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The Best View in Athens

All cities have a certain extra charm at night, but Athens is stunning. The city is built in a bowl-like depression that can collect smog and look hazy during the day. At night, though, the low-lying landscape is an advantage. There are only two high places in the whole city. The first is the acropolis, which is spectacularly lit at night and looks like a postcard hovering over the city. The second is the perfect place from which to admire the acropolis, a high hill called Mt. Lykavittos.

When I was living in Athens, Mt. Lykavittos was my favorite place to go for a walk. In the hot evenings, I would wander out of my apartment in Kolonaki, one of the chicest regions of the city (I’ve heard Kolonaki has more shoe stores per capita than any region of any city in the world, but this is probably an urban legend). I walked along the marble sidewalks – marble sidewalks are one of the amazing features of Athens; the country has so much marble they don’t know what to do with it – until I got to the entrance of the Mt. Lykavittos park. The park is full of pine trees and good trails for strolling or running, but I would usually bypass the park and head straight up the steep slope, eager for the view that awaited me at the top.

One fun way to get to the top of Mt. Lykavittos is to take the funicular railway (it stops in Kolonaki on Aristippou Street), but in general I preferred to go on foot. I would climb hundreds of stairs until I finally reached the summit and looked out across a sunken sea of lights to the dazzling acropolis. Somehow the long climb made the view even better.

If I made it up the mountain before dark, I visited the 19^th century Chapel of St. George, a beautiful example of the domed-and-whitewashed Greek architecture familiar from postcards of Santorini. But if I really wanted to treat myself, I had dinner at the fantastic Mt. Lykavittos restaurant. At the time, it was the nicest restaurant I’d ever been to. The waiters wore formal jackets and brought ice buckets on stands to keep the wine cold. I loved sipping retsina – a dry white wine flavored with pine resin that is a Greek specialty – while I observed the excited tourists and the impeccable waiters, and beyond them the silent parthenon. There are two experiences that really make me feel like I’m part of a city: successfully navigating the little alleys and shortcuts that don’t make it onto the maps, and looking at the city from above.

The Mt. Lykavittos restaurant can be a little expensive for the student traveler, but it’s worth it to have dinner there at least once while you’re in the city. The food and wine are excellent, but it’s the opportunity to spend a leisurely couple of hours taking in the view from the highest point in the city that’s totally unforgettable. Restaurant or no restaurant, Mt. Lykavittos is an essential part of any Athens itinerary.