48 Hours in Athens
View of Acropolis from Athens Niche Hotel
Located in the heart of Greece, Athens is bustling with life on every corner. Tourists are drawn to the birthplace of democracy for many reasons. There is so much to enjoy from ancient Greek monuments to Greek cuisine. Sitting at the edge of the Aegean sea, Athens gives you access to excellent seafood food. You could also take a boat or a quick flight to one of Greek’s many Islands. The amount of things you could do in the beautiful city is endless. Let’s start with what is possible with 48 hours in Athens.
Arriving at Athens International Airport in the evening, it took a while to find a taxi. Note, the taxis will try to upcharge you as an obvious foreigner. We wasted over an hour trying to get the uber app to work and find a cab. Try to go to the designated area or even book a car ahead of time to avoid the hassle.
Hotel
After a 30-minute drive, we arrived at the Athens Niche Hotel. The location of this hotel is very centralized; we were a 15-minute walk from Zeus’ Temple and Acropolis. Although the room we stayed in was tiny and hard to move around, they do have more extensive suites that are more conducive for two people. They did have a great selection of breakfast and a wonderful rooftop restaurant with a perfect view of the Acropolis.
Itinerary
Day 1
Shopping
There are many streets to explore and spend hours shopping. Here is a list of streets you should check out:
Ermou Street
Dionysiou Areopagitou
Poseidonos Avenue
Lunch
After all that walking, you must reward yourself with tasty food. We heard about Athena’s Cook while we were planning this trip and it did not disappoint. They had delicious Mediterranean dishes and a wonderful staff. It was the perfect place to dine and unwind after a long morning. I will say this restaurant is very touristy and is even rated on Trip Advisor.
Wine Tasting
After an accomplished afternoon, we headed to the hotel to prepare for a Greek Wine Tasting that evening. We booked this activity through Get Your Guide. It was held at the amazing Hill Athens Rooftop Restaurant which had a beautiful view of the Acropolis. The sommelier walks you through the history of Greek wine and the best pairings for different grapes in the region. This did come with snacks, although you will be hungry after and Hill Athens Rooftop Restaurant is another great place to have dinner with a bottle of wine.
Athen’s NightLife
After all this, we were tired but decided to check out Greek’s nightlife on a Thursday. Our waiter at Athena’s Cook recommended a club that he bartends on weekends. We decided to go that night because our time was limited and we had an early flight to Santorini on Saturday morning.
Going to the club on a Thursday was interesting. Sodade2 is a gay club with a very nice vibe. It was a pretty slow night, which I assumed was because of the day of the week, but most people were enjoying their drinks and having a good time. Most people in the clubs were foreigners from different parts of the world. They played American hits. The experience was okay. Next time I’m in Greece, I’ll try and visit the clubs on the weekend.
Day 2
Shopping/Exploring
Not having an agenda in mind, we left our hotel to explore and look for more souvenirs. Here is a list of other streets to explore in Athens:
Syntagma Square (Perfect for souvenirs and retail stores like H&M, Nike, etc.)
Ermou Street (You’d find Greek stores such as Korres for beauty and skin.)
Zeus Temple
On our walk, we realized we weren’t too far from Zeus’ Temple so we took a detour to explore. To enter, tickets are around 15 euros online. It’s more expensive if you purchase them at the site. This does come with audio to learn more about the history of the Temple. From here it was a straight shot to our hotel. It could have been a 15-minute walk, but we took a taxi for around 6 euros because our feet were aching!
Dinner in the Sky
Athens is one of the many cities in the world that has Dinner in The Sky. The experience is something that should not be missed. When you arrive, you are greeted with wine as you wait for others to arrive (to be completely honest, after having amazing wine throughout Europe for weeks, the wine was mediocre). Then you are strapped into your seat and a crane lifts your dinner table 130 feet into the air. You are graced with yet another perfect view of not only the Acropolis but this beautiful city. You are then served a delicious five-course meal. Most people you meet are foreigners (mostly Americans). It was fun talking to people, learning where they are from, and exchanging travel stories. This is definitely a must-try!
Honorable Mentions
Acropolis
Despite being graced with a view of the monument everywhere in the city, we did not visit because getting to the top requires lots of steps. Before we arrived in Athens we’ve been to four other European countries and our body was tired from all the excess walking. If you do have the chance, I encourage you to visit this ancient citadel.
Transportation
Walking and Taxis
Since the location of our hotel is very centralized, most of the time we walked. Whenever we took a car, we used the Uber app to find a taxi or asked the hotel to call one for us. Having the Uber app let us hail a cab made us feel safe since we are unfamiliar with the Greek language. Although renting a car is very cheap in Greece.
Hop On Hop Off Bus
There is a double-decker bus for tourists that allows you to pay a fee for a day or more to have unlimited rides that take you throughout the city. There are usually designated bus stops to know to wait for the bus. They can take you to Ancient Greek monuments or even the beach. We were able to purchase this from our hotel although you could purchase tickets online.
I genuinely loved this city. As I was writing this post, I thought of going back as soon as possible. The culture is rich, the people are very friendly, and you're going to have a great time.
