Innumerable cultural venues, leading museums and sites of immense archeological importance make Athens a city of unsurpassed cultural heritage. All in all Athens offers a visitor experience that is second to none.

Archeological attractions in Athens

ACROPOLIS

The Acropolis Hill of Athens, is the most important landmark of the city and, as a World Heritage Monument, constitutes one of the most recognizable monuments on Earth. The first habitation remains on the Acropolis date from the Neolithic period. Until today the area was continuously inhabited and used as a place of worship, thus known as the Sacred Hill, a residential area or both. It is the most significant reference point of ancient Greek culture, as well as the symbol of the city of Athens itself as it represent the apogee of cultural and artistic development in the 5th century BC. On the Acropolis one can marvel at the great masterpieces; the Temple of the Parthenon, the Erectheion, Temple of Athena Nike and, the Propylaea entrance.

The New Acropolis Museum

NATIONAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF ATHENS

The National Archaeological Museum of Athens largest, most important archaeological museum in Greece and among the richest in the world regarding Ancient Greek art. Its vast collections are representative of all the cultures that flourished in Greece. A must see for all who wish to witness the splendour and achievement of ancient Greek civilization.

TEMPLE OF OLYMPIAN ZEUS - OLYMPIEION

The site occupied by the Temple of Olympian Zeus (Olympeion) has been inhabited since prehistoric times while worship of Zeus is attested from early historic times. Construction begun in 515 B.C by the tyrant Peisistratos the Younger and was finally completed by the Roman emperor Hadrian, in A.D. 125, in whose honour the Athenians erected 'Hadrian's Gate' in the northwest corner of the sanctuary. The Olympeion was an enormous structure, the largest temple in Greece during both Hellenistic and Roman period, exceeding even the Parthenon in size.

PANATHENAIC STADIUM

The beautiful Panathenaic Stadium was constructed in 330-329 BC for the athletic competitions of the Great Panathinaea Festivities. Restored in 140 AD, the Stadium was used as an arena during the Roman times. The stadium was excavated in 1870 and restored by G. Averof for the first modern Olympic Games of 1896.

KERAMEIKOS

The area of Kerameikos, named after the community of potters (kerameis) who occupied the area, was the largest and most important necropolis in Athens and was used continuously from the 9th century B.C. until the late Roman period. The most important processional roads of Athens, the Panathenaic Way leading to the Acropolis, and the Sacred Way leading to Eleusis crossed through Kerameikos' ancient gates, Iera Pyli (Sacred Gate) and the Dipylon. At the archaeological site, stretching along Ermou Street, one can see the remains of public buildings, tombs and graves. Excavation finds are on display in the nearby Kerameikos Museum.

STOA OF ATTALOS

The Stoa of Attalos is recognised as the most impressive stoa in the Athenian Agora. Constructed circa 150 B.C. by King Attalos II of Pergamon, it was excavated by the Greek Archaeological Society in the late 19th century. The Stoa was reconstructed in 1953-56 to house the Museum of Ancient Agora, where the finds from the Agora excavations are on display. A characteristic feature of the museum is the connection of all exhibits with the Athenian Democracy, since the Agora was the focus of the city's public life.

PLATO ACADEMY

The area known as Academy was a suburb of Athens , named after the hero Academos, and was continuously inhabited from the prehistoric period until the 6th century A.D. During the 6th century B.C., one of Athens famous Gymnasiums was founded on site. In 387 B.C. Plato founded his philosophical school, the Platonic School of Philosophy, and remained in use until A.D. 526, when it was closed by emperor Justinian. The excavations started in 1930's and continue, until today.

Amphitheatre of Herod Atticus

The Amphitheatre of Herodes Atticus was built between 160 and 174 BC by Herodes Atticus, a wealthy philosopher from an old Athenian family, in memory of his wife Regilla. A typical Roman odeon, large and exceptionally well-appointed, it was primarily used as a music venue and seated 4,800 spectators. After the war of independence the nascent Greek State needed to bolster its identity thus embracing the concept of historical continuity as a means of linking the ancient Greek past with the present. As early as 1867, a first production of ancient drama was hosted in the historic site and from the 19th century it was regularly used as a venue for performances and public events.
In August 1955 the grand opening of the Athens Festival took place and the restored Herodeon was the perfect home. Over 52 years the Herodeon has hosted almost all the leading lights of Greek and international post-War music, dance and theatre, opening up a channel of communication between the Athenian public and the cultural scene of the West.

Historical sites, cultural attractions and sight seeing

LYCABETTUS HILL

Lycabettus Hill rises 1,000 feet into the Athenian sky offering a unique vantage point to the city. The peak is accessible either by foot or, a two minute ride by cable-car from the southeast slope, close to Kolonaki Square. On the very top one can visit the church of Agios Georgios or relax at the bar- restaurant. The panorama from the top is priceless; one can see Mount Parnes to the north, the Acropolis framed by the Saronic Gulf and Piraeus to the west and get superb views of the city.

ZAPPEION

The Zappeion Exhibition Hall is one of the outstanding examples of late Athenian Classicism and an archetype of Greek public architecture. Designed by French architect F.-L.-F. Boulanger, whose plans were later amended by Danish architect Theophilus von Hansen, Zappeion was constructed in between the Temple of Olympian Zeus and the National Gardens. Intended as an exhibition hall for the first modern Olympic Games held in Athens in 1896 it has been associated with significant events in modern Greek history.

The Parliament Building (Old Palace)

The Parliament Building (Old Palace) is a representative sample of the early period of Neoclassicism in Greece, the building is an abstemious work of strict geometry in its mass. It was built between 1836 and 1840 based on the study of the Bavarian architect Fr. Goertner as the royal seat and palace of King Otho. Remodelled in 1930 by the architect A. Kriezis, serves from1935 as the seat of the Hellenic Parliament and houses the National Assembly Room, the office of the president of the Assembly, the Archives and other services.

NATIONAL GARDEN

The National Garden is a green refuge of fifteen hectares in the centre of Athens. Located behind the Greek Parliament building, the Garden stretches towards Zappeion and the Kalimarmaro Olympic Stadium. The Garden encloses some ancient ruins, tambours and Corinthian capitals of columns, mosaics. As well as a small zoo and a café. Also known as Vassilikos Kipos (Royal Garden )from the days of monarchy, today the National Gardens are open to the public from sunrise to sunset and provide a peaceful respite from the bustle of the city.

PHILOPAPPOU HILL

Situated to the south-west of the Acropolis is the Hill of the Muses, known today as Philopappou Hill from Gaius Julius Antiochus Philopappos, eminent benefactor of Athens. It is one of the few green areas in the city and an ideal place for walking, with magnificent views of the Acropolis and the sea thus making it a favourite promenade spot for the Athenians.

OLD PARLIAMENT

The Old Parliament Megaron is located on Stadiou Street, directly behind the equestrian statue of Theodoros Kolokotronis, Commander-in-Chief of the Revolution of 1821. The building is an architectural jewel in the centre of Athens and one of the most historic buildings of the city since it was the first permanent seat of the Greek Parliament. Today it houses the National Historic Museum focusing on the 1821 Revolution of Independence.

BENAKI MUSEUM

The Benaki Museum ,founded by A. Benaki in 1930, is the largest and oldest independent museum in Greece., functioning as a Foundation under Private Law. Its extensive collections of Greek art, spanning from prehistory to the modern times, are exhibited in this refurbished neo-classical building in the centre of Athens and are constantly enriched by purchases, and contributions by its many benefactors.

BYZANTINE MUSEUM

The Byzantine and Christian Museum is housed in the "Ilisia" mansion property of the Duchess of Placentia, built in 1848 by architect S. Cleanthes and was later remodelled to serve as a museum. The collections of the Byzantine Museum show the course of Greek art from the 4th to the 19th century. They comprise sculptural works, paintings and small works of all sorts. These works represent the artistic production of the Greek area, and other regions both central and peripheral of the Byzantine empire and subsequently of Hellenism on into post-Byzantine times.

WAR MUSEUM

The War Museum of Athens was inaugurated in 1975. Its aim and mission is the exhibition of war mementoes, the documentation and study of war history as well as the presentation of the struggles for freedom of the Greek nation from ancient times to the present day. The permanent exhibition area of the Museum covers from the Stone Age and Early Bronze Age to Ancient Greece, the Byzantine period to the Greek War of Independence and from the Balkan Wars to the First and Second World Wars.

GAZI - TECHNOPOLIS

The City of Athens Technopolis, spreads in an area of about 30.000 m2, is a vigorous industrial museum, of incomparable architecture. It is located in the old Athens Gasworks, widely known as Gazi next to Kerameikos, very close to the Acropolis. Founded in 1857 closed down its furnaces in August 1984, the last factory of its kind in Europe charms the visitors with the memories of a bygone era. Operating since 1999, is dedicated to the memory of the great Greek composer Manos Hatzidakis. Since its gradual transformation into a multi-purpose cultural centre, hosting various events, visitors are given the opportunity to tour a site full of images, knowledge and emotions.

ATHENS ACADEMY and the VALLIANIOS NATIONAL LIBRARY

The Academy of Athens and the Vallianios National Library are, along with the University, parts of the so-called "Neoclassical Trilogy" of the City of Athens. Overall, the buildings are characteristic examples of mature Neoclassic architecture, greatly influenced by the ancient buildings of the Acropolis. The Academy entrance has elements originating from the eastern side of Erectheion and the predominant material on the facets is marble. While the National Library's Reading-Room is accessible through a Doric-style row of columns designed after the Temple of Hephaestus in the Ancient Agora of Thession.