Athenians love the sea. And in this tour you’ll understand every bit of why. But even before the tour reaches the seashore, there’s a stop to be made at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, the newest great edifice in the city and home to both the National Library and the National Opera. The Center, an engineering achievement designed by the renowned architect Renzo Piano, is set in an enormous park filled with olive trees and flanked by a 400-meter reflecting pool. Together, the building and the park achieve an aesthetic balance that’s both soothing and invigorating.
From there, you’ll head to Lake Vouliagmeni, where fresh spring water and saltwater mix to create a mineral-rich environment that is home to those funny little doctor fish (Garra rufa) that nibble your toes clean for you! The lake is, in fact, a collapsed cave, and there are underwater tunnels leading so far back under the mountain that they’ve never been fully mapped.
Then it's time for a walk along one of the most scenic seaside settings where you will probably forget you are still in Athens... and you will discover an ancient Temple whose location is a big surprise.
You are now ready to head to Cape Sounion, with one of the world’s most graceful monuments, the Temple of Poseidon, a 5th-century archaeological site perched on the very top. The view here is tremendous, and it’s obvious why this spot of land was chosen as a site where people could worship the god of the sea. Don’t forget to look for Lord Byron’s bit of 19th-century vandalism – the British poet’s name is chiseled into a column here.And while you’re taking that look, spare a thought for old King Aegeus, the man who, in death, gave his name to the whole of the Aegean Sea. It is here that you 'll enjoy one of the most beautiful sunsets in Greece from the site of the temple itself – this lets you catch the last rays of the sun over the water from the ideal spot where geography and history work together to give you a timeless memory.
