Today was sadly my last day in lovely Athens, so I had decided to set off after breakfast to the Athens coast. The southern coastal stretch is about 16km from downtown Athens and only took about 30 minutes to get to on the bus. It features Blue Flag beaches, beautiful marinas and upmarket accommodation. There is also quite a lot of construction work going on in the area, so it should be amazing when it is all completed. If you have more time in Athens, there are also some small islands that you can visit off the coast, such as Aegina, Hydra and Poros.
I had investigated this trip the day before and found out that there were a couple of the Hop-on hop-off buses that go to the beach areas. I used the Grayline bus which took around 2 hours to do the trip. It cost €15 per person for a 1-day pass, and you could have 2 days for €20. It is a great way to see the coastal area, especially if you don’t have a car, and of course you can get off where you like, spend as much time there as you want, and then get back on another bus. Sitting on the top deck, and on the right-hand side for the coast, gives you the best views. This was a lovely relaxing way to spend the morning without having to walk around everywhere, especially as my afternoon involved rather a LOT of steps to say the least …
So, when I arrived back, I changed onto another bus so that I could get closer to my afternoon destination: Lycabettus Hill that is the highest point in Athens at 277 metres above sea level and provides 360-degree views of the city. Legend has it that the goddess Athena created the hill when she accidentally dropped a limestone rock that was intended for the Acropolis. I then disembarked the bus and walked the rest of the way. You can get a taxi up to the top of the hill and then you only have a short path to engineer, but I decided to do the steps, and there are MANY! Just when you think you are nearing the top there are even more to climb – very daunting! When you get close to the top there is a funicular that just goes through the rock and only take a few minutes. It costs €13 per person return. Remember that when anybody tells you there is a funicular that goes to the top that it DOES NOT avoid the climb in any way.
Once at the top, though, the views are amazing, so it is worth the effort, and there is a lovely upmarket restaurant for refreshments. The weather was a bit overcast and breezy when I was up there, but you could still get a good view, and you can see the Acropolis in the distance. There is also the beautiful 19th-century chapel of St. George up here which you can go inside and look around. At least coming back down the hill was a lot easier and quicker than going up!
I rounded off my last night with another great meal in a lively taverna that had its own DJ. The food was amazing and served well as the last supper! I could thoroughly recommend a trip to Athens, as you won’t be disappointed, well, who could be with all that great history, pretty streets, great food and drink that always comes with a warm welcome from the friendly Greek citizens…
