Overview
Explore Athens with a half-day 4h private tour by Athens Tours Greece!
A well-designed and organized sightseeing tour in Athens is the perfect way to get to know the historical capital of Greece and its worldwide known monuments.
Our private half-day tour in Athens offers to you an excellent opportunity to visit the most important sites and monuments of Athens, in a comfortable and hassle-free way.
Athens half-day tour itinerary
During the half-day tour in Athens, you will:
Visit: the Acropolis – the Parthenon – Erechtheum – Temple of Athens Nike – Propilea – Plaka – Panathenaic Stadium (outside) – the Parliament – tom of the Unknown Soldier – Change of the guards – Lycabettus Hill
Sightseeing: Piraeus Riviera, Athens Riviera – Odeon Theater – Dionysus Ancient Theater -Hadrian’s Arch (Athens Gate) – Temple of Zeus – Presidential house – the Ex-Royal Garden/National Garden – Greek Parliament – Constitution square (Syntagma square) – Numistamic Museum of Athens – Catholic cathedral – The Academy of Athens – University of Athens – National library – Statue of General Kolokotronis – The museum of history of Greece – The famous Ermou str.
* View the route of our private sightseeing tour in Athens in a larger Google map
Highlights of the Half Day Tour in Athens
- 4-hour, morning or afternoon, sightseeing private tour of Athens
- Visit Athens’ modern and classical sites with expert drivers
- Explore the Acropolis, the cornerstone of the Athenian culture
- Our tour combines the highlights of ancient Athens, Constitution Square and Panathenaic Stadium, with its picturesque quarters, such as Plaka, and the modern meeting points, such as Kolonaki- the high end of Athens, or Lycabettus Hill, the highest hill of Athens
- English-speaking tour driver
- Pickup and drop off from your Athens hotels, cruise terminal, or cruise ship
Description
Description of the Athens half-day tour
Our half-day tour in Athens will give you an overview of the modern city of Athens, and insight into the ancient monuments and sites that have made Athens known all over the world.
If you are a first-time visitor to Athens, this tour will help you in orientation and a possible plan you want to make for the remaining days. Athens is a balanced mixture of ancient and modern characteristics, reflected in each and every corner of the city
This private tour in Athens stretches from the Acropolis to the Lycabettus Hill and Kolonaki, connecting that way the most ancient symbol of the city with the commercial area of modern Athens.
The highlight of this sightseeing tour in Athens is of course the Acropolis, the trademark of the city. The Sacred Rock, the symbol of the Greek culture, features the highest point in town that used to serve as a fortress. The word Acropolis with a capital “A” indicates in all world languages the Acropolis of Athens, the most famous Acropolis, the cradle of Western civilization.
Visiting the Acropolis you will have the chance to pass through the Propylaea, admire the Erechtheum, and the Caryatids, while watching the city spreading in front of your feet, allowing your eyes to wander from the distant mountains to the blue waters of Piraeus harbor.
The most important monument of Athens dominates the Acropolis: The Parthenon of Athens, the most perfect example of classical architecture in the world, was designed as a shrine to Goddess Athena, the patron God of the city, and used to house a massive gold and ivory statue of the Goddess of Wisdom.
At the feet of the Acropolis lies one of the most wonderful and picturesque quarters of Athens, Plaka, known also as the neighborhood of Gods. You will have the chance to see its lovely paved streets with colorful art and tourist shops.
After the visit to the Acropolis, the sightseeing tour in Athens continues with a drive to the most important parts of the city. You will pass by the Tomb of Unknown Soldier and the Parliament on Syntagma (Constitution) Square, and you will see Hadrian’s Arch.
Soon afterward, the tour will bring you to the Panathenaic Stadium where the first modern Olympic Games took place, in 1896. And then you will see
many government buildings, the Presidential Palace ( ex-Royal Palace), and elegant houses built on streets half-covered by sour orange trees.
Close by you will also drive down the Panepistimiou Avenue where you can see the Catholic Church of Athens, and pass by the Academy, the University of Athens, and the National Library. And you will see one of the busiest parts of Athens getting to Omonoia Square.
After that, the half-day tour in Athens will bring you to the more buzzing part of the city, Kolonaki, and will lead you to the Lycabettus Hill where you can see the Orthodox church of St. George, allowing your eyes and senses to rest on the city that will remain to your heart for your entire life.
“This private half-day tour in Athens is highly recommended as a cruise excursion for tourists visiting Athens for a day during their cruise in Greece.”
Details
Important notes
Tour Type
- Shore Excursion - Private tour
- Activity level: Moderate
Included in the tour
- Car and Driver
- A professional English-speaking driver or escort with good knowledge of the history and culture of Greece, to guide you till you enter archaeological sites and museums. Tour drivers are not licensed to companion you inside the archaeological sites and museums. If you'd like to have a licensed state tour guide to escort you inside the sites and museums, we can arrange it for you at an additional cost. Licensed by the state tour guides are freelance and it is subject to availability on bookings day!
- Transport by air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz vehicle or similar appropriate for the size of your group
- Accommodation is based according to availability (for multiple-day tours only)
- Pick-up from and return to your hotel
- Pick-up from the Port of Piraeus
- Private tour, Road tolls and local taxes
- Our terminal: Leof. Andrea Siggrou 37, 117 43 Athina, Greece.
Excluded from the tour
- Entrance fees to the archaeological sites and museum
- Wine tasting fee (wine tours)
- Olive oil tasting fee (olive oil tasting tours)
- Gratuities (optional)
- Food and beverage
- Your private chauffeur/guide will discuss a program best suited to your interest and mobile abilities. Option for a professional tour guide with a state license at an extra cost. Read more for the difference between a STATE LICENSED TOUR GUIDE and a TOUR DRIVER GUIDE in Greece!
Additional info
- Dress: religious and marmoreal sites: shoulders and knee must be covered
- Terms & Conditions and Frequent Questions
- Confirmation will be received at the time of booking
- A voucher will be emailed to you with our contact numbers and all necessary information for your tour.
- This is your ticket and proof of purchase. On the day of the tour please present a paper voucher in order to redeem your tour/activity.
Persons with Disabilities
- Due to uneven surfaces, certain sites are not recommended for persons with walking disabilities or using a wheelchair. Such sites are the Acropolis, the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion, Mycenae, Delphi and Meteora
- In all cases, we recommend comfortable flat-solid walking shoes, sunglasses, and sunscreen.
Restrictions:
- Please note that on this tour, your tour driver is not licensed to accompany you on your climb. If you want this service you may book a licensed by-state tour guide for an extra cost.
- In case a group is followed by a licensed tour guide or an English speaking tour-escort the professional driver is not obliged to speak English!
Opening hours & Admission fees
- Opening Hours:Summer April 1st to October 31st from 08:00 AM to 07:30 PM
- Winter: November 1st to March 31st from 08:30 AM to 03:00 PM
- Free admission fees: Children under 18 & Students from E.U.
- Reduced admission fees: Citizens of the E.U. aged over 65 & Students from countries outside the E.U.
Free admission days
- March 6: In memory of deceased Minister of Tourism & visionary Melina Mercouri
- June 5: Environment international day
- April 18 : International monuments day
- May 18: International museums day
- September 27: International tourism day
- The last weekend of September annually (European Heritage Days)
- National Holidays
- Sundays in the period between 1 November and 31 March
- The first Sunday of every month, except for July, August, and September
- NOTE: If the first Sunday is a holiday then the second is the free admission day
Holidays in Greece
- January 1: closed
- January 6: 08:30 AM - 03:00 PM
- Shrove Monday: 08:30AM - 03:00 PM
- March 25: closed
- Good Friday: 12:00 PM - 03:00 PM
- Holy Saturday: 08:30 AM - 03:00 PM
- Easter Sunday: closed
- Easter Monday: 08:30 AM - 03:00 PM
- May 1: closed
- Holy Spirit Day: 08:30 AM - 03:00 PM
- 15 August 15: 08:30 AM - 03:00 PM
- October 28: 08:30 AM- 03:00 PM
- December 25 & 26: closed
