Written by 
Hot, crowded, chaotic Athens might well drive you mad, but you can’t beat 3400 years of recorded history and a civilisation that has influenced the world.
Who goes there
Some 1.5 million cruise passengers pass through Piraeus, which sees more than 1000 cruise ships dock annually. All major cruise companies are represented, whether they operate mega-ships, small luxury ships or expedition vessels. Local company Celestyal Cruises is based there. Many ships homeport in Piraeus for an extended summer season, sailing itineraries around the Greek islands and Turkish coast, or across the eastern Mediterranean. Others pass through on wider Mediterranean cruises.
The busy port of Piraeus, Athens.Credit: iStock
Sail on in
Anyone with a sense of history will be thrilled to sail towards Athens. To starboard you might glimpse the Temple of Poseidon on Cape Sounion, where mariners once prayed to the sea god. A while later, the boxy concrete of Athens rises across hillsides, and you can pick out the Acropolis – binoculars help. The narrow port of Piraeus has no charm, but its bustle of ships is exciting.
Berth rites
Piraeus is nine kilometres from the Acropolis and has three small cruise terminals, imaginatively named A, B and C, which could well be a (free) shuttle ride along the quay from your ship, as many dock nose-to-tail along nearly three kilometres of waterfront. None of the terminals has anything of note to detain you. Regular bus, hop-on bus or cruise shuttles take you into the city; otherwise you’re at the mercy of overcharging taxi drivers.
Before and after
You have no shortage of hotels in Athens, and the number of mid-range family hotels has increased greatly in the last decade or so. Apartment and studio rentals abound, too. Want to be right in the middle of everything with a great Acropolis view? Try hip A for Athens. The unbeatable classic luxury hotel is the Grande Bretagne.