Athens sightseeing from ship

Wondered if anyone has been on the Hop ON /OFF bus at Athens ?

Can you walk out the cruise terminal and catch it there?

Not sure if we should do this or take the organised ship tour,any comments greatly received.

Will be on Constellation in September ,haven't been to Athens before so any useful tips would be great.

We were in Athens in May on Quantum. Walked a short distance to a bus that took us to centre of Athens. Very close to the Plaka, Acropolis, Acropolis museum, Parliament guards etc. Walked to all sites in the area and then caught the metro from close to the Plaka back to Piraeus.

From the Piraeus metro station it is quite a walk back to where we were docked but there is a local bus that can get you to the port entrance.

You can also catch the original bus back and it drops you off very close to the ship at the same place you caught it. We just wanted to try the metro.

From memory is was 4 Euros for an all day ticket.

Wouldn't bother with a ships tour as we had a fantastic day.

Sorry but I cant recall the bus numbers. You can buy the tickets at a kiosk before you hop on the first bus.

We walked to the Metro from the cruise terminal, it is about a 20-5 minute walk. You can take the Metro to Constitution Square or the Acropolis stop close to the new Acropolis Museum.

I have read that the HoHo bus stops near the port, but don't know the particulars.

We did the Hop on Hop off from near the cruise terminal in Athens. If I remember right, go out of the terminal to the main street and turn left. It was not that far.

Did a HOHO bus on our own in June 2014. Just walk out of the Piraeus terminal, onto the main road, turn left and you can see large blue and red HOHO buses which take you around to the city. It was for around 15 Euros a ticket (red route) and we got a deal for 10 Euros each for 3 people.

Antiquities are quite a distance from the port of Piraeus

Metropolis of Athen is congested with traffic..it was disappointing as there are many overhead wires for electric, trolleys etc..,not as beautiful as we expected and the awesome antiquities are spread out & tucked in...

Not sure of Hop on/off bus route but we took a ship's excursion on a nice AC coach bus with a great tour guide. Very informative and helpful.

..It covered ancient and modern sites,...there were options to stay in Athens to see more or have a late lunch, & make your own way back if you want to see more..

.Our tour bus was able to drop us off and or park as close as possible to the stops(still alot if walking involved, wear sturdy shoes )...and was also able to avoid spots where demonstrations were taking place ( this was a few yrs ago )

Enjoy! If we ever go back, we'd spend the day exclusively at the museums, having had the overview already.

We took one of the regular buses to and from the center of Athens to the port area. It was a nice ride and we felt safe. It was NOT a get on and get off bus. Once downtown, there are several places to visit which are fantastic. There are some Greek restaurants open but the majority of the local ones do not open until early evening like around 7 or 8 pm. We had a great time.

Also, there will be a time table for the bus but it will arrive when it arrives...

There is a really good museum in Piraeus. You could walk to it from the ship. Out the dock gate, turn right and walk towards the town centre. The museum is a right turn at the waterfront and right again, but it is well signposted. It has exhibits indoors and out. If you have been to Athens before then this might be worth visiting. There are some nice bars and restaurants in Piraeus too as there are lots of students around.

We did this last year.

There are several different tour buses, we used the Red hop on bus.

The bus stops just outside the cruise terminal, walk out and turn left.

Piraeus is on the Green route, this will connect with the Red route at the terminus for The Acropolis.

http://www.citysightseeing.gr/red-and-green-route/

maps and timetables for both are on this link.

We just got our tickets on the day.

Sunscreen and a hat are a must if you like to sit upstairs.

We enjoyed it and thought it was an easy to see a lot of Athens.

I know if you have not visited Athens before the temptation is just to do the city but if you want a real taste of Greek culture and history consider....

Cape Sounion, temple of Poseidon

Corinth, canal and Roman ruins

Myceani, Bronze Age archaeological site

Delphi, a real taste of myth and legend

I know Celebrity will not offer all these and independent tours may be limited owing to the time you are in port...however, I think you would benefit from looking at alternatives, rather than just going with a HOHO...

Just to give you an idea... here´s a photo taken off the Silhouette. Behind or better to the left of the white tour buses you can see red and yellow buses in the shadow. Those are the HopOn/Hopoff buses. They are right there at the terminal ...

As mentioned there´s also an express bus going into Athens and a train.

Safe travels!

Oliver

South America Review: http://www.travelandcruise.net/travellove_en/Our-Trips/South-America-01/south-america-01.html

Thanks so much for the information,thats great to get a visual of where everything is!