We will be in Athens in May for just a couple of days. We will obviously visit the Acropolis. How important is it to also visit the Acropolis Museum? Generally my family is not big into museums and we hesitate spending a half day in one. For those of you who have visited the museum, did the museum add a valuable dimension to your over visit to the Acropolis?
Thanks,
Tom
The Acropolis Museum is a very beautiful museum, but it contains mainly finds from the acropolis slopes.
So it's up to you to decide what you want to do with your time in Athens.
If you prefer to spend half a day somewhere other than a museum, Athens is far from being just ancient ruins, there are plenty of other activities and visits possible.
You can for example go for a walk in the Monastiraki flea market then in the Psyri district, or go to the municipal market of Athens, or to the Panathinaikon Stadium crossing the national garden, or to Mount Lycabettus etc etc
Or simply wander around the neighborhoods of Athens.
See the official Athens guide here:
Don't miss the amazing Acropolis Museum. It will put the Acropolis itself into perspective and won't take you a half day to explore the whole site. Not only that, but there is an excellent restaurant inside where you can relax and enjoy the food with a unique view of the Acropolis.
We chose to not go to the museum due to time constraints, so we can't say yea or nay. We did, however, visit the Parthenon and then the Agora which is located at the foot of the Acropolis. The Agora has one of the best preserved temples in all of Greece. Just something to consider since the family is not big into museums.
TOm, given the long list of your posts n this forum about past trips, I am surprised if you have not yet availed yourself of Rick Stteves Valuable and FREE dowoloadable Audio GUides. Just click on LH Column's List "Watch, read, Listen" and click GReece -- you will find a step-by-step Guide to ACropolis AND to the Ancient Agora, which you can download to your phones. Please note -- it's smart to give a listen before your trip, to understand it best. using these, you can go to Acropolis on YOUR schedule -- either early -early (8:15 in line; these days you need to register in advance), or late in day, 4 pm or so (just walk up to ticket office)... the crowds will be gone... you can also explore the Ancient Agora then... and an audio Guide will make sense of the ruins -- AND the stunning (reconstructed but authentic) SToa of Attalos, will impress even your museum-averse family.
As for the Acropolis Museum, you can go there (after the above in the Morning, or late afternooon) without subjecting your family to a "museum experience" and without entry fee (small tho it may be). That's because without entry fee you go up an escalator to its cafe.. Glassed-in terrace, lovely view of Parthenon, and a nice menu selection at decent prices; All Good.
IF then you should decide to "chance a Museum visit" and want an audio Guide, this website will give you admission tiicket PLUS a downloadable audio guide - https://www.getyourguide.com/acropolis-museum-l3766/audio-guides-tc144/ -- again, enabling you to fit it into your schedule. If not, I do at least recommend on the Museum top floor, a very amusing & informative 20-minute animated & live-action video constantly screening - that gives great history of the Parthenon and insights into its restoration. Interesting even for museum-haters.
Commpletely forgot to mention the experience of just walking up to the Acropolis Museum -- the whole entry sidewalk is a see-through glass-block view down into an ancient world! In constructing the building, they uncovered an entire neightborhood, of more than 2000 years ago! ... Buldilngs, homes, statues, streets.. the works! They decided to leave all this in place, so you can look DOWN into the past, underfoot.
Well, I will jump in here to say I think it's ok to skip the Acropolis Museum, but for me, the National Archeological Museum in Athens is a HUGE favorite.
I've been multiple times and I would still go again if I was in Athens.
I'm just the opposite of the previous poster. While I am not a big museum person, I enjoyed the Acropolis museum and found the Archeological museum a bit dull.
After visitiing the Acropolis, I took the short walk to the Acropolis museum. The walk itself is nice.
But it's really hard to say whether or not you should skip the museum. Read up on it and then decide if there is something you would prefer to do.
Thanks to All for your comments.
With reference to Janet's comment (thank you), I used Rick's audio tour once years ago but initially didn't find it that helpful. So I never revisited its use. Admittedly, the first time I used the audio tour, I didn't play with it in advance. I started with it "cold turkey". Last night I took your advice and reviewed both the Acropolis and Ancient Agora audio tours. At the same time I was looking at a short You Tube video to complement the photos in Rick's audio tour. I now have a great overview of both and know what to expect. Thanks for the 'push'.
The Acropolis museum explains the historical evolution of the Acropolis in the context of the various historical periods in which it was used, worshipped in, built and rebuilt, then perhaps plundered (clear references to the “misappropriation” of the Elgin marbles by the British). The museum, though text mounted on boards and videos , explains so much and allows the visitor to see the sculptures up close. This I think is an essential prelude for anyone’s actual visit to the Acropolis. And it’s nice and cool. Best to mount the actual site early or late in day. I stayed at museum during peak afternoon sun. Enjoy!
I'm with SunnyBlueFlax. I've been to both and if I had to choose one, it would be the Archeological Museum. It has some of Schliemann's gold finds at Mycenae and a huge statue, I think of Zeus.
To answer your original question, YES the museum added a valuable dimension to our Acropolis visit. Namely the actual sculptures that stayed on the building for 2000+ years until the museum was built to hold and protect them. They're displayed on a "model" of the upper levels of the Parthenon, so you can imagine how they looked and fit together. Plaster replicas fill in for the ones Lord Elgin acquired, which are now in the British Museum. The English signage is excellent, and there are many other worthwhile exhibits.
Half a day in a museum is usually too much for me, too. You could enjoy this one for 1-2 hours and learn a lot. The cafe is very good. This excellent museum is part of Greece's case for the return of the "Elgin Marbles." They made a good case.
