Athens is a thriving, vibrant city...and the Athenians know how to have a good time after hours. I’ve recommended some specific tips, but consider simply strolling through a lively neighborhood and finding a scene that appeals to you. The base of the Acropolis hill is wonderful for a walk. And there’s much more to Athens than the touristy Plaka/Monastiraki area; head for the trendy (and very nearby) Psyrri, Thissio, and Gazi neighborhoods.
Athens is most inviting from May through October (but not in miserably hot August), when al fresco activities such as outdoor cinema, festivals (including the Athens & Epidavros Festival), and folk-dancing shows at Dora Stratou Theater are in full swing. In the winter, your options are limited to indoor venues (concerts and other performances). However, folk musicians who spend their summers in small towns and islands hibernate in Athens—offering ample opportunities to hear traditional music in winter.
Athens’ biggest party is the Athens & Epidavros Festival, in June and July. Performances at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus are the highlight of the festival, and outdoor performances at other venues enliven an already hopping city. For a rundown of other festivals in Athens throughout the year, see here.
If you’re club-hopping, you’ll find that things don’t really get rolling until after midnight. Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays are busiest, while Mondays are quietest. In the heat of summer, some clubs close down to relocate to outdoor venues on the coast.
Event Listings: Athens has a constantly rotating schedule of cultural activities, such as concerts to suit every audience. For local events, look for publications such as the English-language version of the daily newspaper Kathimerini (www.ekathimerini.com) and the bimonthly Greek lifestyle magazine Odyssey (www.odyssey.gr).
The Athens & Epidavros Festival—every June and July in Athens—offers people the opportunity to watch world-class performances of dance, music, and theater at the ancient Odeon of Herodes Atticus, nestled spectacularly below the floodlit Acropolis. A few events are held elsewhere in the city, and other performances take place at the famous Theater of Epidavros on the Peloponnese (these extend into August; see www.greekfestival.gr).
Tickets generally go on sale three weeks in advance. You can buy them online, over the phone, and at the festival box office (Mon-Fri 9:00-17:00, Sat 9:00-15:30, closed Sun, in the arcade at Panepistimiou/Eleftheriou Venizelou 39, opposite the National Library, tel. 210-327-2000). Same-day tickets are also sold at the theater box office.
The place to be for people who enjoy an evening stroll is the pedestrian boulevard arcing around the base of the Acropolis—what I call the “Acropolis Loop” (consisting of Dionysiou Areopagitou to the south and Apostolou Pavlou to the west). As the sun goes down, it’s busy with locals (lovers, families, seniors, children at play) and visitors alike. For more details about this main drag, see here.
Athens has a wonderful tradition of outdoor movies. Screenings take place most nights in summer (€8, roughly June-Sept, sometimes in May and Oct depending on weather; shows start around 20:00 or 21:00, depending on when the sun sets; many offer a second, later showing). The “theaters” are actually compact open-air courtyards with folding chairs and small tables for your drinks. Movies typically are shown in their original language, with Greek subtitles (though children’s movies might be dubbed in Greek). And though Athens has many such venues, the four that I list are particularly well-known, convenient, and atmospheric. Call or look them up online to see what’s playing.
The Aigli Village Cinema is a cool, classic outdoor theater in the National Garden (at the Zappeion), playing the latest blockbusters with a great sound system (tel. 210-336-9369, www.aeglizappiou.gr).
Cine Paris, in the Plaka, is another large outdoor movie venue and comes with Acropolis views (overlooking Filomousou Square on the roof of Kidathineon 22—see map on here, tel. 210-322-2071, www.cineparis.gr).
Cine Psyrri, buried deep in the trendy Psyrri district, has cute seating in an ivy-draped lot with a great bar. Movies play nightly and change weekly (Sarri 44, near intersection with Ogigou—see map on here, tel. 210-324-7234).
Cine Theseion, along the Apostolou Pavlou pedestrian drag in the Thissio neighborhood, enjoys grand floodlit Acropolis views from some of its seats—one of the reasons it was voted the “best outdoor cinema in the world.” It shows mostly classic movies rather than current blockbusters (Apostolou Pavlou 7—see map on here, tel. 210-347-0980 or 210-342-0864, www.cine-thisio.gr).
The Dora Stratou Theater on Filopappos Hill is the place to go to see authentic folk dancing. The company—the best in Greece—was originally formed to record and preserve the country’s many traditional dances. Their repertoire includes such favorites as the graceful kalamatianos circle dance, the syrtaki (famously immortalized by Anthony Quinn in Zorba the Greek), and the dramatic solo zimbetikos (€15, June-late Sept Wed-Fri at 21:30, Sat-Sun at 20:15, no show Mon-Tue, 1.5 hours, Dora Stratou Theater, on southern side of Filopappos Hill, tel. 210-324-4395, after 19:30 call 210-921-4650, www.grdance.org).
If you’re taking the Metro, get off at Petralona (on line 1/green, plus 10-minute walk) rather than the farther Akropoli stop (on line 2/red, 20-minute walk). To walk to the theater from below the Acropolis, figure at least 20 minutes (entirely around the base of Filopappos Hill, signposted from western end of Dionysiou Areopagitou).
The rebuilt ancient theater at the foot of the Acropolis, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, occasionally hosts concerts under the stars. The theater atop Lykavittos Hill is another outdoor favorite. Both of these are used in summer for the Athens & Epidavros Festival.
If you’re looking for after-dark fun, don’t miss a trio of engaging districts just north and west of the Plaka/Monastiraki area: Thissio, Psyrri, and Gazi. Just a few minutes’ walk from the tourist-clogged Plaka streets, these neighborhoods feel more local and authentically lively. Travelers of all ages will enjoy all three areas; however, older travelers may feel a bit more comfortable in Thissio, and younger travelers gravitate to Psyrri and Gazi. Because they’re so close, you can wander through all three in a single evening—but if you’re in town for multiple nights, delve into one each night.
In the Thissio district, just beyond the Agora, the tables and couches of trendy clubs and cocktail bars clog the pedestrian lanes under the Acropolis. More upscale than the Plaka, Thissio gives you an easy escape from the tired tourism of that zone. Thissio is basically composed of three or four streets running into Apostolou Pavlou (part of the “Acropolis Loop”). Iraklidon street is a tight lane with people socializing furiously at café tables squeezed under trees. Akamantos street, while still colorful, is a bit more sedate. Backgammon boards chatter, TVs blare the latest sporting events, and young Athenians sip their iced coffees en masse. As the sun sets and the floodlit temples of the Acropolis ornament the horizon, you understand why this quiet and breezy corner is such a hit with locals enjoying an evening out.
Come here just to stroll through the hippest café scene in town, to enjoy a drink and some great people-watching, to see a movie under the stars (at Cine Theseion, listed earlier), or to eat on the rooftop of one of my favorite Athens restaurants (Filistron—see here).
To reach Thissio, walk the pedestrian lane around the Acropolis from either end. It makes a wonderful destination after the more peaceful stretch from the Acropolis Museum (Metro: Akropoli, line 2/red). Or ride the Metro (line 1/green) to Thissio, then follow the crowds uphill along the broad Apostolou Pavlou walkway toward the Acropolis.
For a better selection of restaurants and a great Irish pub, drop into the neighboring Monastiraki district (between the Thissio and Monastiraki Metro stops, along the wall of the Ancient Agora). Adrianou street has a line of inviting restaurants and cafés with outdoor seating—some with spectacular Acropolis views. If you’re in the mood for a break from Greece, stop into the James Joyce Irish Pub (see here).
The Psyrri district, immediately north of Thissio, is downscale and more cutting-edge...seedy-chic. Until recently it was a grimy area of workshops and cottage industries, famous locally as a onetime hotbed of poets, musicians, revolutionaries, and troublemakers. Though still grimy in many parts, it’s taking off as one of central Athens’ top after-hours zones. The streets are crammed with Dumpsters, broken-down cars, and pungent odors, and the crumbling buildings are slathered with graffiti (“Gate 13” and “Gate 7” graffiti, nearly ubiquitous in Athens, is the work of rival soccer fans). The mix of trendy and crusty gives the area a unique charm. The options include slick, touristy tavernas with live traditional music (many are painted in the same Greek saloon style—these places are fresh, formulaic, and part of a chain); highly conceptual café/bars catering to cool young Athenians; and clubs with DJs or live music for partying the night away.
The epicenter of the restaurant area is between two squares, Iroon and Agii Anargiri (with St. Anargiri Church), and along the street that connects them, Agion Anargyron. This is where you’ll find the most comfortable, tourist-friendly, all-ages eateries, serving traditional Greek dishes and often featuring live music at dinnertime. For more on dining here, see the Eating in Athens chapter.
If you’re seeking nightlife, explore the streets spinning off from this central axis. Lepeniotou street has the most creatively themed café/bars—most of them mellow and colorful and great spots to relax with a drink and appreciate the decor (Oineas/ΟΙνΕΑΣ Restaurant, at Aisopou 9, is particularly fun; tel. 210-321-5614). Each one has its own personality and idiosyncratic sense of style (from Lebanese to Argentinian)...wander around a bit looking for the place that suits you. Aristofanous street has more clubs than bars or restaurants—some of them with DJs or live music. And Miaouli street, extending toward Monastiraki, is jam-packed with the outdoor tables of unpretentious, local-feeling, crank-’em-out pubs and tavernas—a striking contrast to the upscale, touristy eateries just a block or two away.
A great way to enjoy an evening here is by watching a movie under the stars with the gang at Cine Psyrri (described earlier).
Residents here must be dizzy at the rapid change sweeping through what was recently a depressed industrial zone. Towering overhead are the square, brick smokestacks of Technopolis, a complex of warehouses and brick factory buildings that now host galleries and theaters with a world of cutting-edge culture. As a center of Athens’ gay scene, the area has a special flamboyance and style. You can’t miss the Gazi energy.
And it’s easy to reach: Simply ride the Metro to Keramikos. You’ll emerge in a delightful park surrounded by streets lined with super-stylish restaurants, clubs, bars, and cafés. Maps at the Metro station show the lay of the land. I’d just browse the main streets (Dekeleon, Persefonis, Voutadon, Triptolemou) that radiate out from the station, enjoy the scene, and pick a place to eat a meal or sip a drink. Gazi College Eatery is a fresh, modern, and inviting place for a light meal or drink in the company of a student crowd that’s typical of the area. It offers a fun and affordable menu all day and evening (Persefonis 53, tel. 210-342-2112, www.gazicollege.gr).
The Kolonaki district, upscale and stylish, at the foot of Lykavittos Hill, is Athens’ top area for yuppie nightlife.
Exarchia, the very grungy student/anarchist zone that stretches north of Kolonaki, is rougher around the edges than the other places I describe here. But adventurous travelers might enjoy exploring the area...with care. (First, read the description of Exarchia on here.)
Although the old stand-by, the Plaka, is jammed full of tourists, it couldn’t be more central or user-friendly, with live traditional music spilling out of seemingly every other taverna. One particularly pleasant area to explore is the “Restaurant Steps” at Mnisikleous street (described in the Eating in Athens chapter).