What to see in Athens in three days: the Acropolis for €30, the museum, the Agora, Plaka and Lycabettus. The metro from the airport, Sounion or Aegina, and flights from the UK.
Three days are enough for Athens. Day one is for the Acropolis and its museum, day two for the Ancient Agora, the Olympieion and the Plaka district, day three for Lycabettus or a trip to the sea. The biggest cost is the Acropolis ticket, which is €30 for an adult in 2026.
We checked prices, opening hours and transport with the operators on 29 October 2026. Each figure has its source and year. Some links in this article are affiliate links. If you book through them, we get a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What can you see in Athens in three days?
- Day 1: the Acropolis at 8:00, then the Acropolis Museum below the hill, in the afternoon the streets of Plaka and Anafiotika, in the evening the view from Filopappou Hill.
- Day 2: the Ancient Agora with the Temple of Hephaestus, through Monastiraki to Syntagma Square for the changing of the guard, then the Olympieion and the Panathenaic Stadium.
- Day 3: Lycabettus in the morning, an afternoon trip to Cape Sounion for the sunset, or a full day by boat to Aegina.
- Weekend trip: arrive on Friday evening, see the Acropolis and Plaka on Saturday, the big changing of the guard at 11:00 on Sunday and the Agora in the afternoon before your flight home.
If you only have one day, skip the Olympieion and the stadium. You can do the Acropolis, the museum and Plaka in a day if you start at eight.
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The Acropolis: how much is a ticket and when should you go?
According to the Acropolis page on the Odysseus portal (Hellenic Ministry of Culture, 2026), a full ticket costs €30 and a reduced ticket €15. The ticket covers the Acropolis and its slopes with the Theatre of Dionysus and the Odeon of Herodes Atticus. You can buy it on site or on the official sales site tickets.hh.gr. For two people that is €60 for one hill, so we would never leave the Acropolis for the last hour before a flight.
Winter hours are 8:00 to 17:00, with last entry at 16:30. Summer hours are 8:00 to 20:00. It is closed on 1 January, 25 March, 1 May, Easter Sunday, and 25 and 26 December. In November you have 8.5 hours from opening to last entry, so you can make an early visit without stress, even after a late arrival.
According to the ministry, entry is free on only five dates: 6 March, 18 April, 18 May, the last weekend of September and 28 October. The Acropolis page for 2026 does not list free entry on the first Sunday from November to March, so do not count on it. On free days the queue at the gate is the longest. We would rather pay and go on a normal weekday.
In summer there is no shade on the hill, you may not eat there, and the toilets on the site are being rebuilt in 2026, so use the ones by the main entrance. In heatwaves the ministry closes the sites in Athens at midday and announces it in the urgent notices section of the same page. In July and August we would only go at eight.
If you want to learn about the Parthenon and the Erechtheion, take a guide. Look at guided Acropolis tours and tickets in Athens on Klook before you travel. In each offer, check whether the €30 ticket is included or only the guide. Without a ticket the guide cannot take you up the hill.
The Acropolis Museum: cheaper, and when is it open?
The museum stands below the south slope, by Akropoli metro station on line 2. According to the visitor information (Acropolis Museum, 2026), entry costs €20, reduced €10, and the ticket also covers the excavations under the building. In winter, from 1 November to 31 March, it is open Monday to Thursday from 9:00 to 17:00, on Friday until 22:00 and at the weekend until 20:00.
Friday evening until 22:00 is the best time for a quiet visit, after the groups leave. The museum is free on 6 March, 25 March, 18 May and 28 October. Note 25 March: the museum is free, but the Acropolis is closed that day.
| Sight | Entry 2026 | Winter hours | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acropolis and slopes | €30, reduced €15 | 8:00 to 17:00, last entry 16:30 | 2 to 3 hours |
| Acropolis Museum | €20, reduced €10 | 9:00 to 17:00, Friday until 22:00 | 1.5 to 2 hours |
| Ancient Agora with museum | €20, reduced €10 | 8:00 to 16:30, last entry 16:10 | 1.5 hours |
| Olympieion | €20, reduced €10 | 8:00 to 15:00, last entry 14:40 | 30 minutes |
| Panathenaic Stadium | €12, students €6 | 8:00 to 17:00 | 45 minutes |
| Temple of Poseidon, Sounion | €20, reduced €10 | 9:30 to sunset | 1 hour |
Prices for the state sites are from the ministry's pages on the Odysseus portal (Hellenic Ministry of Culture, 2026), and the stadium price is from the stadium's website. The four main sites cost an adult €90 together. If you need to save money, skip the Olympieion, not the Agora.
The Agora, the Olympieion and the stadium: what is worth another €20?
The Ancient Agora was the market and the heart of the city, below the north slope of the Acropolis. The €20 ticket covers the whole site and the museum in the Stoa of Attalos. According to the ministry (Hellenic Ministry of Culture, 2026), the site is open in winter from 8:00 to 16:30. On the hill above the Agora stands the Temple of Hephaestus. It is almost complete, and you can walk all the way round it. Since November 2025 the upper floor of the stoa is closed, so the museum shows less in 2026.
The Olympieion is the Temple of Olympian Zeus at the end of Amalias Avenue. Only some of its columns still stand, and according to the ministry (2026) it is only open from 8:00 to 15:00 in winter. For €20 you mainly pay for a close view. You can see Hadrian's Arch next to it for free from the street. We would look at the temple from above, from the Acropolis, and spend the money on the Agora.
The Panathenaic Stadium is all marble, and the first modern Olympic Games opened here in 1896. According to the visitor page (Panathenaic Stadium, 2026), entry costs €12 since 1 October 2025, students pay €6 and children under 6 go in free. From November to February it is open from 8:00 to 17:00. An audio guide of about 30 minutes is included, in several languages.
Plaka, Anafiotika and Lycabettus: what is free and what does the funicular cost?
Plaka is the old district below the Acropolis, with souvenir shops on Adrianou and Kydathineon streets. You can spend a whole afternoon here for free. Above it is Anafiotika, lanes of white houses that, according to the Plaka guide (City of Athens, 2026), workers from the island of Anafi built. Two 17th-century churches mark the edges of the district, Agios Georgios tou Vrachou and Agios Simeon.
Anafiotika is a place where people live, not an open-air museum. Do not talk loudly on the steps, and do not go into the courtyards. Before ten in the morning there are fewest people, which suits a visit after an early Acropolis entry.
The changing of the guard at Syntagma
In front of parliament on Syntagma Square, Evzones of the Presidential Guard guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. According to the City of Athens (2026), each one stands at his post for an hour without moving, so you can see a short changing of the guard every hour on the hour. According to the Office of the President (President of the Hellenic Republic, 2026), the big ceremony with music is every Sunday at 11:00. Go at 10:40 if you want to stand in the front row.
Lycabettus: funicular or on foot?
Lycabettus is the highest hill in the city, at 277 metres. According to the funicular operator (Orizontes Lycabettus, 2026), the funicular from Aristippou Street in Kolonaki costs €10 one way and €13 return. It runs from 9:00 until 2:30 in the morning, every 30 minutes, and every 10 minutes at busy times. From the top you see the Acropolis, Piraeus and the sea.
We would walk up. According to the operator, it is 5 to 10 minutes from the car park by the Lycabettus Theatre. We would keep the funicular for the way down after sunset, when the path is dark.
Sounion or Aegina: where should you go on a day trip from Athens?
Cape Sounion is the southern tip of Attica, and Homer already called it the sacred cape of the Athenians. The Temple of Poseidon stands on it. According to the ministry (Hellenic Ministry of Culture, 2025), entry costs €20 and the site is open from 9:30 to sunset, with last entry 20 minutes before. So arrive at least 20 minutes before sunset.
KTEL Attikis buses go to Sounion on the coast road, but when we wrote this, the company did not show the timetable on its website. Check it at the bus station. If you do not want to deal with buses, a half-day tour with hotel pickup is easier. In summer, take one that leaves in the afternoon, so that you are at the temple for the sunset.
Aegina is the nearest island with its own harbour town. According to the Aegina guide (City of Athens, 2026), several companies sail there from Piraeus several times a day. Fast boats take 40 minutes, and large car ferries about 75 minutes. The island covers 85 km². It has pistachio orchards and the Temple of Aphaia, where 24 of the 34 columns still stand.
Metro line 3 takes you from Syntagma to Piraeus. According to the same source, the trip takes 20 minutes. For a full day trip we would take a fast boat in the morning, so that you are on the island before ten, and a large ferry back, where you can sit outside on deck.
How do you get from the airport to the centre of Athens?
Metro line 3 runs from the airport to the centre. According to the OASA fares (OASA, 2026), a metro ticket from the airport costs €9, reduced €4.50, and a return ticket €16, valid for 30 days. Express buses, for example the X95 to Syntagma, cost €5.50. A standard 90-minute ticket costs €1.20 and is not valid to the airport.
If you stay three days, buy the 3-day tourist ticket for €20. It includes the trip from the airport and back and all public transport. Compared with the €16 return ticket, you pay only €4 more for three days of metro and buses.
According to the line 3 timetable (STASY, 2026), the trip from the airport to Syntagma takes 40 minutes, and a train to the airport runs every 36 minutes. From 25 October 2026 there is repair work on line 3 from Sunday to Thursday evenings. The last direct train from the airport to the centre leaves at 21:10. After that, trains only run to Douk. Plakentias station, and replacement bus X25 runs from there. So if you land late at night, do not count on the metro.
If your flight lands late and you do not want to queue for a taxi outside the hall, book a transfer in advance, especially with children or a suitcase.
When should you go to Athens, and how do you fly there from the UK?
According to the climate data for the Elliniko station (Hellenic National Meteorological Service, 2026), January has an average high of 14 °C, and July and August 32 °C. The best months for the sights have highs of 20 to 25 °C.
| Month | Average high | Average low | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| January and February | 14 °C | 7 °C | museums, empty sites |
| March | 16 °C | 9 °C | the Acropolis without crowds |
| April | 20 °C | 12 °C | sights and Lycabettus |
| May | 25 °C | 16 °C | sights, first swim on Aegina |
| July and August | 32 °C | 23 °C | sights in the morning only |
| October | 24 °C | 16 °C | sights and the sea |
| November | 19 °C | 12 °C | the city, short days |
At 14 °C in January it is easier to walk on a hill with no shade than at 32 °C in July. That is why Athens is a good choice for a winter weekend too. Just remember the winter opening hours. The Olympieion closes at 15:00 in winter.
Compare flights from different UK airports for the dates you want, and check if each one is direct or has a change. A flight out on Friday and back on Sunday gives you all of Saturday and Sunday until the afternoon, which is enough for the Acropolis and Plaka.
Compare flights from the UK to Athens on Kiwi.com for the same weekend from different airports. With cheap fares, check which bags are included before you buy.
Where should you stay in Athens?
For three days we would choose Plaka, Syntagma or Koukaki near the Acropolis Museum, where you can walk everywhere. Monastiraki is livelier and louder in the evening. When you choose a hotel, check how far it is on foot to Syntagma or Plaka.
Athens FAQ
How many days do you need in Athens?
Two days are enough for the Acropolis, the museum, the Agora and Plaka. With Lycabettus and a trip to Sounion or Aegina, plan three to four days.
How much does the Acropolis cost in 2026?
A full ticket costs €30, reduced €15. The Acropolis Museum is a separate ticket for €20.
When is the Acropolis free?
According to the Ministry of Culture, on 6 March, 18 April, 18 May, the last weekend of September and 28 October. The Acropolis page for 2026 does not list free entry on the first Sunday in winter.
How much is the metro from Athens airport?
By metro line 3 for €9 to Syntagma in 40 minutes, or by bus X95 for €5.50. From 25 October 2026, from Sunday to Thursday the last direct train from the airport leaves at 21:10.
When is the changing of the guard at Syntagma?
A short changing of the guard happens every hour on the hour. The big ceremony with music is every Sunday at 11:00.
