slothis · English

Exploring the Acropolis: UNESCO Heritage in Athens

2017-04-11 · Updated: 2026-08-11 · Original (Korean)

This article was translated from the original Korean post with AI assistance. Read the original Korean post →

The day after eating well and enjoying the ocean in Glyfada, I hopped on a tram to properly see Athens. It takes about an hour by tram from Glyfada to Athens. If you want to do a short bit of sightseeing during the day and just lounge by the Mediterranean when you're feeling lazy, I highly recommend staying in Glyfada. However, prices are higher than in Athens.

My first sightseeing spot was the Acropolis, which was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site back in the 20th century, not the 21st. The sky was completely cloudless and the sun was so intense that if you walked around without a hat, your head would roast. It's such an enviable climate. Not humid at all, just incredibly pleasant weather. Still, sunscreen, sunglasses, and a hat are absolute musts. If you don't have a hat, you should buy a stylish fedora near the Acropolis to wear around. Please don't underestimate the Mediterranean sun.

People walking on a wide stone path lined with trees and a flying bird
Two dogs resting on the ground around the building entrance and iron grate, and people standing
A dog with mixed black and brown fur resting with its eyes closed on a stone floor
Just like in Thailand, there are plenty of animals living the good life here.
Several combined admission tickets for Athens historical sites laid out
For admission, buying a multi-site package ticket is cheaper, but I don't recommend it.

Buying tickets was quite complicated because of all the combinations. A ticket including a bunch of sites is €30, one with a few places removed is €20, and just the Acropolis is €12. Since I planned to stay a while, I bought the €30 ticket, but I ended up not even visiting half the places. I couldn't even go to the museum, so it really felt like a ticket designed just to make more money. It's a shame because €18 is enough for a proper meal in Athens. It might be a commercial tactic, but it was my fault for not researching properly, so I just had to let it go. If you don't have much time and are thinking, "It's just a bunch of rocks, what's the big deal?", you can just buy the Acropolis-only ticket. (Actually, I recommend everyone just buy the Acropolis ticket if possible.)

An ancient city wall stretching long over a hill, with trees and ruins visible below
Stepped stone seats and a city wall on the hill visible behind them
Ruins of an ancient outdoor theater with stepped seats arranged in a semicircle
An information stone reading Theater of Dionysus and the amphitheater ruins visible behind it
Theater of Dionysus. Yes, it's the same Dionysus from the famous "You broke the mood, take responsibility" meme on SNL (Korean comedy show).
A top-down view of the semicircular ancient outdoor theater ruins and people walking around
People standing sparsely on the semicircular stage and stepped seats of an ancient amphitheater viewed from above.

After entering and walking a bit, you'll come across the Theater of Dionysus, a name you've probably heard even if you don't know Greek history (especially thanks to Kwon Hyuk-soo's Dionysus skit on SNL). It's under restoration, but it's accessible, so you can stand and act on a theater stage that's over 3,000 years old. For reference, pretty much all the historical sites in Athens are currently under restoration.

An old stele engraved with ancient Greek characters stands outdoors.
Downtown Athens and a wooded hill are visible beyond the ruins of a massive stone theater with arched windows.
Tourists are climbing the stairs at the entrance of a temple made of massive marble pillars under a blue sky.
The Propylaea. True to its meaning as a monumental gateway, it's the entrance to the Acropolis.

There are about three paths to the Propylaea, but you don't really need to choose; just walk straight toward it from whichever entrance you arrive at. If you don't like the path you're on and decide to head to the entrance on the exact opposite side, you'll end up just looking at the Propylaea from afar and turning back in this heat. Since most of the ruins were destroyed or stolen by various countries (especially the UK), you definitely need to see the relatively intact Propylaea and Parthenon before you leave.

A wide panoramic view of downtown Athens densely packed with white buildings beyond a stone wall.
You can almost see the edges of Athens even now, so in ancient times when the city was smaller, it must have been quite a sight to look down upon.
The dense buildings of downtown Athens meeting the mountain range are visible at a glance beyond the stone walls of ancient ruins.
An information board with an explanation of the Monument of Agrippa and a drawing of a bust is set up.
Marble pillars and walls of an ancient Greek temple rising under a blue sky
People are walking down a wooden deck path between massive stone pillars.
The Ionic capital of an ancient Greek architectural structure standing against a blue sky
A yellow cat yawning while lying face down on the stone floor under a massive ancient temple pillar
Tourists walking in front of the Parthenon, which is undergoing restoration work with scaffolding and cranes installed
Whenever you visit historical sites, you always see restoration work. The Parthenon is no exception, but what's amazing is that they plan the construction period in decades. If it were Korea, they probably would have just slapped on some cement to finish it quickly and make money, but here they are restoring it with incredible care.
The Erechtheion temple with caryatid pillars supporting the roof, and surrounding piles of stones
The grandly lined massive marble pillars of the Parthenon and stone fragments scattered below them
It's very obvious which parts have been newly restored.
A wide panoramic view of downtown Athens beyond piles of stones from ancient ruins
The magnificent marble pillars of the Parthenon shining in the sunlight.
The massive pillars and roof structure of the Parthenon standing against a blue sky.
People gathered at the Acropolis observatory, where the Greek flag is fluttering, enjoying the view
A panoramic view of downtown Athens and the Temple of Olympian Zeus in the distance, seen from the Acropolis.
That's the Temple of Poseidon visible in the distance.
Densely packed buildings of downtown Athens and a mountain in the distance, viewed from a hill.
The overall view of the Parthenon undergoing restoration work and people walking around it.
A close-up of the carved figures and decorative reliefs at the top of the Parthenon.
A marble statue in the shape of a person lying at an angle under the temple roof.
A detailed view of the Doric capitals supporting the Parthenon.
A panoramic view of downtown Athens is seen between massive stone pillars, and tourists are walking along the path.
People are gathered on the stairs in front of an ancient architectural structure made of magnificent marble pillars under a blue sky.
A small marble temple supported by Ionic pillars is visible beyond a tree with lush green leaves.
A cat is resting face down on a shaded rock in front of a pile of stones at an ancient historical site.
A tricolor cat is resting with its eyes closed, lying face down on flat marble.
Magnificent Doric marble pillars and a top roof structure are lined up against a clear sky.
Broken cylindrical pillar fragments and square marble blocks are scattered around a wide open area.
The true owner of these ruins, which have been invaded and broken over 2,000 years, is this cat. I guess looking at ruins is only fascinating at first, because eventually, everyone gets absorbed in taking pictures of the cats.
A cat taking a nap on a stone wall with ancient Greek temple ruins in the background.
The exterior wall of a massive ancient stone structure lined with arched windows and doors under a blue sky.
The exterior wall of a massive stone structure with several arched windows stands next to a tree.
A large shrub with abundant white flowers blooming along a stone-paved roadside.
Abundant white blossoms fully bloomed among dark green leaves.
I know absolutely nothing about flowers, so I have no idea what kind this is, but it perfectly suits the weather.

It feels like this post is just an endless string of photos. Well, my other posts are pretty similar... I did think I should see some historical sites since I came all this way, but I think I prefer endlessly repeating the cycle of eating Greek salad drenched in delicious olive oil, tanning on the beach, and swimming. The weather is overwhelmingly better than in Russia, so the ruins and buildings don't really catch my eye as much.

Expenses

Total Expenses €143.90

Total Trip Expenses 525,936 KRW + 47,999 RUB + $600.96 + €285.77