In transit to Azamara Club Cruises
Pre-cruise discovery of Athens, Greece. Discover what a cruise passenger can do in Athens, Greece before boarding Azamara.
What can a cruise passenger do with limited time in Athens, Greece?
We arrived at our final destination: Athens, Greece a day in advance before boarding Azamara Journey for a 10-day cruise around the Greek Isles with our final port of call being Venice, Italy. Everything worked out perfectly: no flight delays and upon arrival, our ride was there and ready to take us to the Hilton in Athens. By the way, we are using the pre-cruise hotel offered by Azamara and they helped with the transfers. It is so convenient to use these resources: one less thing to worry about.
We checked into the Hilton, changed and set out on foot to see the sights. This is my third visit to Athens, Greece so I was comfortable getting around on my own. Sophia, who is cruising with me on what I am calling her “GAP cruise” (a twist on a GAP year, which is the time between high school and college) has never been to Greece.
Whirlwind Athens: This is what we did in 3.5 hours.
We got started at 6:00 pm and returned to the hotel after 9:00 pm. The benefit of getting a late start was that we did not encounter any crowds at the Acropolis Museum and we were able to avoid the extreme heat of the day (even though at 9:00 pm is was 88-degrees).
Sophia got to experience total immersion: Greek culture, history, people watching and fabulous food.
Self-guided Walking Tour Highlights of Athens:
- Visit the Acropolis Museum
- Sip and snack at a tavern in the Plaka district
- Watch the Changing of the Guards in Athens Greece near Syntagma Square in front of the Hellenic Parliament
- Stroll through the National Gardens
- Take a photo of The Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens
Off to see the sights of Athens, Greece
Acropolis Museum
For 5 Euro – discover the findings of the archaeological site of the Acropolis of Athens. We got there late and had the entire museum to ourselves (great air conditioning and exhibits). Visit theacropolismuseum.gr/en.
Time to eat at a lively tavern in Plaka
