Attica Travel Guide
The Parthenon on the Acropolis, Athens. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Attica is Athens: the capital region of Greece, home to about a third of the country's population and to one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on earth. The Acropolis rises over it all, with the Parthenon, the great temple of the 5th century BC, at its crown.
Below the rock: the Acropolis Museum (opened 2009), the old lanes of Plaka, the Monastiraki flea market, Syntagma Square and the Parliament. Day trips run south to the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion and the Marathon battlefield, and by ferry from Piraeus, Greece's main port, to the Saronic islands like Aegina.
Destinations in Attica
Acropolis and ParthenonThe 5th-century BC citadel: the Parthenon, the Erechtheion and the Propylaea.
Acropolis MuseumThe 2009 museum under the rock, built around the Parthenon marbles debate.
Temple of Poseidon, SounionThe sea-god's temple on Cape Sounion, 70 km south; the classic sunset trip.
PlakaThe old neighborhood under the Acropolis: lanes, tavernas and neoclassical houses.
National Archaeological MuseumGreece's greatest museum: the Mask of Agamemnon, the Antikythera mechanism.
Panathenaic StadiumThe marble stadium of the 1896 first modern Olympics; finish line of the Athens Marathon.
Aegina and the Temple of AphaiaThe Saronic island 40 minutes from Piraeus, with its 5th-century BC temple.
Monastiraki flea marketThe flea market streets under the Acropolis: antiques, records and souvlaki.
Syntagma and the ParliamentThe square, the Evzones guard and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Temple of Olympian ZeusThe giant unfinished temple below the Acropolis.
MarathonThe battlefield of 490 BC and the start of the authentic marathon route.
Hover a region to explore it. Click a city pin to open its guide.
Top Cities & towns in Attica
Regional food
- Souvlaki from the Monastiraki grills
- Koulouri (sesame bread rings) from the street carts
- Greek coffee in the Plaka kafeneia
Getting there
Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos (ATH) is 33 km east of the center; metro line 3 reaches Syntagma in about 40 minutes. Piraeus is the main ferry port for the islands. KTEL Attica buses cover the region.