves are jam-packed with bottles of the local liqueur, also stores in huge wooden barrels. You can also buy bottles to take home as souvenirs.  Bretto’s is a cozy, amiable bar for a taste of Greece.

Address: 161 Ermou St.

Cover: around €10

    Possibly the trendiest night club in Athens, Plus Soda offers loud techno music for the Athens stylish younger crowd.  Dress nicely to get in (i.e. no shorts or t-shirts).  This area of Athens offers an array of nightlife, and it’s not hard to find multiple night clubs.

Address: Pireos 84

    Dance to trendy music while shopping for furniture and meeting the city’s avant-garde community .  Bio’s attracts an artsy and student crowd, where DJs play hip techno mixes and the audience sits on second-hand, vintage furniture, which is up for sale.  Art exhibits and readings are frequent events here. Bio’s is a brilliant alternative spot.