NEIGHBORHOODS
As I mentioned previously, I grew up, and live in the northern part of Athens. From a 2 year-old baby, I would spend majority of my time in the summer at my cousins house in Rafina, Attica, Greece. You may know the area of Rafina as the second major port for boats and ferries in Athens, next to Pireaus. My cousins live up on a mountain with an incredible view overlooking the ocean, and so much of the seaside towns. This place holds such a special place in my heart and one of my favorite things to do in the summer is sit outside at night looking at the stars and looking out at all the lights that fill the city, to me it does not get better than that.
Now I like to separate Athens into sort of three different sections. The North Suburbs, The South Suburbs, and the City Centre.
In the North Suburbs you have neighborhoods such as Maroussi, Kifisia, Pentelis, Nea Psyhiko, and thats just to name a few. The airport is also located in the northern part of Athens so these municipalities are all fairly close by to the airport as well.
The South Suburbs is also a huge area of the city with neighborhoods such as: Elliniko, Alimos, Glyfada, Vouliagmeni, Anavyssos, just to name a few. Most of these neighborhoods are all located more on the water and next to beaches compared to the north side. North side has more mountains, although the beach is not far, it is a very different vibe between the two and the weather is also significantly different being that the south has more humidity due to the closeness of the water compared to the north where it can get cooler up on the mountain.
Then we have the City area which is filled with neighborhoods such as: Zografou, Panormou, Thision, Exarcheia, Peristeri, and way more. In these areas it is a lot more crowded, many people lived very close together in the downtown area of the city. In the city is where you will find the Ancient Flee Market, The Acropolis and many other monuments. It has this preserved old town essence per say, which again is completely different from the suburbs of Athens. Downtown can also be considered a midpoint between the North and South Suburbs. Give or take about 30 mins to get to the city depending on where you live.
With that being said, the city is huge and I know not everyone has time to go and travel around all the different parts and neighborhoods of Athens, so, I thought i would help out with that. My goal is to give each area and show you the full athenian experience within every area of this city. The way it will be broken down is in 8 categories: Restaurants, Bars, Cafes, Clubs, Beaches, Sites, Shopping,Things to go, Dessert, and Miscellaneous.
I promise I am unbiased but I am going to start my guide with the northern suburbs of Athens because that is where I live and reside when I go to Greece. There is something about my area that I love because it is not very known to tourists and outsiders unless you know people who live there, which is just part of the charm. I live in a very typical Greek neighborhood, In an apartment where I walk to my grocery store, I walk to my plateia if I want a quick and easy place to go eat, drink, or chill. My municipality is very small compared to the areas that surround me which is another plus. I live in the area called Vrilissia. It borders Melissia, Marousi, Cholargos, and Chalandri. I love the small, village vibe it has where I have gotten to know every restaurant, cafe and bar owner in my neighborhood. It is perfect for that lazy night where I just walk two blocks and I have everything I could ever needs at the tip of my fingers. We even have one of the best sushi restaurants in Athens, so, I feel very complete haha. Now as much as I love my neighborhood, I do go to many of the surrounding areas which are all max, 15 mins by a car, for other experiences. For example, Maroussi is where the large malls of Athens are located, Chalandri has some of the biggest shopping areas as well as night life, and up in Pentelis for an amazing view and fresh mountain air. I honestly tell people that I have it all in my area, I do not need to travel far.