Oct 9- Athens 6am-6pm - [ ] Athens is a busy big city - [ ] Acropolis is quite a bit away. Seen it before. Not interested. - [ ] Not much in walking distance - [ ] Cannot go to beaches due to water pollution - [ ] Stayed on the boat and enjoyed a quiet pool day and the weather - [ ] Formal night - [ ] Saw there were several hop on hop off busses available in port for around $20pp and heard that local city bus was affordable and easy and was right in the port - [ ] Most people were back on board early and didn’t spend a lot of time touring Read Less

We picked a HOHO bus but it did a scenic coastal route so took an hour to get to Athens when we would have preferred to go straight there as it's 15mins from Pireous. The commmentary was out of sync with what we were seeing and once we got to the Acropollis and Plaka and did our sightseeing it wasn't easy finding the HOHO bus stop to take us back to the ship. However, the Acropollis itself was worth the trip. We had booked a shore excursion to take us direct to Athens but we weren't told of a change in time of the coach leaving so missed the coach but P&O gave us a refund. Read Less

Athens was cleaner than I expected but there is grafitti everywhere. Such a shame to see ancient buildings and beautiful newer buildings covered with tags and political statements. Food was great! Read Less

We got off the ship and walked to the subway which I would not recommend. It's far and hot with a lot of traffic. I've heard there is a city bus that runs directly into Athens or a Hop On Hop off that takes you to the acropolis. We did the HOHO bus directly from downtown Athens which I do not recommend. It wasn't really interesting and mostly we just sat in traffic. We did enjoy lunch and shopping in Plaka and wished we had spent more time there. Read Less

Went on the hop on hop off your, Athens traffic is grim , it’s very polluted, won’t bother getting off The ship next time Read Less

Take a taxi. Do NOT take a Hop-on-hop off bus. You will spend all your time waiting on line in the hot sun. Read Less

Did a hop on/hop off tour very good Read Less

We wanted to do the town on our own since we had been to Athens with tours in a previous trip. We went to the Jewish Museum which was excellent. We walked all over the Plaka district, shopped and had an excellent lunch. We did climb the Acropolis and all the sights. It was extremely hot so we ended up going back to the ship for dinner. We would have preferred to have dinner in Athens but the ride on the bus back to the Plaka district was too long and we were not in the mood to deal with another bus. Read Less

We hired a private tour guide, who took us all over the ancient parts of the city. This was a wonderful experience. Read Less

Went to Aigena by ferry and nearly missed the ship departure as our ferry was cancelled be ware if you do your own thing! Read Less

This was a Discovery Collection or Exclusive tour and was very nice. We had an excellent lunch at the top of the museum. I would highly recommend. This was the highlight of our cruise. Read Less

The port of entry with some local shopping and restaurants. Read Less

Nice historical city , the food at o Thanasis was exquisite Read Less

This is an interesting area, but again the large crowds greatly diminished the experience. Read Less

We took a train to the Acropolis first thing in the morning (approx. 1.80 euos/person) and pretty much had the place to ourselves before all the tours came in! And then walked all around exploring the various ruins. Athens itself is a dirty, loud, and sometimes unsafe city so be careful. Many warned us about the train but we went during the day and felt totally safe. Go to flea market in Plaka area for best shopping deals. Read Less

We love Athens and all the incredible historical places that one can see when visiting Athens! We booked a semi-private all-day Athens tour with PK Travels. Very good and informative tour. Just wish we had more time to "soak in" all the Athens experiences. Read Less

Informative, friendly, lots of stops and information relayed, so worth doing. Read Less

Getting some amazing shots and information, just have to remember it all when you get home and sort the pictures out! Read Less

The last time I was in Athens was in the winter when I was in college with my parents. Going in the summer, with heat in the high 90s, and a lot more tourists, was different, but still great. We hopped in a cab from the port and had him take us to the Acropolis. It was a fixed fare of 25 euros and took about 20 or 25 minutes. It was spectacular, and I loved it, the heat notwithstanding (although the heat was overwhelming to some – more below). After a few hours there, we walked down through the plaka and got some food at an outdoor café, which was a little pricey given it was a touristy neighborhood, but it was pretty and we enjoyed it nonetheless. I wanted to go to the Agora, but everyone else was melting after all of the hours of walking, and we took a taxi back to the ship from the Plaka. Read Less

Avoid the metro or buses to get to port (I live here take my word for it - unless you want to be dragging your luggage around in the hot sun). Take a taxi, cheap convenient and reliable. Read Less

Took a ferry to Island of Aegina off Athens. Wanted to see outside of Athens & glad we did. Busy little town small narrow lanes full of shops & restaurants. Read Less

We stayed at the Royal Olympic Hotel in Athens the night before the cruise. OK hotel, not great. Very near attractions. GREAT roof-top dining with fantastic views. One day in Athens in more than enough. Read Less

Booked a private tour with Leonidas Abenakis—fantastic! Read Less

We stayed in Athens for three days prior to boarding the ship. Loved the sights and the feel of Athens. The Amalia Athens hotel was a perfect location to walk or take the Hop On-Hop Off bus. Read Less

Made our own way on the hop on and hop off buses around the city Read Less