My third time in Athens and definitely my last. The Acropolis is the only thing worth seeing, everything else is covered in layers of graffiti. Read Less

Athens is a very large city. Took a taxi to the Acropolis (taxi drivers were not very pleasant when we wouldn't give then $100+ euros to take an all day tour with them). Guess the Acropolis is a must-see, but we had already seen Epheusus and Pompeii, and were more impressed. The Acropolis is a very old temple for Greek Gods, and is very hot and crowded. The marble steps/slopes are very slippery also. Would skip next time. Did not find any shopping next to the port for souvenirs. Have found very large amount of closed down shops-sad sign of the tough times in Greece. Read Less

Oh dear, Piraeus is a dreadful port - very dirty and full of litter and graffiti. We decided not to go in to Athens as it was very hot and crowded. If we had to return we would use the tourist bus near the port entrance and for 20 euros this would take you on a tour of Athens Read Less

If you are going to go on a tour of Athens it would be good enough, though we sailed at 2pm so not time to do it on our own. the port is about 8k from Athens and not worth getting off the ship for. Read Less

We didn't really like Athens. We walked into the centre and took a bus tour in the city. It is a huge bustling city. To me it was like any other big busy city. If you want to see all the historic sites then go on a ship excursion. The feedback from fellow guests was very good. If you have no interest in seeing historic places then stay on the ship and take advantages of reduced spa packages and a quiet pool deck. Read Less

could have been more user friendly with signposts to metro or way out and way back in Read Less

Efficient as have to take courtesy bus from ship to terminal. Not much in port area so trip required with ship as not so many locals there as other ports. If want to go into Athens on own then turn left out of port and 10-15 minute walk round the port to metro where can take into centre Athens for one euro each way. Safe and takes approx 30 mins to near Plaka/Acrop district. Worth the effort and good pavement to the metro and not much crossing roads (busy in the area). Share a taxi back from town otherwise metro back. Don't rely on the local buses as drivers take breaks at most opportunities. Port is 2 but Athens we give a 5. Read Less

Athens was my least favorite port. The state workers were on strike, so the Acropolis and the National Museum were closed. However we walked around the base of the Acropolis and then we spent two hours enjoying the New Acropolis Museum. Highly recommended. The parts of Athens we saw were very dreary; boring apartment buildings, lots of trash and graffiti. We were going to ride the subway in, but with the heavy rain and all the strikes we were worried we'd get soaked going to & from the metro stations and perhaps have trouble getting back to the ship. So we took the very expensive shuttle into town and back. Read Less

It was not our first visit to Athens, and we were able to see changes in the city. The mounds of uncollected rubbish were indicative of the state of the city. We booked a ship's tour, with the idea that if anything went wrong (riots, demonstrations) Cunard would get us back to the ship. Unfortunately, our guide was not good, we could not hear what she was saying, and more than once she walked off without checking to see if the group was with her. When we got to the top of the Acropolis - and we realised that the little group who had gone to the restrooms had been abandoned at the bottom - we told her that we would make our own way back to the bus. We went down, had coffee and joined the rest of the tour who were then taken to what I believe was a shop belonging to a family memebr for our "free time shopping in the Placa" A great disappointment Read Less

Athens is pretty disappointing on Mondays. The Acropolis is spectacular, for sure, but we were unable to get into any major museums; the New Acropolis Museum is closed on Mondays and the National Archaeological Museum is only open in the late afternoon on Mondays. We ended up missing both. Part of the reason for missing the museums was due to the taxi strike on our port day. We should have jumped on a ship's excursion but we didn't. Instead, we walked the 40 minutes it took to get from the port entry to the train station. From there, we got around Athens by subway. It was workable but the trains were jammed even mid-day. That meant we were conservative in the times we allowed ourselves which, in turn, meant our times were cut short. That proved to be good move because there were additional train problems getting back. The news out of Athens since September 2011 suggests there are greater and greater impacts on 1-day visitors due to more and more strike actions. Read Less

It was nice to see some of the sights, and the National Archeological Museum was interesting, but we had some issues due to the protesters making things difficult to get around them in the city center. Also, the Metro and the taxis were both on strike while we were there. We had planned to Metro to everything and a strike was planned two days before our visit, and we had to book a trip in the end, which we didn't want to do. I would be VERY concerned to start or end a cruise in Piraeus because of the Greek protesters and economy right now. Athens has some lovely antiquities and archeology, but to be honest, it's a dirty, crowded capitol city. We will stay on the ship next time if this is a stop on the way to another great place. Sunset was very nice! Read Less

The key sites are very crowded, but worth the hustle. There was a transport strike and street demonstrations when we were there (Sept 2011)- we were a bit disappointed that MSC hadn't mentioned this to us upon disembarkation. We only just made it back to the port in time for sailing. Read Less

ten minute walk from where shuttle bus drops you off and at end of port,there again is a hop on hop off bus 20 euros each gets you two lines,red and blue.use all day,takes you to all the sights right up to the acropolis,temple of zeus. down to the plaka,no need for excursions here ,but if you want again plenty on offer, if you want leisurely sight seeing. Read Less

The Acropolis is a must...the rest of Athens, not so much. Read Less

Took the ships Taste of Athens tour. Just enough. Guides sound system was annoying. Athens needs a Mayor Daly to come in and clean it up. Never saw so much graffiti in my life. Read Less

scary, not much there except the acropolis police everywhere on motorbikes Read Less

Didnt like Athens, enjoyed wandering around plaka and some quiet streets but locals very rude and aggresive. Read Less

On the day we arrived in Athens there was a Taxi strike in Greece. We wanted to o to Glyfada, which is a part of Athens and has a great beach-promenade. We walked from the ship to the end of the pier, and found a bus station further along the way. There were buses that went to Glyfada, but we decided not to go, as everything was uncertain due to the strike. Read Less

We took the Hop on! Hop off! bus from the port(Piraeus) to Athens (20 euros a person). Very convenient because of the taxi strike. We toured Athens on the bus. It is not a pretty city. Did not enjoy the city, very disappointed. After the tour of the city, we stopped at the Acropolis. Lots of walking uphill. Make sure you have water. No protection from the hot sun. But the walk is worth it, what a view! We hopped back on the bus for a stop at Plaka. Had lunch, very touristy and expensive, but we were thirsty and hungry and did not have the energy to walk further in for a more reasonable place. Did some souvenir shopping and then took the bus back to port. I would not visit Athens again, not impressed by the city. Read Less

Athens was not as great as I had imagined it. We visited the Acropolis and were deeply disappointed. First of all it's not as great as it looks on pictures. There are people everywhere for starters and the pavement and facilites just... SUCK! They have been working in this thing for over 30 years and to me it looks just like in the beginning. They have no railings on the stairs and the paths are just dirt and unpaved. If you get thirsty up there don't bother getting a drink. You'll pay 6,50 Euros for a cup of coke. Read Less

The traffic was ridiculous so it took almost two hours to get from the ship to the Acropolis... it took 17 minutes to get back. This is just a big city- so don't expect too much. Our tour guides displayed a lot of disgust for their home city and really didn't paint it very favorably. The Acropolis is definitely something interesting to see, but now that I've seen it, I never need to do it again. Read Less

Took ship tour to Acropolis. The rain was unfortunate but not a deal breaker. However the poor quality radios ensured an inadequate tour of the Acropolis. Since we could hear none of the commentary, we could have done just as well on our own ... without the high tour cost. We mentioned this at guest services and were disappointed that Celebrity made no effort to partially compensate us for this. Read Less

The port city for Athens is Piraeus. This was the second time that I had visited this port. Having been to Athens once before, we opted for a tour that took us to Cape Sounion, to visit the Temple of Poseidon. This site was diminutive compared to the temples found at Acropolis. Cape Sounion was also quite a distance away from Piraeus (about 1-1/2 hours ride on a tour bus). On our way back to Piraeus, our tour took us for a coffee break at a restaurant in Vouliagmeni. I would not feel comfortable recommending this tour. If I were to return to Athens again, I would much rather spend the day walking at the Plaka or visiting the archaeological museum. Read Less

Athens has some beautiful ruins. The city is dirty and overrun by dogs though. Exploring it is a must but you only need one day. We took a cab in with another couple and walked around. It was a great way to get around and we had no issues with the cabbies. Read Less

The port requires a 20 minute drive into the downtown area, we took the Royal Caribbean excursion to the downtown. The bus left late which made me mad, and justified why we did mostly private tours for the remaining cities. The city was nice, I think you need a better map than the one RC supplies though, because the only things marked on it are stores they want you to visit. Since we had limited time we decided to skip the Parthenon and wander through the Plaka (shopping area). Was nice enough, but I don't think we would return. Read Less