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If you’re looking to visit all of the top archaeological sites during your trip to Athens, there’s only one solution. Or so I’d heard. But is the Athens Combined Ticket worth it? And, in fact, what even is the Athens Combined Ticket?
I’ve got you covered – I recently purchased the Athens Combined Ticket and used it to visit all seven archaeological sites in Athens one day! It was a busy day, but somebody has got to test out whether this pass is worth it or not, right?
In this post, I’m going to go over everything you need to know about the Athens Combined ticket, the different archaeological sites it covers (and whether they’re worth visiting) and then I’ll crunch the numbers to work out whether or not the Athens Combined Ticket will save you money.
Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
What is the Athens Combined Ticket?
The Athens Combined Ticket is a tourist pass that covers skip-the-line entry to seven of Athens’ most important and interesting archaeological sites, including the world-famous Acropolis.
It’s valid for five days from the date of purchase, so if you’d prefer to take things slower and see all of the sights over a few days that’s totally fine. Exploring Athens’ archaeological sites is one of the best things to do if you’re visiting Greece as a solo traveller because you can go at your own pace.
How Can I Buy the Athens Combined Ticket?
You can buy the Athens Combined Ticket online in advance here or at the ticket booths of any of the seven sites. If you buy it online you’ll get a scannable QR code that you can use to skip the line at every attraction.
It costs €36 to buy online, but that means you can hit the ground running on the day rather than queuing for the ticket. It’s worth bearing in mind that in summer especially, queues can be very long.
I opted to purchase my Athens Combined Ticket online for the convenience of having my ticket on my phone. I don’t trust myself not to lose or damage a paper ticket if I need to keep it safe all day long!
Another option is to queue up at one of the attractions and purchase the combined ticket at the door. This costs €30, but you’ll get a paper ticket and will have to queue.
If you’re going with this option I recommend visiting one of the less popular attractions first, so that the ticket queue won’t be so extreme. If you decide to buy your Combined Ticket from the Acropolis, for example, you could be queuing for hours!
Does the Athens Combined Ticket Save Money?
The Athens Combined Ticket certainly saves time – after all, you get to skip the lines for every attraction! But does it save money?
The answer all depends on what time of year you visit Athens. Although the Combined Ticket costs the same all year round, the individual tickets for each attraction have different prices for summer and winter. For example, entry to the Acropolis is just €10 in winter, but doubles to €20 in summer!
I’ll list the winter and summer prices of individual entry to each attraction underneath each section below, and then, at the end of this post, I’ll crunch the numbers to confirm how much the Athens Combined Ticket will save you.
Don’t have time to read the full post and just want the quick answer? The Athens Combined Ticket will save you a LOT of money if you’re visiting the city in summer and is definitely worth it. However, in winter, the combined ticket will only save you a couple of Euros.
Click here to get your Athens Combined Ticket!
Which Archaeological Sites are Included?
The Athens Combined Ticket includes skip-the-line entry to these seven archaeological sites in Athens:
- The Acropolis
- Ancient Agora
- Kerameikos
- Temple of Olympian Zeus
- Roman Agora
- Hadrian’s Library
- Aristotle’s School
If you’re anything like me, though, chances are you’ve only ever heard of the Acropolis. Thankfully, after visiting all of the attractions available on the Combined Ticket I now know a thing or two about each one. So, here’s what to expect when visiting each attraction:
The Acropolis
Needing no introduction, the Acropolis is one of the most famous attractions in Greece, and the reason many people visit Athens. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a staggering testament to the ingenuity of the Ancient Greeks. The Acropolis is actually the name of the hill that the famous ancient temple, which is actually called the Parthenon, is perched on top of.
Visiting the Parthenon is an unforgettable experience. It’s a former temple built in the 5th century BC to worship the ancient Greek Goddess of Athena. It’s seen around the world as a monument to democracy and is one of the most important ancient sites in Europe.
Don’t be surprised if there is scaffolding on the Parthenon when you visit. It rarely covers the entirety of the Parthenon, but some parts of it are often under construction or preservation works due to its age and fragility.
In addition to the scaffolding, prepare yourself for the crowds. The Acropolis was so busy. Although it was absolutely worth visiting, the swarms of people all concentrating on getting epic photos, rather than learning about the structure and taking in the views, might test your patience.
Luckily, this is the busiest attraction on the Athens Combined Pass by far, and you’ll get a respite from the crowds at the other destinations.
Although the Parthenon is the star attraction of a visit to the Acropolis, there are actually numerous other fascinating ruins on this hill, including the jaw-dropping Theatre of Dionysus. You’ll need at least 90 minutes to explore this area, but you could easily spend half a day wandering the ruins if you have time.
If you end up purchasing the entry tickets separately, rather than purchasing the Athens Combined Ticket, I recommend joining this guided tour of the Acropolis to get the most out of your visit and learn all about it.
Individual ticket cost: €20 in summer, €10 in winter.
Ancient Agora
Located underneath the north-western slope of the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora was once a residential area and a cemetery before becoming a place where political gatherings and trials took place in the 6th century BC. The Ancient Agora is home to the best-preserved ancient temple in Greece, the Temple of Hephaestus.
After the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora is, in my opinion, the next best attraction to visit on the Athens Combo Ticket. It’s one of the most impressive ancient Greek sites in Athens.
You’ll need to spend quite a while here because as well as the Ancient Agora site, the Athens Combined Ticket includes entry to the Ancient Agora Museum. The museum shares plenty of information about ancient Athens which will be the perfect way to contextualise your visit to the archaeological sites.
Individual ticket cost: €10 in summer, €5 in winter.
Kerameikos
Kerameikos is the ruins of an ancient cemetery. The site was used as a burial site as far back as the 12th century BC and continued to be used for this purpose for thousands of years. Most of the grave markers and monuments you still see today only date back to the 4th century BC.
As well as the site, which you can walk around, there’s also a small museum. Luckily for you, the Athens Combined Ticket includes free entry to this museum, where you’ll get to learn more about ancient Greek funeral traditions and see some of the artefacts discovered here.
Kerameikos is one of the least-known attractions on the Athens Combined Ticket, so if you’re looking for a break away from the crowds, this is the place to do it!
Individual ticket cost: €8 in summer, €4 in winter.
Temple of Olympian Zeus
The Temple of Olympian Zeus, also known as the Olympieion, is slightly further away from the other main attractions on the Athens Combo Ticket. You can take a lovely walk through Plaka, a popular tourist neighbourhood in Athens, to get here.
This huge temple, which was built between 174 and 132 BC, was one of the ancient world’s largest temples ever built. In its heyday, it had 104 columns! It stands 20 metres tall and around 115 metres wide, so it’s hard to miss.
Nowadays, the temple stands in ruins (obviously), but even the ruins are impressive and give a good idea of how huge this temple really was.
This was actually one of my favourite stops on the Athens Combined Pass because it was impressive and cool, just like the more popular attractions, but without the crowds – probably because it’s located slightly farther away from the other archaeological attractions. The temple of Olympian Zeus is definitely worth a visit!
Individual ticket cost: €6 in summer, €3 in winter.
Roman Agora
The Roman Agora was the first place I visited on the Athens Combined Ticket, and it was a great introduction to Athens’ ancient archaeological sites. It’s located just a short walk away from the Acropolis and is also connected to the Ancient Agora via a pathway.
Unlike the Ancient Agora, the Roman Agora was used as a public square and marketplace. It was constructed in the 1st century BC.
This is one of the smaller sites included on the Athens Combined Pass, so you don’t need to dedicate hours to exploring it – twenty minutes will be plenty.
Individual ticket cost: €8 in summer, €4 in winter.
Hadrian’s Library
Right next to the Roman Agora you’ll find the Hadrian’s Library site, which was created by the Roman Emperor Hadrian in 132 AD. It used to be the biggest library in Athens, and even to this day is a symbol of the importance of learning and education.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a whole lot left of the library today, and there isn’t much else to see at the site. For this reason, just like the Roman Agora, you won’t need to allocate too much time to discovering Hadrian’s Library.
Individual ticket cost: €6 in summer, €3 in winter.
Aristotle’s School
Aristotle’s School, also called the Lykeion or Lyceum, sounds incredibly cool but is a little bit… Underwhelming. This site is very small and in ruins – to the point that there’s not really a whole lot here!
The site holds the remains of a school of philosophy founded by Aristotle in 334 BC. According to some accounts, Aristotle used to enjoy strolling the groves of the school whilst discussing matters of philosophy and maths with his students.
If you’re a completionist or worry that you’ll have FOMO, then by all means you should visit Aristotle’s School. If, however, you have a limited amount of time or want to know which attraction on the Athens Combined Pass you can miss, I’d say it would be this one.
Individual ticket cost: €4 in summer, €2 in winter.
So, Is The Athens Combined Ticket Worth It?
I mentioned earlier that the Athens Combined Ticket will save you a load of money in summer, but not so much in winter. But chances are, you want me to be more specific. Let’s crunch the numbers!
Cost of Combined Ticket: €36 online, €30 in person
Individual entry to each attraction in winter: €20, €10, €8, €6, €8, €6, €4 = €62
Individual entry to each attraction in summer: €10, €5, €4, €3, €4, €3, €2 = €31
The numbers say it all – the Athens Combined Ticket will save you a whopping €30 in summer!
For this reason, the Athens Combo Ticket is definitely worth buying if you’re visiting Athens in the summer. You can get yours in advance here! Buying the Combined Ticket makes your visits to the archaeological sites almost half the price of paying at the door!
Is it worth buying in winter, though? Not really. If you’re dead set on visiting all seven attractions you may as well purchase the combo ticket at one of the ticket booths to save a couple of Euros overall. It also shouldn’t be too much of a waste of time to queue for the ticket, as there aren’t anywhere near as many tourists in Athens in winter.
However, if you’re visiting Athens in winter, you may not even want to go to all seven attractions. To be honest, there are definitely one or two that you can skip without missing much. For this reason, it’ll be cheaper and you’ll have more flexibility if you just buy entry tickets as you go if you’re in Athens in winter.
Wondering whether or not Athens is worth visiting overall? Check out my detailed post all about it!