Europe dominates in a new ranking of the world’s most beautiful cities, filling nine of the top 10 spots.
23.07.2024 - 10:36 / lonelyplanet.com
Jul 22, 2024 • 9 min read
Overlooking modern-day Athens, the mighty Acropolis is a powerful reminder of the city's ancient history. Inhabited since the Bronze Age, this "high city" served various purposes, from housing Greece's kings to being a center for worship and intellectual activity.
Through natural disasters, foreign invasions and periods of neglect, the Acropolis has proven it was built to last and serves as a symbol of resilience. Many ancient cities around Greece also had their own Acropolis, but the Athenian Acropolis is undoubtedly the most famed, now attracting about three million visitors a year.
Beyond the iconic Parthenon, the site boasts numerous other attractions. Read on for how to get the most out of your visit.
The best time to visit the Acropolis is during the shoulder seasons of April, May, and October. Summer, particularly in July and August, marks Greece's peak season, drawing large crowds of both local and international tourists. Consequently, the Acropolis can be extremely busy during this time. While summer days can be pleasant, Greece also experiences heatwaves, which have become unbearable in recent years, and as such, the Acropolis closes during the hottest days to protect people. To ensure access, it's best to check the news or the official ticket website for updates. Visiting during the milder temperatures of spring and fall not only offers a more comfortable experience but also reduces the risk of slippery conditions caused by rain during the winter months.
You could easily spend two or three hours exploring. Beyond the Parthenon, there are more than 30 points of interest that make up the Acropolis, including temples, sanctuaries, a theater and caves.
Visitation to the Acropolis has increased in recent years, so it’s now mandatory to book a timed entry slot. You can do this via the official ticketing website. The visitor cap is now 20,000 people per day. The site is generally busiest from 10am to 2pm. Evenings on weekdays tend to be quieter. Visitors are advised to arrive 30 minutes before their selected timed entry slot.
Tickets for the Acropolis can also be purchased at the site itself. It's not recommended, as you're not guaranteed a time slot. There are two entrances to the Acropolis, and you can buy tickets at both. You can purchase a single-entry ticket or a combination ticket. The single ticket grants you access to the Acropolis and all its monuments, like the Parthenon, the Erechtheion and the attractions on its slopes (Odeon of Herodes Atticus and Theatre of Dionysus), while the combination ticket allows you to see more archaeological sites in Athens (information below).
There are options to skip the line, have an audio guide or join a guided tour. At a minimum, it’s
Europe dominates in a new ranking of the world’s most beautiful cities, filling nine of the top 10 spots.
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Amid the cafes and boutiques of Athens’s Kolonaki neighborhood is a housewares shop that’s also a showcase for Greek craftsmanship. It’s the first brick-and-mortar location for Crini & Sophia, the brand that the former interior and set designer Maya Zafeiropoulou-Martinou founded in 2022. Its wood-and-rattan shelves, two-tone marble floors and furniture are all made by Greek artists, while one window is decorated with a vinelike steel and spray-paint piece by the Cypriot sculptor Socrates Socratous. The shop’s goods are designed by Zafeiropoulou-Martinou, whose inspirations include the colors in Francis Bacon paintings and the Amazon rainforest. Linens are produced in Portugal before being embroidered in Greece with patterns that often take cues from antiques on view at Athens’s Benaki Museum. Hand-painted ceramics and glassware are made in partnership with artisans in New York, Greece, Italy and France. When it comes to designing your own table, Zafeiropoulou-Martinou encourages layering. “The pattern isn’t just the plate or the tablecloth,” she says of her pieces, “but a puzzle of the two on top of each other.”
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It can be an expensive and potentially damaging undertaking for a country to host the Olympics. This year's games in Paris are costing just $10 billion, according to CNBC. While that's nothing to scoff at, it's a mere fraction of the $55 billion Brazil reportedly spent in 2016.
Also known as “Lefkas”, Lefkada is distinct in that it requires no ferry or boat journey to access it—instead, you simply drive over a causeway a short distance from Prevaza airport on the mainland. Part of the Ionian Islands, mountainous Lefkada is densely forested (providing welcome shade when it’s hot) and has some beautiful beaches that are virtually empty during the shoulder seasons. Compared to better-known Greek islands, Lefkada remains crowd-free and uncommercialized (there are no international hotel brands here yet), so keep the secret to yourself. It’s also a good jumping-off point for celebrity magnet Meganisi, where you can visit Fish Taverna Errikos for lunch.
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