Airline Tickets to Athens

Athens is the biggest city in Greece and it is also one the biggest cities of Europe. Its population is about 3.192.606 people, which is almost a 40% of the whole population of the country. Athens are frequently called the centre of the world. In this city you can find almost everything: from one side it's a city of culture workers and from the other side it's a scientific centre for every tourist in another, and don't forget, that Athens gave birth to the Olympic Games. This tremendous city is full of surprises and contrasts.

The Acropolis and the Parthenon. The Acropolis is a symbol of Athens. You'd hardly find a place in the city, from which you won't see the columns of its main temple - the Parthenon. In Greek the Acropolis means 'upper town', and actually this limestone plateau (156m in height) is the very thing that forms the Ancient town and is concerned to be the main attraction of Athens. To enter the Acropolis you are to go through monumental gates, which lead to the Propylaeum, on the left side of them there is an gallery – Pinacotheca, an on the right side one can find the smallest of the three temples of the Acropolis – the Temple of Athena Nike, which by the way is being reconstructed now. The housetop of portico of the second temple, the temple of Erechtheion, is supported by young women – famous caryatids. But the most impressing temple of Athens without any hesitation is the Parthenon. Inside it used to be located a well-known wooden statue of the protectress of the city Athena Parthenos, which was decorated with gold and elephant ivory.

The Parthenon is one of the greatest architectural objects in the world. The architects took into account all the peculiarities of human eyesight and made all the planes of the building a little bit round. This deliberate curvature and also unequal distance among the columns create an impression of a total harmony: all the lines seem to be irreproachably horizontal and vertical. The Acropolis is fascinating and magnificent, especially in evening, when special light is turned on.

The Theatre of Dionysus. The Theatre of Dionysus is situated at the bottom of the Acropolis, it is the oldest theatre in Europe and as a matter of fact it's the cradle of Greek tragedy. In the 6th century first performances were acted there. The ancient scene was just trampled ground and public was sitting on grass, forming a semicircle around the scene. Some time passed and wooden benches appeared and then stone seats replaced them. It happened after some of the wooden benches fell down and killed a lot of people. As time went by the theatre slowly expanded, this process went on from 342 and 326 B.C. After the reconstruction the theatre could seat 17.000 people. Unfortunately, nowadays we can only look at the ruins of this legendary theatre.

Read further about Athens in our City Guide ...

Airport Address: Athens Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport, Administration Building 17, Spata 19019, Greece
Distance and Location: The airport is located 33km (20 miles) southeast of Athens
Airport Website: www.aia.gr
Airport E-mail: airport_info@aia.gr
Airport Telephone: (0)210 353 0000 or 353 0001
Country Code: 30
Time Zone: GMT + 2 (GMT + 3 from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October)
Total Number of Terminals: 2
Moving between Terminals: An underground walkway connects the Main Terminal with the Satellite Terminal.