Athens in 1 Day: all you need to know

The things to see and do in Athens are so plentiful that even a month's visit can be too short to fully explore the beauty of the Greek capital. However, that doesn't mean that a day has to be wasted for lack of time. In fact, if you organise yourself strategically, you can visit very significant parts of the city that would allow you to say with confidence that you know Athens.

I have put together a route of plans and activities that can occupy you from early in the morning until late in the afternoon and evening. Thanks to these ideas you will be able to get to know the historical heart of the city in just one day and you will have invested your time and money in a short but fun experience in this beautiful city.

Neighbourhoods with a strong identity are always worth visiting and in the case of Exarchia this is exactly what you will find as soon as you set foot in its streets. It is a centrally located neighbourhood with a reputation for being the base of Athenian anarchists and intellectuals most associated with the left throughout the country.

Over the years, its streets have become a real tourist attraction, despite the fact that it is one of the few areas that still resists gentrification. Within this neighbourhood is the National Archaeological Museum of Athens and the Athens Polytechnic University.

Both are opposite each other and the whole neighbourhood is also characterised by its excellent year-round gastronomic offer and its commercial offer, which leans towards bookshops, vinyl and curiosity shops. These can be a real treat for you if you are interested in this type of commercial establishments.

Being such a progressive neighbourhood, there are plenty of alternatives for vegetarian food, but you also have the option of breakfast in a couple of authentic Greek tavernas. These are likely to be playing rebetiko, the Greek blues that exists as a musical genre formed by this type of neighbourhood.

When you've had enough of wandering the streets of Exarchia and are looking for a more formal space less associated with urban subcultures, head south until you reach Omonia Square. This square is characterised by being a central point in the city and the top corner of what is known as the Historic Triangle of Athens.

Its metro station of the same name is home to the red and green underground lines and is also a point where several intercity bus lines converge. It is next to two important avenues such as Stadiou and Panepistimiou. So passing through this point of the city is an excellent way to continue experiencing the more urban, everyday atmosphere of life in Athens.

If you continue walking down two more streets towards the south you will reach Kotziá Square, where the city's town hall is located. Both of these squares are worth a visit because they are transit areas that you will have to walk through anyway to get to the tourist areas near the Acropolis.

However, it is also worth noting that many Athens bike tours pass through this area and if you prefer to reach the south of the city centre on two wheels, you could also do so. But keep in mind that you would have to adjust to the conditions of the route offered and there is no guarantee that you will be able to leave the group at the next stop you are interested in on this itinerary I have planned for you.

It would be completely foolish to pretend that you are going to be in Kotzia Square and not recommend that you take a quick stroll through the narrow streets of the Central Market of Athens. If you visit you'll get the chance to see what an authentic Greek market looks like and interestingly enough you'll find yourself inside one of the largest in the whole country and definitely the most important in the whole capital.

This is a place that is visited by some 30 thousand people daily in search of fresh produce or also a gastronomic offer that is vibrant and faithfully follows the criteria of the Greek culinary world. I cannot ask or advise you to spend too much time in this place because you still have a lot of stops to make in your day's itinerary.

However, that doesn't mean it's not a good idea to go down to the restaurant-filled basement and try a couple of Hellenic fast food dishes. A Gyro would be perfect, as you could take it with you and it would even be a good midday lunch to recharge your batteries and continue with the many activities that await you in the historic heart of Athens.

This idea is one of those things to see and do in Athens during the winter due to the fact that tourism will be significantly lower during that time. It is also a good opportunity to try some of the typical Greek winter food.

The next site you will visit on your tour of the city centre is the Ancient Agora of Athens. This is a sort of kilometre-long complex of ruins that contains several temples within it, such as the Hephaestion, the Temple of Ares and the Temple of Apollo.

The aforementioned temples are not to be missed in this corner of the city, but you should not miss the Attalus Stoa either. It is an ancient building that was reconstructed under the architectural parameters of Ancient Greece and inside it contains a museum replacing the markets and trading centre that existed there in the past.

I don't recommend that you spend too much time here other than a couple of minutes for photo shoots and in fact I recommend that you get to this part of the city by taking a taxi from the Athens Central Market. It's a short drive and a long walk and could be a good time to rest and prepare for the second leg of your day.

Monastiraki is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Athens and is characterised by its peculiar architecture that preserves many Byzantine aesthetic criteria and details.

Its square is a must-see for most specialists in the city, so it's a good idea to walk to it via the Monastiraki street market. You might find a couple of pieces of Greek jewellery worth taking home or various packaged ingredients of delicious Athenian cuisine.

Very close to this square, just behind the Tzisdarakis Mosque, is Hadrian's Library, which was a cultural complex built in the second century AD during the Roman occupation of Athens. You should make the most of the trip to these ruins, as it will only take 15-20 minutes of your itinerary and the next few stops will leave you far behind and you won't be able to return.

After visiting Hadrian's Library, you will find yourself in a very favourable situation, as these ruins are just a couple of streets away from one of the most important tourist attractions in Athens. This is the neighbourhood of Anafiotika, a small residential area that is now a tourist epicentre. Its picturesque, narrow, steep streets form a community of whitewashed, handcrafted houses.

It really looks like a rural Greek village in the middle of the most important urban metropolis of the whole country. Another factor that makes it stand out as a place worth touring on your short visit to Athens is that it is a neighbourhood that is right at the foot of the Acropolis and this offers a very significant proximity that will make you feel like an Athenian villager in the times of the ancient Greek empires.

Keep in mind that Anafiotika is next to Plaka, another equally peculiar neighbourhood that extends over an area 5 to 7 times larger and is a must-see if you are already in this part of the city. Its streets are also full of old Byzantine houses with a very handcrafted aesthetic, painted in white and between cobbled streets. As well as mansions that meet all the beauty of the Mediterranean neoclassicism of southern Greece.

Among the best things to do in the Plaka neighbourhood in Athens are to sit down for a Greek coffee in one of the many cafes that abound in every corner of the neighbourhood or to order a typical Greek dessert such as Baklava.

Once you are in the Plaka neighbourhood, you will have to head south, as your final goal for the day will be to reach the Makrygianni neighbourhood. That is, where the entrance to the Acropolis of Athens is located and the respective museum which is just a couple of metres away from this busy access point.

The Acropolis Museum stands out as a modernist building that contrasts with the conservative and ancient neighbourhood in which it is built. It is open every day of the week until 20:00 hours and that means you can take your time to get there without having to limit your enjoyment of all the previous activities I have mentioned.

For its part, the Acropolis of Athens is the most important tourist attraction in the whole city and therefore it is predictable that you will be interested in visiting it before you have to return home or before you set off on your trip to any other corner of this magnificent country. Keep in mind that it also has extended opening hours until 8 pm, but this is reserved for the summer, as from the beginning of November until the end of March it only receives visitors until 17:00.

I advise you to book a guided tour of the Acropolis of Athens for around 5 or 6 pm, as at that time you should be at the point of admission to these important ruins of Western culture. Keep in mind that like the Ancient Agora, there is an admission fee, but with a guided tour you have access to detailed explanations by a specialist in its history and also an escort to the Acropolis Museum.

If you have no interest in visiting the Acropolis of Athens because you prefer to go to this important site in other less fair and timed circumstances, then I have also taken it upon myself to find alternative plans that can occupy the rest of your day while you are still in Athens.

So I invite you to continue reading about the activities you could do from that point onwards on the itinerary you were on in Monastiraki Square. Only now you would decide to go to the north of the city instead of the south, where the access point to the Acropolis is.

Keep in mind that the Acropolis may be something you visit quickly in between the disembarkation of cruise ships in Athens that bring you back from the Greek islands. They usually arrive in port in the early morning hours and if your return flight is in the afternoon or evening, you have an excellent interval to visit this architectural marvel of Ancient Greece.

1. Walk through Plaka and Syntagma to Constitution Square

Basically, the idea of walking the streets of Plaka will remain intact and this is a good thing, as this part of the city is one of the most beautiful of all. However, there is an adjustment in the route because you will now be heading north, in the direction of Syntagma Square.

That means that at some point you will no longer be in Plaka and will be walking the streets of the neighbourhood that bears the same name as the most important square in the Greek capital. It is known as Constitution Square by a large part of the local population.

There you will come across the Hellenic Parliament building, which is imposing enough to be admired next to the Grande Bretagne Hotel which is located just at the northern end of this square. If this short visit to the Greek capital takes place at Christmas time then this decision to come to Syntagma Square becomes even more interesting. Seeing the beautiful Christmas decorations up close is one of the best things to see and do in Athens during the Christmas season.

2. Enter the National Garden and exit at the northern end

The National Garden of Athens is undoubtedly the most important public park in the Greek capital and being in Syntagma Square, you can easily walk a small section of its gigantic expanse.

It is open from sunrise to sunset, so if the sun is still shining over the horizon it is a good idea to enter through the access area closest to the square and from there take the path that leads to Sekeri Street, located at the northern end of the Garden.

Keep in mind that walking through this park is one of the best things to do and see in Athens in summer. That's because it's a safe escape from the heat and the oppressive Mediterranean sun that can be exhausting after a day of urban sightseeing under its strong radiation.

3. Enjoy an authentic Greek dinner in one of Kolonaki's restaurants

To end your day on a high note, I recommend one of the best things to do and see in Athens at night. This is to go to an authentic Athenian restaurant in the Kolonaki neighbourhood, which many locals consider to be the most elegant in the central region of the city.

I can't tell you which one to choose, as there are more than 50 commercial establishments dedicated to the world of gastronomy in the area. What I can advise you is to go for a place that looks like it offers authentic Greek food or at least tries to manage the ambience of a cosy taverna typical of the best of Athenian society.