Easter in Athens
Easter in Athens is one of the best times to visit the city. Not only is the weather usually starting to warm up but for the Greeks Easter is the big feast of the year, much more so than Christmas, New Year or any other events. It is celebrated everywhere, from the tiniest village through to here, in the nation's capital of 4 million people.
Greek Easter is a Time of Celebration Everywhere
When Is Easter in Athens?
Easter in Greece is a movable feast and only coincides with the western Easter every few years, so it is important to check the dates before arranging to travel if you specifically want to be in Athens for Easter.
The Build-Up to Easter in Athens
The build-up begins on the Wednesday before Easter, when churches are cleaned and the biers which will carry a statue of Christ through the streets start to be decorated with flowers. Pop into any open church door and see what preparations are being made. Everyone is welcome.
Our Pick of the Athens Guides
Easter Weekend in Athens
The parishioners from each church come together to prepare for the big weekend, and there will be many small processions throughout the city, as well as larger ones from the major churches. The first procession is on Friday evening. As it starts to get dark the funeral bier is carried from the church and paraded through the nearby streets. Parishioners follow on, and others watch from windows and doorways, sprinkling holy water liberally around.
Easter Saturday in Athens
Saturday evening sees the main service of the week, building up to midnight when lights in the church are put out. The priest then lights a candle, from which the worshippers in turn light their own candles, then leave the church producing an effect like a river of light, flowing from the church doors. People then try to get home without the candle blowing out, which brings good luck for the coming year. Once home they eat the traditional magaritsa soup, made from lamb offal, rice and lemon.
Easter Sunday in Athens
Easter Sunday is a day of joy, and a day for families to get together. Lambs are roasted, and you may be able to find some on the restaurant menus that day. Christ is Risen, and the year can begin. You don't have to be religious or Christian to be moved by the Greek Easter experience, and spending Easter in Athens will be something you will never forget.
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Greece Travel Secrets gives its choice of the best hotels in Athens from budget and moderate options through to 5-star luxury choices.
Athens Airport hotels include the luxury Sofitel at the terminals, Holiday Inn near the airport, and others close by like the Hotel Pantheon.
This beginner's guide to Greek architecture explains how to tell your Ionic from your Doric columns, and what to look for in temples and Byzantine churches.
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Greece Travel Secrets lists the ten best museums in Athens, with the top two being the National Archaeological Museum and the Acropolis Museum.
Syntagma Square or Constitution Square is the main square in Athens and has a metro station, the Greek Parliament building, hotels, cafes, and a post office.
Piraeus is the port of Athens from where many ferries to the Greek islands depart, and it also has an Archaeological Museum and the Hellenic Maritime Museum.
Pictures of Athens from the Greece Travel Secrets website
The National Archaeological Museum is one of the best things to see in Athens, and the best museum in the world for seeing Greece's archaeological treasures.
In My Athens on Greece Travel Secrets travel writer Mike Gerrard describes what he loves about Athens including the Acropolis and eating!
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Around Monastiraki is the flea market, Athens cathedral, Kerameikos Cemetery, the Benaki Museum of Islamic Art and the Psirri and Gazi nightlife districts.
A History of Athens from the first people to live on the Acropolis through the Golden Age of Pericles and Alexander the Great to the military junta.
There's all kinds of entertainment in Athens whether you're interested in theatre, dance, classical music, jazz, Greek music, rock music, disco, opera or movies.
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