Athens Beach Guide: Unveiling the Best Coastal Escapes from the City Center
The most beautiful beaches near and in Athens
During the summer, heat, chaos, and crazy traffic may be the worst things you have to deal with when you visit Athens. During this time of year, the heat doesn’t let up even at night, and getting to the top of the Acropolis can be a challenge. On the other hand, the city is one of the few European capitals where visitors can quickly leave all of this behind and step into a completely different world.
For example, there are several beaches with views of the Aegean Sea that can be reached by public transportation. The farther you go from the city center, the easier it is to find beaches that aren’t busy and have clean, clear water.
However, if you don’t have much time, you can still find good compromises just half an hour by bus from the Parthenon.
Nea Falirou (Neo Faliro)
Nea Falirou (Neo Faliro) is the beach closest to the center of Athens. Its name comes from Paleo Faliru, the old port of the Greek city. Given how close it is, the coast is basically a continuation of the metropolis’s urban sprawl. It is full of big, famous buildings that aren’t pretty and have a lot of people living in them. Because of this, the coast is almost always busy, both during the day and at night, and not very clean. If you want to go somewhere else, it’s best to go a few kilometers further and turn left.
Alimos Beach
Alimos Beach, which is only 8 km from the old town, is much better. The fast links to the city and the many services for bathers, like bars, showers, umbrellas, and deck chairs, are two of the best things about this beach. You can do water sports like water skiing and sailing off this large stretch of pebbles, but if you want to spend the day laying in the sun, you’ll have to deal with the large crowds that are typical of the area when it’s hot. Alimos is one of the most popular places for Athenians to go when they have a few hours to kill. It is also one of the biggest and most populated neighborhoods in the metro area.
Glyfáda and Ellinik
A little farther away are the long beaches around Glyfáda and Ellinik. The same case can be made for these beaches as well. The main changes are the beachfront facilities, which are almost all free, and the fact that there are so many places to keep having fun even after the sun goes down. During the summer, when many young people from the center of Athens can get to the area by bus in just a few minutes, restaurants, bars, and clubs are swarmed with people.
Voula Beach
About 18 kilometers south of the city center is Voula Beach, which is where a different type of person goes. In the last few decades, growth has led to the building of many hotels, which now take up almost all of the beach and ruin most of the free beach. Each lido has modern facilities and cutting-edge equipment, as well as busy bars and restaurants that cater to all tastes. To round out what Voula has to offer tourists, there is a large sports center with tennis and volleyball courts.
Kavouri and Lems
The distance between Voula and the Kavouri coast is just over 2 km, but this is where things start to change. The sandy coast, which is split between Micro Kavouri and Megalo Kavouri, looks a lot like Voula’s, with umbrellas and sunbeds all over the beach. However, there are also some swimming coves surrounded by greenery and long stretches of free beach that aren’t very busy. Even here, there are plenty of services, like restaurants and cafes, as well as bus stops for public transportation in Athens.
Kavouri and the other peninsula next to it, Lems, are both in the Vouliagmeni district. This district is probably the best balance between being close to the city, having good services, and having a beautiful coast. For the 2004 Olympics, modern hotels, an important tourist port, and high-quality services were built here to try to stop the building speculation that has plagued many other parts of the Greek city. The result was a unique mix of buildings and surroundings that gave off a glamorous vibe. Every summer, the luxurious boats of the Greek and international jet set gather at the docks.
Varkiza
Even though Varkiza is about 25 km from the city center, it is still a busy place, especially on the summer weekends. This part of the Poseidon coast, which finishes near Cape Sounion, is mostly made up of a clear, sandy beach and a lot of green space. There are plenty of modern tourist buildings, restaurants, and shops, and the urban development plan for the area has made sure that green spaces, children’s play areas, and sports fields will be built as well.
Porto Rafti
Lastly, there is Porto Rafti, which is 35 km southeast of the center of Athens and has a very beautiful view. Even though the kilometers are starting to add up, the beach is pretty busy, especially with young people who have a lot of clubs and discos to choose from when the day is over. Every day, boats that can be rented leave from the small tourist port for trips and guided visits of this stretch of coast, which is full of important historical sites that show Attica’s rich past.
Getting to the beaches
The best way to get to the beaches along the coast south of Athens is by car, but many of them are also easy to get to using public transportation. A tram leaves from the center and follows the coast parallel to Voula. Buses E2 and E22 run between Akadimias Street and Varkiza. Third, there are shared cabs, for which it’s best to agree on a price ahead of time.
