3 Day Athens Itinerary in December

If you hate the heat and crowds, then this 3 Day Athens Itinerary in December is perfect for you. I recently spent 3 days in Athens in December and was amazed by the city, even in the cooler weather.

While Athens is famously sweltering and packed with tourists in the summer (as I’ve heard), visiting in December offered a more chilled (literally) experience. During my trip, daytime temperatures ranged from sunny and 16°C to rainy and 13°C, making it comfortable to explore the sites without waiting in lines or being smushed by other tourists.

To make the best of this 3 Day Athens Itinerary in December, arrive the night before the itinerary starts (Day 0) and then leave in the morning on Day 4. This will allow you to see and do everything below.

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Tips to visit Athens

Combined Acropolis Ticket

Buy the combined Acropolis ticket online for the first day you visit. The ticket gets activated at the Acropolis and put in the timeslot 8am-9am to avoid the crowds. Although there are definitely less tourists in early December when we visited, arriving early still made a huge difference. We entered at 8:45am and it felt like we had the Acropolis to ourselves (and just a few others).

The ticket will give you 5 day access from when you first activate it. With the ticket, you’ll be able to skip lines (if you encounter any) and visit the other sites at your own pace. Unless I note the price, all sites I mention as part of this 3 Day Athens Itinerary are included in the ticket.

Where to Stay in Athens

We had so many great recommendations on where to stay when we were deciding where to book. One good friend who visited just a few months before we did suggested this Airbnb in the Psyri neighborhood. My sister recommended staying in the very hipster/anti-establishment area of Exarcheia.

We stayed in this Airbnb in the Koukaki neighborhood and LOVED it. There were so many restaurants and breakfast spots around that we ended up having leisurely breakfasts and dinners within a 3 minute walk. This saved us time in the morning and energy in the evening.

I was also working remotely in the late afternoon/evening, so it was a nice option to be able to connect online, get a great dinner, and then connect back when I needed to without being stressed about being too far from my computer.

3 Day Athens Itinerary in December

Day 0: Arrive

Hopefully, you can arrive in Athens in the evening so that you have a full 3 days in Athens. Our flight got in at 8pm and just an hour later via Uber, we were at our accommodation.

Uber “taxi” works easily in Athens and at the airport. We paid €43 from the airport to the Koukaki neighborhood and it took around 45 minutes.

Get dinner around your neighborhood. We ate at Karmino and they have a great vegan moussaka that isn’t on the menu—you need to ask!

Day 1: Acropolis, Forums, and Markets

Morning

Start off an early morning with a breakfast of Koulouri (thin, bagel-like bread covered in sesame seeds) at Koulouri Bake House. This was right across from our Airbnb and it was so convenient to grab something quickly to eat before starting the walk to the Acropolis. Don’t bother with a sit-down breakfast on day 1 of this 3 Day Athens Itinerary—you don’t have the time!

We got one ‘bagel’ stuffed with cheese and two small Koulouris to share, with coffee to take on our walk. The staff gifted us two traditional Greek sweets to try as well.

Acropolis

Then, walk to this south entrance of the Acropolis. It’s a little more of a walk up to the top but the tourist buses don’t stop here, so the line (if any on your December morning) will be easier to get through. If you have a 9am ticket instead of 8am, you can get in at 8:45am at the earliest. Have your ticket ready to be scanned.

Start the walk up to the Acropolis by 9am. Several other blogs write that you should skip all the sites on the way so that you can enjoy the top with limited crowds. Generally, I agree with that but if there are no other people around now, take a minute or so and grab a picture—because it’s also going to get more crowded later on.

I thought the two amphitheaters were interesting—they could fit up to 19,000 people! One is better preserved than the other.

Check out all the sites. There are likely going to be some restoration efforts around.

My favorite temple was the Erechtheion because of the women statues that adorn the side. These are replicas of the originals which are in the Acropolis Museum.

We spent about 1.5 hours wandering and taking in the sites. If you’d rather not explore on your own, check out tours like this one on Get Your Guide or this tour on Viator to get the history of the Acropolis while you’re there  

Roman Forum

Then, walk down to Roman Forum of Athens using the northern exit of the Acropolis.

There are some pretty streets along the way.

The Roman Forum of Athens is a small site and just takes 10 minutes to wander through.

Ancient Agora

Next, visit the Ancient Agora of Athens. The agora hosts several other sites inside of it, but you only need to scan your ticket once.

The Temple of Hephaestus is the best preserved and complete (read: good for pics!).

The view of the Acropolis is very cool!

I liked the small church.

And the museum has a lot of interesting information inside of it.

Afternoon

Shopping

After the Agora, start walking to the Monastiriki Flea Market. There is one main shopping street with touristy things, leather, and linen goods. However, be sure you also turn off to Abyssinia Square for the authentic flea market vibe with old furniture, coins, dishware, and more.

We got Wilhelm a cool pair of handmade sandals from Dinos Sandals (this is the address on his business card though it doesn’t show up as a storefront on Google Maps). You can pay between 10-30 euros for a good pair of shoes.

From the flea market, visit the Municipal Markets. There are some stalls in the market that will serve the same food they are selling. If you’re tempted, try it out.

Lunch

Otherwise, get lunch at Diporto. This underground tavern vibe serves just a few dishes each day. We originally read that you don’t get to pick what you get but I think its popularity has increased and tourists frequent the tavern by themselves or on tours.

Once we sat down, we were offered our choice of fish, garbanzo beans, fava beans, and beans. We got one of each because we actually thought the ‘beans’ were the same as the fava or garbanzo ‘beans.’ Although it was a lot for 2 people, we managed to finish it all!

The meal was also served with some white wine. Bring cash. For all 4 dishes, we paid €30.

Then, have a traditional Greek coffee at Mokka around the corner. Two coffees cost €7.60. I loved getting the coffee in the traditional pot.

Shopping Round 2

Next, wander down the pedestrian shopping street of Adrianou. There are so many shops, but some of my favorites were: Forget Me Not, Axi Leather, and Olive Wood Handmade. We ended up going on this street again on Day 3 because we wanted to compare prices before buying anything.  

If you’re looking to buy gold jewelry in Athens, then walk into Byzantino. They have two locations on Adrianou Street. We went into this one and got a great deal. This family-owned jewelry business makes copies of jewelry featured in museums (and/or takes inspiration from them for new pieces). It’s fantastic. So many times, I’ve gone into a museum and wish I could own ancient-looking jewelry!

There wasn’t a lot of negotiating but if you buy a couple of items you should be able to get a deal. We were offered one price… then it was lowered because it was the off-season in December. Then again it was lowered if we could pay in cash. Overall, we paid ¼ of the listed price on the website.

The silver jewelry was also of high quality on Adrianou Street.

Acropolis Museum

Once you’ve had your fill of shopping, head to the Acropolis Museum. On Saturday and Sunday, it’s open until 8pm but during the week it’s open until 5pm. We arrived at 3:30pm and felt a little rushed for time. I suggest you have a full 2 hours to explore and read enough info. Tickets are €20.

A “magic” ball and the original women atop the Acropolis Erechtheion.

Besides the artifacts found at the Acropolis, the museum also has foundations from several old houses.

Evening

 If you’re feeling up to it, head to a bar like Blame the Sun. (Or, if you’re like us, head back to your accommodation to rest for a bit before going back out for dinner).

I think my favorite meal during our 3 day Athens Itinerary was at Dyo Dekares I Oka. The vibe felt authentic and the food was incredible. We spent 45€ on tzatziki, dolmas, spicy cheese dip, bread, bbq oyster mushrooms, and baked eggplant. Oh my gosh. The eggplant and the mushroom dishes were incredible!! This is a must if you’re staying around the area.

Day 2: Museums, Guard Ceremony, and Exarcheia Explorations

Morning

If you’re feeling sporty, show up at the Panathenaic Stadium between 7.30-9am. At this time, only runners are allowed inside the stadium. Wilhelm went for a run (while I slept in). Tickets are €10.

If you’re not too sweaty, have breakfast around the area and visit the Basil & Eilise Goulandris Foundation Museum. Otherwise, head back to your accommodation to freshen up and then have brunch. We ate at Neratzia Cafe, which was good but you may find something even better.

Next, visit the Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum. Here, you can see pieces from the Greek designer’s 15 collections. The collections take inspiration from nature, periods across history, space, and more.

Then, stop by the Arch of Hadrian. No tickets are required for this.

Behind it is the Temple of Olympian Zeus. When we visited, the site was under construction, so we didn’t bother going inside.

Instead, we walked around the National Gardens, stopping at the (super overcrowded) turtle pool and the farm animals.

Changing of the Guard Ceremony

Time your visit so that you arrive 15 minutes to the hour (maybe at 11:45am or 12:45pm) for the unique changing of the guard ceremony at the Monument of the Unknown Solider that starts at 1pm. At 12:40ish there was some activity between the two soldiers who were stationed out front, but the new guards arrived on the hour. The main changing of the guard ceremony takes place on Sundays at noon.

The ceremony reminded me of a male bird dancing to impress a female bird. The foot clacking of the tap-dance-type shoes is so different than any other changing of the guard ceremony I’ve seen (not that I’ve seen that many…).

If you’re visiting in December as we were, cross the street from the Parliament to Syntagma Square and check out the city’s Christmas tree.

Afternoon

Exarcheia Adventure

Next, walk up towards the Exarcheia neighborhood. The grungy Athen’s vibe turns up a notch as you enter this area known for its political radicalism and anti-establishment tendencies. You’ll start to notice “F*** Airbnb” and “Tourists go home” spray painted on the buildings in between posters for anti-fascist events.  Look out for cool graffiti between the endless “tagging” (when graffiti artists only spray paint their name).

Ironically, there are cafes and restaurants that cater to tourists in the area. A local spot that seemed popular among the area’s young people was behold theman. We stopped here for Cafe Freddo—this Greek iced coffee has two shots of espresso served over ice. You can get it black or with milk. I opted for the milk version and it was amazing. The milk is foamed in a different way than I’ve had ever before. It’s thick like whipped cream but without any sugar like regular milk foam on a cappuccino. If you can manage a cold drink in the winter during your 3 Day Athens Itinerary, definitely get it!

There are several restaurants around the area for lunch. We ate a small lunch of eggplant and cheese pie at Pozania for just €14. There were lots of locals eating inside and the huge plates of grilled meat seemed to be the most popular item ordered.

Archeology Museum

Next, walk to the Archeology Museum for €6 each. Plan to spend at least 2 hours there exploring the ancient pieces from as far back as 7000 BCE. Insane! Some pieces look new—I don’t understand how.

I enjoyed trying to find hedgehog creatures (of which there were quite a few).

And animal head vases.

This sculpture of Aphrodite threatening the goat-footed god Pan with her slipper was made in 100 BC. It was my favorite sculpture in the museum.

Evening

Head to a bar or back to your accommodation for a rest.

If you’re in the Koukaki neighborhood, then I suggest getting drinks at Asymmetro.

Asymmetro looked really popular on Sunday night when we walked by at 10pm so we thought it would be fun to grab a drink there. However at 7pm on Tuesday, it was much quieter, but we got a sense of the vibe. Wilhelm got a beer and I ordered the homemade lemonade made with cinnamon and a shot of rum. Interestingly, my drink was served with a packaged chocolate croissant. I thought it may have been a way to add an extra charge to our bill—but no! When I checked around the other tables, several groups were happily eating away at their croissants while sipping their drinks.

Head to dinner at Kouzineta or Karmino. Both serve an excellent vegan moussaka. The pedestrian street of Geor. Olimpiou has a lot of food options too.

Kouzineta Dinner

Day 3: Acropolis Views

Morning

Get a Cafe Fredo at Little John’s Coffee Cottage.

Then, take a morning walk to the pleasant residential neighborhood Ano Petralona for breakfast at Μουρ Μουρ and order the traditional “pereki,” which is a thin piece of filo pastry filled with veggies. I got the spinach version, and it was the best breakfast of our 3 day Athens Itinerary.

The restaurant is so cute too!

Then, walk to this start of the Filopappou Hill. There are several site remains throughout the hill. We wandered to the Prison of Socrates (which has nothing to do with him actually), the Church of Saint Demetrios Loumbardiaris, and Deaf Man’s Cave.

The best part of the walk are the viewpoints of the Acropolis. Definitely stop at the Filopappou Viewing Podium.

And the top of the hill with the Philopappos Monument. 

Afternoon

In the afternoon, visit the sites you haven’t yet on your combined ticket, which should be the Kerameikos Archaeological Site, and the Archaeological Site of the Lyceum of Aristotle.

If you don’t want to add this to your 3 Day Athens Itinerary (we didn’t) that’s fine too! However, my friend said one of her favorite sites was the Kerameikos.

We had some gift shopping to do and instead spent time walking around the Flea Market again.

And, we stopped in the Bath of the Winds, which was a Turkish bath in old Athens. For €2 per person, this wasn’t a very exciting site but if you have the time, you can escape the cold weather in the overheated museum.

Another museum in the shopping district is the Benizelos Mansion. Pay-what-you-can and see the “oldest house in Athens.”

You could also visit another museum like the Museum of Cycladic Art.

If you’re shopping around, definitely stop for spinach and leek pies at Bougatsadiko Psirri.

When visiting in the wintertime, get some chestnuts or corn around the Flea Market Square.

Evening

In the wintertime, the sun sets around 5pm so by 4pm you should be in your sunset spot. Popular sunset areas are the Filopappou viewing podium and the Lycabettus Hill (which has a funicular, but you may need to Uber to it if you don’t feel up for a walk).

We opted to get drinks at a spot my sister recommended, Attic, because we were having a good time gift-shopping around the flea market and seeing the Christmas tree with the lights.

Attic is definitely more for insta pictures than anything else, but you can get a beer or wine to watch the sunset easily. This is the only place we visited in Athens where the wait staff asked for a tip when you pay your bill.

For dinner, visit a fish restaurant like Skoumbri, which is located on a pleasant pedestrian street in Koukaki. We really enjoyed the smoked mackerel baked with capers and lemon and the shrimp “saganaki” (cooked in a delicious tomato-feta sauce).

Day 4: Head back home

That’s the end of the 3 Day Athens Itinerary. If you have time, head out for breakfast or wander the streets one last time before getting an Uber to the airport.

Tips on what to wear in Athens in December

We expected one day of good weather so I brought 1 dress, 2 pants, and 2 sweaters for our long weekend trip. I also brought a Merino undershirt because I’m always cold, and two jackets—I really only needed my puffer but since we were going to Stockholm for part two of our trip, I had a winter coat I wore in the evenings.

To handle the mix of rainy+ cold weather, I brought water-resistant Timberland boots, but plenty of people were walking around in sneakers. There are tons of cafes and restaurants to hide in if it starts raining.

Where to Eat and Drink in Athens

I think it’s hard to go wrong with where to eat in Athens on this 3 Day Athens Itinerary as long as you stay away from the tourist drag around the Acropolis. My favorite restaurants of our trip were Dyo Dekares I Oka and Dipolo. Each person you ask who has visited Athens will very likely have their own favorite!

It’s pretty easy to get overwhelmed with options on where to eat. Instead of figuring it out for yourself, this food tour or this one has hundreds of great reviews. Another idea is to do a Greek cooking class!

Tipping

We generally tipped around 10% at restaurants when eating for lunch or dinner. Most places take credit card as well. You may want some cash to bargain at the flea market and around but you can manage with a card, though you may have to pay a 10% transaction fee and pay more than €10. We had a lot of euros we have collected over the past 2 years so we made an effort to try to use that rather than our credit cards so we mostly paid in cash.

Restaurants

Restaurants that we looked up, visited, and were recommended:

• Dyo Dekares I Oka was my favorite restaurant! The food was incredible and I loved the homey vibe to the restaurant.
• Lolos was on the pedestrian street near our Airbnb. It looked very cute though we didn’t have a chance to eat here.
• Μουρ Μουρ for breakfast pies.
• Diporto for a unique lunch in a hole-in-the-wall atmosphere with traditional fare.
• Karmino for a great vegan moussaka that isn’t on the menu—you need to ask.
• Aerides Plaka Antica, my sister’s favorite restaurant when she visited.
• Kouzineta Restaurant for great traditional food. It was good but didn’t wow us the same way as Dyo Dekares I Oka.
• Bougatsadiko Psirri for snack ‘pies’.
• Visit Skoumbri for local seafood.
• Krasopoulio tou Kokkora for Spanakopita and moussaka and grape leaves.
• If you want something other than Greek food, I saw a line outside Tuk Tuk Thai Street Food and it looks good.
• Συμπόσιο στο Ψυρρή and Antica are both said to have great stuffed veg options.
• Bairaktaris Central doesn’t have great reviews, but my sister visited and said the food was pretty good for being a in central, touristy square.
• Oikonomou Restaurant and Rantevou looked interesting too.

Coffee Shops

Coffee shops we liked:

• Mokka for traditional coffee.
• Little John’s Coffee Cottage for Cafe Freddo (a delicious Greek spin on iced coffee).
• behold theman for funky cafe vibes in a hip area.
• Bousatsa Bay looked like a cute coffee shop.
• Koulouri Bake House for coffee and Greek ‘bagels’ covered in sesame seeds.
• Ubuntu looked like a fun local coffee shop away from the touristy area.

Drinks

For drinks, check out:

• Attic for sunset views.
• Blame the Sun taproom for beer.
• Asymmetro for homemade lemonade drinks and beer.
• Κλουβί (Klouvi) looks like a good time.

Hope you enjoy this 3 Day Athens Itinerary!