WHY ANYONE except the most dedicated sports buffs would want to visit Athens during this summer’s Olympics is beyond me. The August temperatures will be in the high 30Cs, the price of everything, from soft drinks to hotel rooms, will rocket, and there are growing fears that the Games will be the target of a terrorist attack.
But if you visit either side of the Games (August 13-29; the Paralympic Games are September 17-28), you will benefit from the wholesale pre-Games clean-up of the city. From hotels to transport to cultural sites, Athens has been transformed. The city now merits several days’ exploration rather than simply being seen as a pitstop for a flying visit to the Acropolis en route to the islands.
The Acropolis, topped by the Parthenon, is of course still unmissable, and visiting it has become much more pleasant since last year’s pedestrianisation of Dionissiou Areopagitou, which runs around its southern side. Lined with bay trees and provided with ridges to help blind visitors navigate, the street is now a peaceful haven with great views of the Parthenon above.
It’s part of an ambitious project to link Athens’s key sights with traffic-free walkways that extend to the Stadium which, in 1896, hosted the first modern Olympic Games. Elsewhere other streets, such as the shopping street of Ermou, off Syntagma Square, have seen cars banned, and the central squares of Syntagma, Omonia and Kolonaki are being improved. Public transport is much better too: the splendid new metro system links most key sights and is very user-friendly.
The next two months will be a great time to visit Athens. Spring temperatures are balmy, and the orange trees that line every road are blossoming and smelling sweet. Here is our choice of the best the city has to offer.
CULTURE AND SIGHTSEEING
The Acropolis and around
Rising proudly above the bustling city, this hill, topped by the graceful Parthenon and other temples, is one of the most important sites in Western civilisation, and the climb to the top is a must. Aim to get there soon after it opens, at 8am, to avoid the crowds.Afterwards climb Areopagus, the neighbouring hill that was the site of Athens’s early court, then walk through the Agora, the ancient marketplace now bounded by its modern equivalent, the lively Plaka district. Details: 00 30 210 321 0219, www.culture.gr.
The Temple of Olympian Zeus
Many cities would be proud to have this remarkable temple as their key attraction - lucky Athens tops it with the Parthenon near by. But it's worth taking a stroll around the 16 columns still standing (there were originally 104) of this beautiful, colossal structure, which took 700 years to build.
Details: 922 6330, www.culture.gr.
"Museum Street"
Along Vasilissis Sofias Street in the upmarket Kolonaki district you will find the best museums in Athens, given that the National Archaeological Museum is shut at present. The Benaki Museum (367 1000, www.benaki.gr) is the best, with four floors exhibiting artefacts and paintings showing the development of the Greek state. Signed in English, its highlights include a spectacular costume collection, two works by El Greco (though St Luke Painting the Virgin and Child is on loan to the National Gallery in London until May 23) and richly painted icons. There's a good coffee shop with great views over Athens, too.
The Gazi district
Gazi, meaning "gasworks", was once the industrial heart of Athens, but its abandoned factories are now being taken over by the modern art crowd. Technopolis (346 0981, www.culture.gr), a foundry converted into a gallery, is the easiest to find - head for the tall chimney, lit up at night. Potter around to find the latest happenings in this rapidly changing art and bar scene; clubs kick off late at night. Persefonis Street has good bars and restaurants, including Mamacas (see Eating Out).
SHOPPING AND STROLLING
The maze of streets beyond the Acropolis that constitute the Plaka district are hopelessly touristy - overpriced tavernas, shops selling Nepalese jewellery, cheap T-shirts and knock-off CDs - but wandering here is fun nevertheless, and gets funkier on Sundays when the flea market in next-door Monastiraki attracts the crowds (though most stalls sell utter rubbish - broken irons, second-hand shoes or copies of the NME from 1986, anyone?).
Neighbouring Psyrri is the Hoxton of Athens: its once-menacing air has gone and it's now a hopping maze of narrow streets packed with lively bars and tavernas, few with menus in English. In Iroon Square is a bridal shop where on the second floor, a row of illuminated dummies in wedding dresses gaze down over the buzzy night-time scene: very surreal. A 15-minute walk west brings you to the Gazi district of arty bars and galleries.
For something far more upmarket, head to Kolonaki, the Knightsbridge of Athens and stuffed with designer boutiques. Some of the local names, such as Raxevsky, are surprisingly good value. It's here you'll find Bettina, the only Athens outlet for the clothes of the local fashion designer-made-good Sophie Kokosalaki.
Don't dismiss Piraeus as simply the place to catch a ferry. Take the metro there, then a bus or taxi to the small harbour of Mikrolimano and enjoy fresh fish at one of the restaurants lining the water. Jimmy & the Fish and Plous Podilato are the best-known for pricey but good fish dishes.
EATING OUT
The latest trend to hit Athens eateries is the "modern taverna" - village food like mama used to make, but with good service and high prices. "In a real taverna you get stained cutlery and cracked plates, and you have to catch the waiter's eye," said John Hadoulis, a local journalist, as we tucked in at Sea Satin Market (Fokilidou 1, 361 9646), a new restaurant in the posh Kolonaki district.
We had a great selection of classic dishes - Greek salad, taramasalata, squid, grilled fish and vegetables - plus a trebbiano wine by Nico Lazaridi, and paid £55 for two. Service was fast and furious in this incredibly packed but pretty, pale-blue-painted taverna.
Mamacas (Persefonis 41, 346 4984), in the Gazi district, is another "modern taverna": it looks surreal, its pretty, white painted village exterior over-shadowed by the tall chimney of Technopolis.
Another trend harks back to the Sixties and Seventies: lounge bars decorated in orange, brown or pink are the flavour of the month. Frame (721 4368, www.sglycabettus.gr), underneath the St George Lycabettus Hotel, is great: its pod hanging chair and armchairs with woolly covers are straight out of a Seventies fashion shoot, but the food - such as an excellent prawn and crispy noodle salad - is definitely 21st century. The new love café in Mikrolimano, the yachties' harbour near Piraeus, is another retro spot, with fuschia chairs, low white sofas and neon pink lighting.
If it's classic, good-value Greek food you want, head for Platanos (322 0666), on car-free Diogenous Street in Plaka. Sit outside under the dappled shade of a plane tree and enjoy fresh squid, Greek salad and other classics for about £4-£5 per dish. Or step back 50 years when you enter the dingy basement of Bakaliarakia stou Damigou (Kydathinaion 41, Plaka, 322 5084), all paper tablecloths and ancient furniture. The battered cod with garlic dip (£5), and the best chips I've had in years are the draw here. For a real slice of local life, go for souvlaki (pitta bread with meat, onions and sauce) at O Thanasis (324 4705) on Mitropoleos. Service is brusque, the crowd a mix of locals, clubbers, shift workers and students, attracted by the cheap prices and late opening (until 2am).
EATING OUT TIPS
Athens nightlife is seasonal: many clubs, bars and restaurants, especially those without a garden, move out of the city in high summer to the coast at Glyfada, or even to one of the islands. So call ahead to check if your intended bar or restaurant is open - some are likely to make an exception during the Olympics and stay in town. It's also wise to book a restaurant with an attached club to save on a separate entrance charge. And no one eats dinner before 10pm.
WHERE TO STAY The grande dame of Athens hotels is the Hotel Grande Bretagne (333 0000, www.grandebretagne.gr, UK bookings 00 800 3253 5353) on Syntagma Square, opposite the Greek Parliament.
Newly emerged from a £60 million, 16-month refurbishment, it was used as the headquarters of Greek, German and British Armies during the Second World War, and remains the unofficial talking shop of the Greek political and chattering classes.
The 321 rooms are elegantly furnished in classical style; the Winter Garden restaurant beyond the lobby is a great place for people-watching over a light lunch; and there’s a new Espa-run spa and large indoor pool in the basement.
