Best Beaches Close to Athens

As you guys may know, we started to be digital nomad in Athens, the capital of Greece, and we lived there for two months. We know you are already thinking about dreamy beaches and romantic sunsets, but Athens is not really that. Really nice beaches are 30-45 minutes far away from the city center and if your hotel or apartment is not near the bus or tram station, your journey to the Athens Riviera will get even longer. But, don’t despair! We enjoy all our weekends on beautiful beaches, eating on the move a nice pita and visiting amazing towns. In this article you’ll find our favorite towns and beaches. Are you ready to spend your time in Greece on amazing white sand beaches and swim in crystal-clear water? Keep on reading!

If you are wondering if Greek beaches are different from Mexican ones, well yes – a lot! I personally prefer Greek beaches, where the water is clear, you can see many fishes and you don’t have sand in the majority of beaches on the Athens Riviera. It’s beautiful just to disconnect from the noise in Athens and let you lull by the waves. Eddy on the other hand prefers beaches in Tulum, Mexico! Why? Because you can get the chance to swim with turtles, whale sharks, you can see the coral barrier – can you imagine that? Moreover, if you are a sand lover and you like to run along the beach in the morning, Mexican beaches in Tulum are definitely the best for you! 

Check out our article about the best beaches in Tulum to discover new destinations and get inspired for your next trip! 

As you may have read on forums, a really nice beach near Athens is for sure the one in Glyfada. Eddy and I are not big fans of luxury bars and restaurants, but if you are, Glyfada is the place for you. We loved it because of its free beach and the town close to it, where you’ll be able to find plenty of things to do. Even if Glyfada is not like Greek islands, you will be able to jump into blue waters and take a break from the Athenian chaos. In this area you’ll find simple as well as luxury hotels to have a relaxing weekend. During your trip, you’ll quickly realize that the reality in Athens is completely different from the one you will find in Glyfada and in the Attica region. In fact, this place is full of nice bars and activities to do, all the streets are well entertained and they are not so crowded as in Athens. Definitely the perfect place for a relaxing pause! Glyfada is much more expensive than Athens, but don’t worry: you’ll be able to book your hotel or apartment with Travala saving 25$! 

Take the tram number 3 from Kasomoulē (or Syntagma: when we were in Greece in 2019 that part of the tramway was under construction) and get out at Square Vergoti (ΠΛΑΤΕΙΑ ΒΕΡΓΩΤΗ) to reach Glyfada Beach. If you want to reach the city center of Glyfada, you should get out at ΑΓΓΕΛΟΥ ΜΕΤΑΞΑ. You’ll be able to buy tickets at the tram stop choosing between: 90-minute ticket at 1,40€, 24-hour ticket at 4,5€, 5-day ticket at 9€ and 3-day tourist ticket (which includes return transport from the airport) at 22€. Sounds like a good deal, not? 

Glyfada is not really far away from Athens, so calculate a shot taxi ride to reach the tram station and then 40 minutes to arrive in Glyfada. 

Voula is really near Glyfada and it’s the classical beach you can find in Attica region. Less known than Glyfada and not beautiful as Vouliagmeni, you can visit it for a day or for a short stop while waiting the taxi or the bus to reach Vouliagmeni. We advice you to explore Aliki Point park and find a nice place under the trees to read a book. If you are not searching for something popular and fancy, but much calmer, Voula is the place you should reach from Athens.

Take the tram number 3 from Kasomoulē and get out at ΑΣΚΛΗΠΙΕΙΟ ΒΟΥΛΑΣ to reach Paralia Apollonies Voulas. If you want to reach the town of Voula, you can walk from the beach to the center or take the bus from Α ΠΛΑΖ ΒΟΥΛΑΣ. ΑΣΚΛΗΠΙΕΙΟ ΒΟΥΛΑΣ is the tram terminal, so if you want to go further to the south, you should take the bus or a Taxi Beat.

Voula is not far from Glyfada, since you can even reach it by foot in 20 minutes. By tram it will take you something between 50 minutes and 1 hour from Athens.

Between all the cities on the coast, this place literally stole our heart! Its small coves and the nature all around are stunning. If you love nature and blue water, Kavouri in Vouliagmeni is the perfect area to spend your day outside Athens. We suggest you enjoy your day in one of the creeks, then walk in the huge park close by and admire the sunset from one of the cozy bars. Even if there are not so many reviews on forums about this place, its sea is just amazing and it’s teeming with fishes. Kavouri is the great deal if you love nature and sports: tennis fields are everywhere, you’ll be able to swim, snorkel or run. If you want to enjoy you summer in Greece without heading to an island, book a hotel or an apartment in Kavouri or in the close Vouliagmeni: you’ll enjoy much more being there than in Athens!

Take the tram number 3 from Kasomoulē and get out at ΑΣΚΛΗΠΙΕΙΟ ΒΟΥΛΑΣ. By Taxi Beat, you’ll be able to get a cab in few minutes for 2-4 euros and reach Paralia Kavouri. If you don’t want to take the cab, you can take the autobus (even if we don’t recommend it, especially during summer because it’s usually overcrowded) and get out at ΔΙΑΣΤ.ΚΑΒΟΥΡΙΟΥ stop. 

Reaching Vouliagmeni from Athens is pretty quick if you choose to take the tram and the cab. In fact, it will only take you 1:15. If you’ll choose to take the bus after the tram it will take you 1:30

We lived in Varkiza for one week after coming back from Kythnos island and what we can say is that prices are really cheap, it’s a lot less frequented by tourists and it’s located a bit souther than Vouliagmeni. It’s a bit more complex to reach this town because you will have to take a longer taxi/autobus ride. So, our advice is to stay closer to Athens and choose between the beaches we recommended you before because, even if its waters are clear and you’ll have a large choice between restaurants and bars, it’s not so different from Vouliagmeni or Glyfada. 

Take the tram number 3 from Kasomoulē and get out at ΑΣΚΛΗΠΙΕΙΟ ΒΟΥΛΑΣ. By Taxi Beat, you’ll be able to get a cab in few minutes for 4-5 euros and reach Varkiza Harbours. If you don’t want to take the cab, you can take the autobus (even if we don’t recommend it, especially during summer because it’s usually overcrowded) and get out at ΜΥΣΤΡΑΛ. Once there, you’ll be able to eat in one of the restaurants in the seaside of Varkiza and enjoy the hot sand under your feet. 

It will take between 1:15 to 1:30 to reach Varkiza or Vari from Athens. 

If you don’t have the time to go to an island, this is the best deal for you. This beach is near Athens, but it has a peculiarity: it has a small island near by that you can easily reach by swimming or walking if you are tall enough! Remember that having a backpack it’s almost essential: we use this one both for traveling and for the beach and its quality is just amazing! This small island has a lot of small coves where you can jump from into blue water or sunbathe in complete relax. There are no popular restaurants, but only a restaurant where you’ll eat delicious fresh fish. The perfect plan to take a break from the hot and chaos of Athens.

Take the tram number 3 from Kasomoulē and get out at ΑΣΚΛΗΠΙΕΙΟ ΒΟΥΛΑΣ. By Taxi Beat, you’ll be able to get a cab in few minutes for 8-10 euros from Nosokomeio bus stop and reach Beach Akrotiri Lombardy. If you don’t want to take the cab, you can take the autobus from Nosokomeio (even if we don’t recommend it, especially during summer because it’s usually overcrowded) and get out at Alkyonidōn. 

To reach Beach Akrotiri Lombardy from Athens it will take you 1:30, but you’ll not regret it!