Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece and is one of the world's oldest cities, with its recorded history spanning around 3,400 years. It became the capital of Greece in 1834, following Nafplion, which was the provisional capital from 1829. The municipality (City) of Athens is also the capital of the Attica region.

A center for the arts, learning and philosophy, home of Plato's Academy and Aristotle's Lyceum, it is widely referred to as the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy, largely due to the impact of its cultural and political achievements during the 5th and 4th centuries BC.

The municipality (City) of Athens had a population of 664,046 within its administrative limits, and a land area of 39 km2 . The urban area of Athens (Greater Athens and Greater Piraeus) extends beyond its administrative municipal city limits, with a population of 3,090,508.

The oldest known human presence in Athens is the Cave of Schist, which has been dated to between the 11th and 7th millennium BC. Athens has been continuously inhabited for at least 7000 years.

• East meets West to create a multicultural must do destination

• Savours and sensations of one of Europe’s culinary capitals

• A once in a lifetime visit of the Parthenon on the Acropolis Hill

• The New Acropolis Museum designed by renowned architect Bernard Tschumi

• A vivacious modern day metropolis that masterfully blends the old and the new

• The contrasts of the picturesque neighbourhood of Plaka & the fashionable shops of Kolonaki

• The hip new neighbourhoods of Gazi and Karitsi Square featuring trendy sophisticated bars

• A city made smaller by the convenience of a state of the art subway system

• The sunshine coast of Glyfada and Vouliagmeni and island hopping excursions