Athens

Best of Athens Half Day Private Tour

Badge of ExcellenceAthens, Greece

Private Athens historical city tour by car

From $120.12

Price varies by group size

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

4 to 6 hours
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Get around Athens’ most cherished attractions and see the city in comfort on this private, half-day driving tour with an itinerary you can customize at will. Choose what time your small group would like to start, with hotel and port pickup and drop-off included, and let your professional chauffeur introduce you to the best of Greece’s ancient history and hospitality. All entry fees are at your own expense.

Take the hassle out of seeing Athens with a flexible, private tour
Enjoy free time to explore the iconic Acropolis at your own pace
See the Hellenic Parliament guards and the Panathenaic Stadium
Feel the comfort of an air-conditioned private car with Wi-Fi available onboard

What's Included

Professional drivers with deep knowledge of history (Not licensed to accompany you in any site)
Athens hotel/ Piraeus port pickup and drop-off
Private transportation
Air-conditioned vehicle
WiFi on board
Bottled water

Entrance tickets (available upon request or book on your own - links on the ticket/ voucher)
Entrance tickets - Acropolis (€20 or €30 pp, must be purchased in advance - limited availability)
Entrance tickets - Acropolis Museum (€15 pp)
Entrance tickets - Nat. Arch. Museum (€6 pp)
Licensed tour guide - €300 (upon request and depending on availability)
Lunch
Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

This is a private tour. Only your group will participate. The pick-up time is adjustable upon your request. Your driver will pick you up and return you to the same place or to the point you prefer. In case of a hotel, he will be waiting for you in the hotel lobby. In case of an apartment, he will be waiting for you at the entrance of the building. For port pick-up, he will be waiting for you at the gate, just as you disembark, holding a sign with your name on it.

What To Expect

Athens

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Acropolis

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Propylaea

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Parthenon

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Eretteo

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Temple of Athena Nike

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Theater of Dionysus

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Herod Atticus Odeon

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Arch of Hadrian (Pass By)

Temple of Olympian Zeus (Pass By)

Panathenaic Stadium

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Mount Lycabettus

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Syntagma (Pass By)

Hellenic Parliament

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

The Academy of Athens (Pass By)

National Library of Greece (Pass By)

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Pass By)

Plaka (Pass By)

National History Museum (Old Parliament) (Pass By)

Acropolis Museum

1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included

National Archaeological Museum

1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included

Temple of Hephaestus

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Ancient Agora of Athens

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Roman Agora

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Infant seats available
Not wheelchair accessible
Infants must sit on laps
Most travelers can participate

Our drivers are not official tour guides, but they are knowledgeable and can provide fascinating commentary in fluent English. Although they will not enter the archaeological sites with you, they can answer all of your questions about the places you visit with this tour.
Third party activities and especially extreme sports are not allowed during the tour. This can be a cause for immediate cancellation of the tour.
Airport pick-up and drop-off upon request (Additional cost)
We can provide you with the skip-the-line tickets upon request or you can pre-purchase them by following the links on your ticket/ voucher. The availability is limited and the tickets must be pre-purchased timely.
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

109 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 109 reviews

Great overview of Athens.

Kennan_Z, Apr 2024

We enjoyed the self tour of the Parathnon although we were a little confused at first as to what we were getting. We took a wrong turn exiting the Acropolis but the guide found us. Our guide was very informative and provided a great overview of the city. 5 stars for his commentary.

Excellent

Angelo_M, Apr 2024

Michael, our guide, was excellent. He was very attentive to us and took us to all the best places. I would recommend the tour.

AVOID AVOID AVOID

Roberto_C, Apr 2024

After travelling in 51 countries this was by far THE WORST service and experience I have ever had. This is NOT a tour, as falsely advertised, it is just a random person driving you around, without any knowledge of the city or even basic history. His English was also very poor, but regardless of this, the real scam is that what is advertised is nothing like what you receive, for an absurdly high amount of money. This is simply A SCAM, please don’t ever book this and AVOID this app, Viator. Their customer service is terrible; I asked for at least a partial refund, as the information on the webpage and App was completely misleading and false, and Viator refused. Total drive time was less than an hour, the rest of the time the guy just waits for you. Everything in Athens is close by and you will save a lot of money if you walk or even if you take taxis everywhere, this so-called “half-day tour” is a RIPOFF to just take your money. AVOID this and AVOID Viator.

Top notch experience

Andrea_G, Apr 2024

Had a great day in Athens! Alex was a fantastic guide! He picked us up at our airbnb in a spotless vehicle. The entire city transit system was on strike, with downtown Athens shutdown with protests. Athens modified our agenda to work around and still see every single site! He had a great depth of knowledge and clearly loved his city. His English was spectacular! We never felt rushed. He also gave us a great recommendation for lunch and dropped us there at the end of our tour. Highly recommended!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

We are so grateful for your review! Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from Alex!

Excellent Tour

Crystal_R, Apr 2024

Enjoyed our private tour. Our tour guide Spyros was very knowledgeable and professional, providing us with a phenomenal tour of Athens. You will see all sites of Athens! Highly recommend to book!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

We are so grateful for your review! Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from Spyros!

Can do this on your own

Kristin_P, Apr 2024

The guide picked us up on time, was respectful, and took us to our sights. He wasn’t very talkative and when there were protests where he was planning on taking us, he dropped us off at another sight that was closed and had to come right back, it was if he had given up!

Response from Host, Apr 2024

We appreciate your feedback and apologize for falling short of your expectations. Unfortunately, on the day of your tour, a general strike caused several closures in the city center. Despite this challenge, our driver made every effort to navigate around the closures and ensure you could still visit accessible locations. Far from giving up, our driver went above and beyond by extending the tour duration by an hour. As a bonus, they took you to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, an additional stop not originally included in the itinerary, to enjoy the coastal scenery. At our company, we always strive to deliver top-notch service, but unforeseen circumstances like a general strike can present obstacles beyond our control. We sincerely hope that despite this setback, you'll consider giving us another chance in the future to showcase the exceptional experiences we aim to provide. Thank you for your understanding.

Pros and Cons(only one)

Jenny_M, Apr 2024

1. This excursion is not an in depth tour guide. I’ve read some reviews where people expected this. The driver takes you to the sites that are listed. 2. Best parts: you are dropped right at the entrance (where possible) and picked up at exit; nice, comfortable car; you can leave your backpack, etc in car while you go in a venue; driver is totally open to what you want to do. You can spend more time at one site less time or even skip it 3. Get your own tickets ahead, although I believe company will do it for you. 4. Only ‘con’ : we got coffee and then found out we couldn’t drink it in the car, so had to throw it out. I assume that you can drink water since they provide some. 5. Our driver, NICK, was very polite and helpful. He was also a very patient and safe driver!!!! He answered questions and pointed out sites of interest, but was not giving constant commentary. 6. If the price is in your budget, a great way to go. It keeps you on track and cuts down a lot of walking between sites. We had 16,000 steps that day - even with a driver!!! 😆😆

Response from Host, Apr 2024

We are so grateful for your review! Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from Nick!

Amazing Athens

Susan_C, Oct 2023

The journey through history & excellent guide/driver who was so knowledgeable & friendly. Athens was always a dream & it came true!

Response from Host, Oct 2023

We are so grateful for your review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community.

Athens perfect tour

Valeria_M, Sep 2023

We loved everything! Especially our tour guide! He was so patient and kind, he took us to more places then named. All the information you need for the most famous parts of Athens. 100% recommended

Response from Host, Sep 2023

We are so grateful for your review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community.

Awesome 1 day sightseeing!

Yolanda_G, Jul 2023

We had 1 day in Athens and had just arrived from Canada. George our tour guide met us in a timely fashion at our hotel & took us to see all the sites. While touring us around he explained the history of the area and he has a wealth of information to share. It was a very hot day and he provided us with lots of water. He gave us time to visit sites, eat and look around at each stop. He responded to all communication promptly during our visits and he was very flexible with our schedule, adapting to our needs and energy level. The drive along the coast was spectacular and George made an amazing recommendation for dinner along the coast, stopping to allow us to have dinner before returning to the hotel. He picked us up at 12 and we were back at the hotel by 10pm. We had an amazing day and we got to see more than we expected. Highly recommend this personalized tour and ask for George! Thank you !

Response from Host, Jul 2023

We are so grateful for your 5-star review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from George.

Awesome Afternoon

Peachy_M, Jun 2023

Our driver Andy provided fabulous customer service. He was polite, friendly, knowledgeable and professional.

Response from Host, Jun 2023

We are so grateful for your 5-star review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community.

Athens city highlights review

Kieran_b, Jun 2023

As luck would have, it are provider of picking us up at Athens cruise port, and bringing us to Athens was the same as our Athens city tour highlights Provider, so this turned out to be great! He picked us up right on time at the port, goddess to our hotel, and then waited, will be checked in drop their bags off, and then hit the highlights. Panos was a very enjoyable knowledgeable Highlight provider. Now a note here for everyone Dash this is not a real tour guide but more of a driver that will drop you at the sites. Give you a little bit of knowledge and then will then pick you up when you are done with that site. Now, this worked out perfect for us as that’s all we really wanted but I would recommend if you wanted a real in-depth tour guide to go another route. Also, and using this type of service your best to get your tickets on your own ahead of time With skip the line option if you can. Also, my recommendation for the acropolis is to get there as soon as it opens and if there’s a way to buy a earlier ticket do it. But Panos and his service was exactly what we ordered and what we wanted delivered with a great smiling attitude.

Response from Host, Jun 2023

We are so grateful for your 5-star review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from Panos.

Great Athens Experience

Kara_M, May 2023

We had a fabulous time on this tour. Our driver, Vasilis, was fantastic. He was waiting for us as we disembarked the ship and then took us to lots of great sites (Acropolis, Temple of Zeus, Olympic Stadium etc.). While driving around he told us about many other important building as well.. He even timed it right so we could see the 'Changing of the Guard' which was terrific.

Response from Host, May 2023

Thank you for letting us and the community know about your fantastic experience with us! Greetings from Vasilis. We hope to see you again soon.

Way beyond Expectations!

Venkateshwar_B, Mar 2023

Professional driver with deep knowledge of history Prompt & punctual Courteous & professional Well maintained brand new car (stocked with cold water & free WiFi) Would highly recommend this tour to anyone who prefers a private tour of Athens

Response from Host, Mar 2023

We are so grateful for your 5-star review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community.

The Perfect Introduction to Athens

Chobela_N, Nov 2022

My mom and I really enjoyed our tour. George, our guide, shared a lot of knowledge prior to each stop - which gave perfect context to what we were about to see. The vehicle was comfortable, water was provided, George was pleasant, patient and knowledgeable. It was the perfect introduction to Athens.

Response from Host, Nov 2022

We are so grateful for your 5-star review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from George.

Top sites in Athens Greece

kensmason, Oct 2022

Petro, the driver was exceptional. He was very patience and accommodating. His focus was on satisfying his customer. Would recommend this tour for anyone that want to control their time and spend the time on what they want to see. Highly recommend for seniors .

Response from Host, Oct 2022

We are so grateful for your 5-star review. Thanks for sharing your rating with us and the community. Greetings from Petros.

Petros was fantastic! We...

StaceySherwood, Oct 2022

Petros was fantastic! We enjoyed a very comfortable drive, seeing all of the best sights in Athens. Thank you also for the excellent food recommendations.

Response from Host, Oct 2022

Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us. Greetings from Peter K. We hope to see you again soon.

Awesome Athens tour

HerbertEugene_D, Oct 2022

Dimitri's did an awesome job letting us experience beautiful Athens. He arrived on time, great communication, professionalism, and was a wealth of knowledge. Highly recommended.

Response from Host, Oct 2022

We really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with us. Greetings from Dimitris. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

We had an unlicensed tour...

Debra_F, Oct 2022

We had an unlicensed tour guide. He dropped us off at the museum and told me texted him when ready to be picked up. We cut it short and went back to the cruise ship. I paid for a high price taxi driver.

Response from Host, Oct 2022

Thank you for your feedback. We are sorry we did not meet your expectations. In our product page it is explicitly stated that "Our drivers are not official tour guides, but they are knowledgeable and can provide fascinating commentary in fluent English. Although they will not enter the sites with you, they can answer your questions about the places you visit with this tour.". Additionally, you could optionally book a licensed tour guide that can accompany you to the sites, but you did not ask for one. This is also explicitly stated in our product page. You left a negative review because you thought something that is not true and does not help other travelers. We will keep doing our best to provide the best-in-class services. Thank you.

Personalised tour of Athens with Tom

Roy_K, Sep 2022

Having only a limited amount of time in Athens we decided to book this tour to see all of the main areas of Athens. Tom was our excellent driver who was extremely knowledgeable and passionate of the area and history. The tour was done at our own pace and was not rushed. Tom was very communicative over text as he dropped us off and collected us from each site. Plenty of water was provided throughout the tour which was most welcome on a day when the temperature was 33c. Would recommend this tour when visiting Athens.

Response from Host, Sep 2022

We really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with us. Greetings from Tom. We look forward to seeing you again soon.