Hello everyone! My partner and I are planning our first trip to Europe. We will be there Mid to Late November. It's a bit of a whirlwind trip overall (Madrid to Athens to Rome), but that is kind of how we travel.
We will be in Athens for 3 full days, not including our travel days on either end. Depending on the weather, we are playing with the idea of renting a car and doing a day trip to Delphi. Is this a dumb idea? When if comes to vacations, we like to do a blend of busy days were we see a lot interspersed with days where we rest. We are not so concerned with the hour and a half drive to and from, and more concerned with it just not being enough time to enjoy the site. The drive seems fairly straightforward, but we are concerned about there being things "we don't know that we don't know".
Otherwise, our only solid plans (right now) are to eat at Orizontes Lycabettus for sunset one night. We are going to do the Acropolis and museum and then any other sites we can fit in. We are prepared to be on the chillier side (50's) with a high likelihood of rain, so waterproof shoes and rain coats are on deck.
Beyond advice about Delphi, we would love recommendations for markets or coffee shops. We like to pick up snack/lunch items so we aren't beholden to stopping in the middle of our days for lunch. We are big time coffee drinkers and are looking for an authentic experience, not starbucks. We are also wondering about the airport. Anything we need to know about flying out of the airport to Rome? From what I've read we won't have to go through customs again. Is 2 hours an appropriate amount of time to get there ahead of the flight? Are there enough English signs that we won't feel lost?
Thanks everyone!! We can't wait to get our feet wet and get some new experiences.
Posted by
near Leiden, the Netherlands
13 posts
Hi Alicefr,
I’ve driven from Delphi into Athens a couple of years ago with a small van.
- for Delphi, you need 3 hours at least. It involves climbing a hill with a lot of steps. You don’t mention your ability to walk/ climb, but this might be useful.
- So, if you were to go there, it would be best to go early.
- But, I must warn you that driving through Athens was, in my opinion, very stressful. With traffic jams, scooters, small streets and no ability to park your car. And I’ve driven through a lot of cities worldwide. This is absolutely different from driving through an American city (which I’ve also done).
- I would therefore recommend strongly to take the subway to the airport and rent and return the car there. Then you’ll drive on the highway mostly.
- In my recollection, the signs at the airport were in Greek and English. They’re almost always also in English. It wasn’t difficult. Since going to Italy from Greece, you stay within Schengen, there’s only a security check. If I remember well, they took us to the plane with a bus.
Delphi is beautiful and magical, so I would recommend it, although you also want to see Athens and probably don’t have a lot of time. Enjoy your trip! If you’re willing to write it, a Trip Report would be most welcome. Michel
Posted by
Virginia
1059 posts
I wouldn’t say it’s a dumb idea to visit Delphi from Athens, but I think you may be underestimating the drive time at just an hour and a half. I think it may be an hour or so longer each way. Days will be fairly short in late November, sunset around 5 pm. The terrain around Delphi is mountainous and you may get bad weather, although November is likely a bit too early for much risk of snow. I’ve done that trip by public bus in my youth and that worked, but a very long day. If I wanted to do it again I would look into day tours to avoid the stress of car rental and driving that distance.
Posted by
France Southwest - Occitanie
4311 posts
Since you'll be there in November, keep in mind that admission to all archaeological sites is free on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month from November to March.
The Delphi site closes earlier than in the summer, around 6:00 PM instead of 8:00 PM. Driving to Delphi doesn't pose any particular issues for any competent driver, of course, you just need to get used to the car. Driving in Greece is nothing out of the ordinary. Most road signs are in both Greek and English.
our only solid plans (right now) are to eat at Orizontes Lycabettus
for sunset one night.
While the view from Orizontes Lycabettus is great, that is truly the only good thing about this restaurant, which is a textbook example of a tourist trap. Plus, you’ll have to get there by taxi, unless you walk 40 minutes or take the bus (Line 60) up to the cable car station in the Kolonaki neighborhood. There are plenty of rooftop restaurants in Plaka with a beautiful view of the Acropolis that are easily accessible and serve food actually worth the trip. But it’s up to you...It’s your stomachs and your wallets.
We like to pick up snack/lunch items so we aren't beholden to stopping
in the middle of our days for lunch
For eating on the go, you’ll have plenty of choices for small eateries and street food, even though lunch in Greece doesn't usually start before 1:00 PM. A traditional Greek menu doesn't follow the usual "appetizer-main course-dessert" format, you can order for example only several appetizers to share.
We are big time coffee drinkers and are looking for an authentic
experience
Coffee is an essential tradition in Greece. However, be aware that if you order a Greek coffee, it’s prepared without filtering out the coffee grounds. That’s why you'll be asked if you want sugar or not, since you can’t stir in sugar after the coffee has been served.
"Café Frappé" (iced) is the other famous Greek specialty. It comes in several versions, including the "Espresso Freddo," which is made with ground coffee beans instead of instant coffee. Here too, you need to specify if you want sugar or not:
"Skétos" (no sugar), "Métrios" (a little sugar), or "Glykos" (sweet / lots of sugar).
Anything we need to know about flying out of the airport to Rome?
There’s nothing special to know. Since you’re staying within the Schengen Zone there are no passport control checks other than verifying that your name matches your boarding pass. Regarding customs you won't have anything special to declare, so don't even think about it.
The Athens airport is a single terminal building divided into 2 areas, Halls A and B. Hall B is where you'll go, as it’s reserved for Schengen flights. Your boarding gate will start with a B... If you take a taxi, the driver will know exactly where to drop you off.
If your boarding gate starts with a C, it means you're flying with a budget airline like Ryanair or EasyJet. You'll need to head to the satellite terminal via underground walkways and moving walkways, it's about a 17-minute walk.
All signs in the airport are in both English and Greek, it's virtually impossible to get lost unless you do it on purpose.
Athens Airport website: https://www.aia.gr/en
As for airlines, avoid Ryanair, which is a budget airline. Their advertised prices don't include any baggage, and they charge extra for everything, even a glass of water. Book with one of the two excellent Greek airlines, Aegean or Sky Express, or the Italian airline, ITA.