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recommended private guide for one day in Athens

Four of us will have only one day in Athens before boarding a cruise ship. I would like my daughter to see the Acropolis, Agoura and Plaka. Any recommendations? Thanks!

Posted by
3961 posts

In addition to Faye (our wonderful local RS Guide), we took an excellent Athens walking tour with Salvador from Jewish Tours. His tour not only emphasized the Jewish history of Athens, but focused on non Jewish sites. We covered off the beaten path, the alleys of Plaka, ancient Agora, Synagogue, Jewish Museum, Holocaust Memorial, Monastiraki, Thissio, Psiri, the classical Athenian Archeological sites, Roman Monuments, Ottoman Mosques, etc. Our tour began the day before our RS Tour and we felt it was a wonderful introduction prior to our tour of Greece. It was the best 4 hours we spent in Athens. They also offer an Acropolis Tour. www.jewishtours.gr

Posted by
6 posts

My husband and I also have only 1 full day in Athens, April 2022, and would like to hire a private tour guide for the day to see and learn what we can. Any recommendations and contact details would be appreciated.

Posted by
33819 posts

Travels4Luv, if you look at the answers just above they may work for you since you appear to have the same requirements.

Posted by
166 posts

I know you specified tour guide so this may not be what you’re looking for but I’ve been to Athens twice and used taxis both times. The first time we arrived by cruise ship and had a driver from George the famous Greek taxi driver meet us at the pier. We told him the places we wanted to go and he waited while we saw the Acropolis and the national archaeological museum. The second time we just went to a taxi stand on the day and spoke to the first driver in line, telling him where we wanted to go and approximately how long we would like to have his services. Although he was not a tour guide he knew plenty about Athens and shared some great stories & history with us. I am a history buff and the travel planner in my group so I had researched places we wanted to visit and knew a little about each one. The RS guidebooks have great detail about seeing major museums & the most famous places & you can add more obscure sites by doing some online reading or using the Blue Guides. Have a fantastic time!

Posted by
3397 posts

Lisa brought up something important ...unless a guide is officially licensed (after a loooong peiod of study & stiff exams), he or she is not allow to escort you onto ancient sites or into museums & explain things. If a car driver or taxi driver (Lik "george") says they are a tour guide, they are NOT. They are drivers... and you can hire a plain old taxi cheaper than these non-official guides. Lisa was able to take her group around because she'd done some homework herself.

here are reputable groups called Athens Walking Tours & Athens Walks that have group tours... but they will also set up a custom tour with 4 people, with a licensed guide who can go with you & explain things at whatever site you specify. They are not cheap. A few years back a standard rate for a group of 6 or less was around €60 per hour with 2 hour minimum. You get what you pay for.... either a large-ish group (15-18) with a set start & finish, with lectures by a guide during th4e vist (for about €35? per adult), or the custom tours as noted.OR -- do some prep!! read-up, download Rick Steves' FREE D-I-Y audio guides that take you step by step through Acropolis, Agora and Plaka. Cost = $0 The choice is yours.