One of the advantages of Athens is that you don’t need a huge budget to enjoy the city in good conditions. It can be easily discovered without spending too much money.
Here are our best deals for cheap travel to Athens!
Choose cheap accommodation in Athens from 15€/night
One of the biggest expenses during a trip is accommodation. Fortunately, there are good options for cheap accommodation in Athens.
The most economical option is to sleep at Athens Backpackers Youth Hostel which is clean, friendly and inexpensive. Which has the added advantage of being extremely well located, 2 minutes walk from the Akropoli metro station. From 21€/night/person. In the same style and the same prices, we found Mosaikon and Bedbox. Both are well located and super clean, 4/6 person dorms (from 15€). There are also private rooms for 2 (around 65€).
Another option with excellent value for money: City Circus Hotel. In the heart of the lively Psyri district, City Circus is a clever mix between a youth hostel and a boutique hotel. The atmosphere is young, warm and relaxed. Rates are very reasonable. The originality of City Circus is that the hotel has both dormitory rooms (4 to 8 beds) and classic private rooms. The establishment is also adapted to families (family suites for 3 or 4 people). And the little extra? The small colorful terrace with a view of the Acropolis, nice to relax.
We have also had very good feedback fromco-living spaces: notably Selina (which combines a co-working and co-living space), as well as Ilior.
Eating cheap in Athens is easy! Less than 5€.
A small hollow? Looking for a quick, inexpensive but quality lunch? Good and inexpensive addresses are easily found in Greece.
So here are our favorite deals for cheap food in Athens:
- for a quick snack, opt for a koulouri at 0,50€ : this small round bread with sesame seeds is ideal to satisfy small hungers. On sale everywhere in the streets of Athens from street vendors.
- Ariston’s puff pastries
- the souvlaki from Kostas they are the best in Athens and cost between 3 and 4€.
- Feyrouz for delicious oriental “pizzas” which constitute a complete meal for 4€. One of our favorites!
- The falafels of Falafellas (51 street Aiolou) : count 3 to 5€ approximately
- or even Avli an authentic tavern at mini prices.
Good plans by expensive transport
- Public transport in Athens: well developed and easy to visit Athens and around at low prices
- By bike: Rent a bike in Athens, another economical solution. For 15€ / day, you can go to the sea!
- Plane : Aegean (national airline company)
Visit Athens at low cost
Start by taking advantage of Athens’ free goodies! 0€
There are many free tours and activities in the Greek capital.
How to visit archaeological sites without paying? How to enjoy the Benaki Museum for free? Where can I find free concerts and exhibitions? What are the ideas for family outings without spending anything at all? We detail all this in our article “Our good plans to visit Athens for free”.
Stroll along the Athenian Riviera: 1,20€.
A public transport ticket costs 1,20€ (standard fare) and allows you to travel anywhere in Athens by metro, streetcar, bus or trolleybus. It is valid for one and a half hours and will take you from the city parks to the sea on the south coast.
So take advantage of it! Get on the streetcar and leave Athens in the direction of Faliro, Alimos, Glyfada, Voula, Vouliagmeni… no matter where you go, let the call of the sea win you over. There are many beaches accessible by streetcar, bus or metro from the center of Athens. Forget for a few hours the hectic pace of the capital. Besides, if the weather allows it, swim and lie down on a beach. There are dozens of free or organized beaches along the south coast. Examples are the beach of Voula (Asklipio Voulas stop) or the beach of Glyfada (Paralia Glyfadas stop). If the water is not yet warm enough, take a walk and admire the sea, nothing better to escape. In this case you can go down to the marina of Flisvos or Mikrolimano to admire the mega-yachts.
Visit the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and enjoy its free activities: 0€ or 1,20€ depending on the option chosen
The same 1.20 euro public transport ticket that takes you by streetcar from Syntagma Square to the south coast of Athens also takes you to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNFCC). To get there, get off at the “Τzitzifies” stop, walk to Navarhou Votsi Street and then turn right into Peististratou Street. At Peisistratou and Sahtouri streets, you will find the entrance of the SNFCC through its parking lot.
Another option, 100% free of charge, is the SNFCC’s free daily shuttle bus service for visitors. The shuttle leaves from Syntagma Square (intersection with Ermou Street), with a stop at the Syggrou-Fix metro station (Syggrou Avenue).
On site, admire this brand new ultra-modern cultural center, built by the renowned architect Renzo Piano, known for having realized the Georges Pompidou Center in Paris. The building houses the new Greek National Opera and the National Library (free visits upon reservation).
In addition, several free activities are organized every week: concerts, outdoor cinema, gardening activities for children, yoga, sailing, etc.
Before you leave, take a tour of the beautiful Mediterranean garden.
Choose a guided tour of the Acropolis at a low price: 10€.
So, here is a great plan in the register “cheap in Athens”: all about the Acropolis without breaking the bank.
Visiting the Acropolis is a must during any stay in Athens… but it is a significant budget. Especially since guided tours are expensive. And yet, it is essential to have a minimum of information to visit the site, otherwise you will miss the essential.
Fortunately, we’ve come up with the perfect solution for you to visit the Acropolis without breaking the bank and with top-quality information: a great guide to the Acropolis available as an ebook (10€) written by our friend Céline, an archaeologist. It contains a circuit to follow with several stages to discover the Acropolis site, as well as detailed explanations to answer all the questions you may have about the Acropolis.
Another good plan to know: On certain dates during the year, some sites, museums and monuments of Athens and Greece are free! Such as March 6, April 18, May 18, the last weekend of September, October 28 or the 1st Sunday of the month from November to March.
Here are lots of great ideas for cheap travel to Athens. Discover also the 100% free activities and visits in our article Our plans to visit Athens for free.
Laure M.
Updated April 9, 2024
