Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

2 hours
Athens
en

A fun kids-and-family exploration through history and the ancient heart of Athens!

Kid Friendly
Archeology

Grasp the glory of one of the oldest civilizations and feel the vibrancy of the modern city on this amazing private educational tour specially catered for families, in the company of a specialized in children state-licensed guide.

Highlights

Visit the city’s most important archeological site
Enjoy a guided tour with a child-friendly state-licensed guide
Listen to intriguing stories and myths of the past
Take in stunning panoramic views

Please note that all our tours are Private, thus some of them are directly bookable for later dates because they are subject to availability. If you wish to book a tour at an earlier date please use the “send inquiry” form.

Inclusions
A 2-hour private guided walking tour including:

2-hour private guided tour to the Acropolis
Hotel pick-up (for hotels within walking distance from the tour’s location)
Tour adjusted according to the children’s ages
Private services of child-friendly state-licensed guide
Augmented-Reality iPad for Acropolis (1 per person)
All taxes

Exclusions

Entry fees to Archeological site(s)
Hotel drop off
Personal expenses

You will start your journey by heading towards the archeological site of the Acropolis. With your child-friendly state-licensed "Insider" guide the whole family will explore Athens’ most impressive site with its glorious monuments, while taking in the stories and myths of the past.

The children will be intrigued by the story-telling, while at the same time the whole family will be able to see the stories come to life thanks to the specially designed iPad mini augmented reality capabilities. Your guide will provide each member with one such iPad at the site.

Acropolis

Acropolis is the world famous ancient site of Athens, symbolizing democracy and regarded as the most important representation of ancient Greek civilization. High on its rocky outcrop, as its name akro polis (highest point of city) designates, it stands guard over the city. The monument of the Parthenon, visible from almost everywhere, and the other main buildings were built in the 5th century BC by the order of the general and statesman Pericles to commemorate the cultural and political achievements of the city of Athens. The site includes the Propylae, the imposing entrance to the site, the Parthenon, the Erechthion and the Temple of Athena Nike.

Parthenon

One of the most well-known monuments in the world and symbol of ancient Greece, the Parthenon was built between 447-432 BC as a dedication to the Goddess Athina. The shrine inside once housed a 12 meter high wooden statue of the goddess, adorned with ivory and gold. Designed by the sculptor Phidias and constructed by the architects Iktinos and Kallicrates, the marble temple consists of 46 outer and 19 inner tapered Doric columns, and contains no straight lines or angles, a feat of Greek architecture. During its long and varied history, it was alternatively used as a temple, treasury, church, mosque and a gunpowder storage facility.

Propylaea

The Propylaea was the monumental entrance to Acropolis, built between 437-432 BC by the architect Mnesicles. A steep inclining ramp lead up to the Propylaea which was comprised of a central building and two lateral wings. The north wing had wall paintings and was referred to as the Pinakotheke, while the smaller south wing lay adjacent to the Temple of Athina Nike. There were actually 5 entrances, 4 for pedestrians and a larger central one for vehicles. The coffered roof interior had designs in gold stars on a blue background. Over the centuries, the building served as a Byzantine bishop’s palace, a Florentine palazzo and a Turkish governor’s residence.

The Temple of Nike Athen

To the right of the Propylaea lies the Temple of the Victory of Athena, built around 420 BC by Kallikrates to commemorate the Athenians’ victory over the Persians. There was a wooden cult statue of the goddess who held a helmet in one hand (war) and a pomegranate branch (peace) in the other. The smallest temple of the Acropolis, Nike Athena is of the Ionic order and has 4 monolithic columns at both the front and rear but not at the sides. As with the other buildings at the site, it was converted into a church in 5th century AD, only to be totally dismantled in the 17th century by the Ottomans to build a fortification. After Greek Independence, it was restored, dismantled and rebuilt again.

The Erechthion

The temple was built between 421-406 BC by Mnesicles and Phidias, and was dedicated to the goddess Athena and the god Poseidon who both contested the city of Athens. It is the site of the ‘Sacred Tokens’ which were the marks made by Poseidon with his trident to bring up water and the olive tree of Athena, who finally won the coveted title. On the north side is the famous ‘Porch of the Maidens’ where the 6 figures of the Caryatides stood. The one was stolen by Lord Elgin and the other 5 have been replaced by replicas, with the originals moved to the Acropolis Museum. The Erechthion was also converted into a church, palace, harem and was bombed during the Greek War of Independence.

Notes & Clarifications

Prices vary according to group size
Afternoon starting time is available from May to September
Since this is a walking tour you will need to be wearing comfortable shoes, a hat and sun-block. Don’t forget to bring a water bottle and lots of energy!
Keep in mind that this is a private tour and it is possible to customize it to meet your desires. Should you want to change the itinerary please do not hesitate to contact us by sending us a request through the inquiry form

What makes us differen

We offer only private tours. No mixed groups
We are absolutely flexible. Our tours can be customized to your wishes
Special requests are always welcome. We love to tailor holidays
All of our tours are designed and operated by our company
Our “Insiders” guides are thoroughly selected and trained, each one of them expert in his field
We always select the most suitable state-licensed “Insider” guide who matches your profile and interests

Acropolis for Families

Great kid-friendly tours!

"We recently took two tours with Athens Insiders with our two children (age 4 & 8) – we enjoyed both the Acropolis Tour (2 hours) and the Treasure Hunt for kids (4 hours). We are history buffs and Petros provided a lot of interesting insights on the different sights at the Acropolis. He was very thoughtful and engaging with our 8 year old son who loves Greek myths. For us it was the perfect amount of time with the young kids and also still adjusting to the time change from the US. [...]"

From: mandumonkey

Acropolis for Families

Top quality tour with great guide.

"We were delighted with Eleni, our guide for the day, who managed to keep our six and nine year olds (and us) interested throughout the whole tour. Eleni arrived at out hotel on time and sat down with us before we started the tour, to explain what we would see and put it into context for the children, making use of good pictures. Her English was impeccable which made it very easy for her to explain and simplify things for the children. Before visiting the Acropolis, she walked us through Plaka and recounted fascinating stories [...]"

From: Timothy H

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Excellent Acropolis tour

My family only had one day in Athens and wanted to make the most of it. Our tour included the Acropolis, Ancient Agora, and a walk through the surrounding neighborhoods. It was informative and lots of fun. Had we tried to do this on our own I'm sure my kids would have pooped out after an hour or two- the tour kept us going for hours! Pricy, but if you can afford this I recommend it highly.

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From: Jonathan F

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Amazing introduction to Athens!

The tour was tailored to our interests. We did 2 tours with Athens Insiders-a food tour and a tour of the Acropolis. They were both outstanding!

Angela was our charming guide for the Acropolis. She was very knowledgeable and passionate about the history of Athens. Angela was great about providing historical background during our ascent of the Acropolis, and took the time to explain the major developments over the centuries. While she was detailed and descriptive in her commentary, Angela also made it light-hearted and fun for our family so our tour felt like a conversation rather than a lecture. We're grateful for the time she spent showing us the great Acropolis! [...]''

From: Bibi D

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Helpful Above and Beyond

Faced with the task of bringing a family of 15 (5 of them children) to Athens. I fortunately found Athens Insiders and their representative Natalie. Beginning with a complicated 3-stage transport from the airport to three days of delightful and informative tours Athens Insiders made our trip an experience of a lifetime. Christos, a chef and tour guide, led us on an informative food tour of the city. Nota, an archaeologist, was our guide to Delphi and Thermopylae sharing a wealth of knowledge. [...]''

From: Rosemary A

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Acropolis with children

We had the Acropolis tour for children (ours are 10 and 8 years old) with Stelios as a guide and the tablets with the 3D visualizations. It was a perfect fit, and the duration of 2 hours is sufficient.

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From: bernhard300

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Personal, intensive, exciting and instructive

We booked two tours for our week-long stay in Athens. We got to know the city better (family with two teenagers) on the four-hour discovery tour with Ilianna. Ilianna guided us through the city with a lot of passion and great knowledge, to well-known places as well as parts of the city that we would probably not have visited on our own. Stelios accompanied us on the Acropolis tour and imparted knowledge to us in an incredibly entertaining way during the two hours. [...]''

From: martinabuechi

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Acropolis highlight with Stelios

We booked a half-day excursion to the Acropolis with a visit to the museum for 7 people (5 adults including 3 seniors and 2 children) and were enthusiastic about the tour. Stelios designed the tour with a lot of specialist knowledge and passion. He stood by the older rulers on the steeper sections and was able to convince at the highest level. [...]''

From: M_W_ZH1

Acropolis for Families Guided Tour

Perfect tour for children and adults

The private Acropolis tour was great thanks to our guide Stelios! He understood how to make the tour varied and exciting for our children and us, and with his great knowledge he was able to respond to our questions again and again and to weave exciting stories on the most varied of aspects. At this point we would like to thank Stelios very much :-)! We had rented the mini ipads, and they were the perfect visual addition to our tour, and showed us perfectly implemented 3D scenarios of the Acropolis at the time of its heyday! We were the only ones with the Ipads, and other visitors often tried to catch a glimpse of them ;-)! Absolutely to be recommended!

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From: Andreas Z