Where can you sit outside with an Acropolis view at a café in Athens?

The pedestrian walk around the Ancient Agora in Thiseio, where Apostolou Pavlou meets Dionysiou Areopagitou, has the best-known views. Hill Athens, Senso and Κίρκη have outdoor tables on Apostolou Pavlou, The Underdog has a large terrace on Iraklidon, and Η ωραία Ελλάς near Monastiraki has a roof terrace facing the Acropolis.

Which Athens neighborhood has the most cafés with outdoor seating?

Koukaki & Makrygianni has the most cafés with outdoor seating, ahead of Exarchia and Syntagma & Plaka. In Koukaki many are on pedestrian Georgiou Olympiou, where Yubaba, Valparaiso, Η Αυλή and Το Παγκάκι set tables outside; in Kypseli, pedestrian Fokionos Negri plays the same role.

Outdoor Cafés in Athens: Terraces and Acropolis Views

Q: Can you smoke at outdoor café tables in Athens?

Greek law has banned smoking in enclosed public places since 2010, and since 2019 also in covered outdoor areas of bars and restaurants that are not open on at least two sides. Fully open terraces fall outside the ban. Smokers who break the law face fines of €50 to €500, and businesses €500 to €10,000.

Τραπεζάκια έξω (trapezákia éxo, little tables outside) are how much of Athens takes its coffee. Rain is rare for half the year: July and August are the driest months downtown, with 10.7 mm and 5.4 mm, and the coastal Elliniko station logs about 2,773 hours of sunshine a year.¹

Koukaki & Makrygianni has the most cafés with outdoor seating, ahead of Exarchia and Syntagma & Plaka, with Ampelokipoi, Kypseli and Thiseio & Petralona next. In the center, the tables gather where cars are kept out: Georgiou Olympiou, Apostolou Pavlou, Fokionos Negri and the lanes of Plaka.

Local tip: If the terraces on Apostolou Pavlou are full, turn onto Iraklidon, the pedestrian street that branches off toward Gazi; it was once a tram route, and its old rails are still in the paving.⁴

Where these cafés are: Koukaki & Makrygianni (25), Exarchia (23), Syntagma & Plaka (21), Ampelokipoi (16), Kypseli (15), Thiseio & Petralona (15), Pangrati (10), Kallithea (9), Ilisia & Zografou (9), Monastiraki & Psyrri (7), Vyronas & Kaisariani (4), Neos Kosmos (4), Kerameikos & Gazi (4), Kolonaki (4), Kolonos & Sepolia (4), Metaxourgeio & Omonia (1).

At a glance

171Cafés listed

36With opening hours

06:00Earliest opening

03:00Latest closing

Opens earliest: Coffee & Co., from 06:00 (Daily 06:00–22:00).

Closes latest: myhood, until 03:00 (Mon–Sat 09:00–03:00 · Sun 09:00–00:00).

Most common features: wi-fi (21%), indoor seating (16%), open late (12%).

Acropolis views in Thiseio

The best-known views are from the pedestrian walk around the Ancient Agora, where Apostolou Pavlou meets Dionysiou Areopagitou, and at night from the Areopagus rock above it.² Along Apostolou Pavlou, the terraces of Hill Athens, Senso and Κίρκη sit next to one another at nos. 27 to 31, and on Iraklidon The Underdog has a large terrace at no. 8.³

Iraklidon is lined with cafés from end to end, many without front doors.⁴

Pedestrian streets in Koukaki, Kypseli and Plaka

In Koukaki, aim for Georgiou Olympiou: Yubaba at no. 2, Η Αυλή at no. 4, Valparaiso at no. 7, Ασύμμετρο and Σπιρτόκουτο at no. 14 and Το Παγκάκι at no. 17 all have outdoor tables. In Kypseli, pedestrianized Fokionos Negri has cafés and a park strip down its length, with Mood at no. 37 and Mistral at no. 43 seating customers outside.⁵

Around Plaka, Plakaki on Filomousou Etaireias, Κλεψύδρα on Thrasyvoulou and Το καφενεδάκι on Propylaion all put tables out. In Exarchia, OBA and ιδέα Fabrika share Themistokleous 43–45 and Διπλό is at no. 70, all with tables outside, and Η Μουριά sets its tables on Charilaou Trikoupi. For height instead of street level, the kafeneío Η ωραία Ελλάς, above Monastiraki, has a roof terrace under trees facing the Acropolis.⁶

Smoking on terraces

Smoking has been banned in all enclosed public places since 1 September 2010, and a 2019 amendment extended the ban to covered outdoor areas of bars and restaurants that are not open on at least two sides. Smokers who break it face fines of €50–500, and businesses €500–10,000.⁷

Fully open terraces fall outside the ban, so a table indoors is the surer choice if smoke bothers you.

Heat in summer, sun in winter

Downtown Athens averages highs of 34.3 °C in July and August, its station has recorded 44.8 °C in June, and the city was the first in Europe to appoint a chief heat officer.¹ In midsummer, early openers put a terrace table within reach before the heat builds: SKASIARXEIO in Thiseio and Select Cafe on Fokionos Negri both open at 07:00.

Winters are mild, with a January average high of 13.3 °C downtown, and about two-thirds of the year’s 433 mm of rain falls between November and March.¹

Outdoor cafés in Athens

At a glance

Cafe Papyros

Caffeine Dealer

Coffee & Co.

Ellyz

HUUS Kaffe Ampelokipoi

Joy Square Cafe

kalimeres

Lostre Cafe

Mr Dion Cafe

myhood

Naif

Papillon Bistrot Athens

Picky Brunch & Speciality Coffee

Samba Coffee Roasters

Select Cafe

SKASIARXEIO Coffee Bar

Tekafe

The Brunchers

The Place by COCO-MAT.bike

The Rendezvous

The Underdog

Toucan

Κ-Ι-Ν Cafe

Κλεψύδρα

Μomo

Πανδοχείο του Δρακοφοίνικα

Σέλας

Το Παγκάκι

BAR CAFE KORCA

iL Festino

Los Primos

Memo´s House

Mille Arti

Δυναστεία

Πάπια

Πέλοπς (Πέλοψ)

Acropolis views in Thiseio

Pedestrian streets in Koukaki, Kypseli and Plaka

Smoking on terraces

Heat in summer, sun in winter

Sources

Other ways to browse Athens

Specialty coffee

Wi-Fi

Open late

Open by 6am

Brunch

Outdoor seating in Athens: questions

Where can you sit outside with an Acropolis view at a café in Athens?

Can you smoke at outdoor café tables in Athens?

Which Athens neighborhood has the most cafés with outdoor seating?

Your café deserves better than a pin someone else dropped