Top 10 (+39) Best Museums in Athens, Greece

Field of human activity for millennia and cradle of Western civilization, Athens couldn’t have a shortage of museums for all tastes of curiosity. In the first part of this article, I list the ten museums I (subjectively, as an average local) deem the city’s best, visit-worthy museums. Subsequently, I enumerate several more Athenian museums in random order. The list is quite (yet not fully) exhaustive. If you are aware of any additional worthwhile museums I’ve left out, feel free to mention them in the comments. At the bottom of the post, you also find all the museums pinned on a map.

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Acropolis Museum

The Acropolis—that precipitous rock topped by the iconic temple of Parthenon—is Athens’ unequivocal landmark and everyone’s first mental picture upon hearing the city’s name. Its new museum, completed in 2009 to house some of the world heritage’s most invaluable archeological treasures, couldn’t occupy any position lower than number one on this list. With up to 1,500,000 yearly visitors, the Acropolis Museum is the most visited museum in Greece and one of the most prestigious in the entire world. Besides the 4,000+ artifacts found on and around the Acropolis, an ancient Athenian neighborhood is preserved and exhibited below the museum. The building itself is also considered one of the most notable works of contemporary architecture in Athens.

Address: Dionysiou Areopagitou 15, 117 42
Nearest metro station: Acropolis
Official website

National Archaeological Museum

Another one of the world’s great museums to be found in Athens, the National Archaeological Museum hosts the most splendid collection of ancient Greek artifacts worldwide. Established in 1829, during the early days of the modern Greek state, it is the oldest museum in Greece. Having changed a few different locations, its current neoclassical home was constructed in 1889 to become one of Athens’ most emblematic buildings. The exhibits were sealed and buried for nearly five years of Nazi occupation to avoid looting.

Address: 28is Oktovriou 44, 106 82
Nearest metro station: Omonoia
Official website

Benaki Museum of Greek Culture

An initiative of the son of Greek merchant and politician Emmanouil Benakis, this museum was established in 1930 and houses a stunning collection of over 100,000 exhibits from the full span of Greek civilization. Originally it also contained artifacts of other cultures, but these were later moved to different, satellite themed museums.

Address: Koumpari 1, 106 74
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art

This museum was founded in 1986 by the tycoon shipowner Nicholas Goulandris to store and exhibit his private art collection. This is particularly focused on prehistoric art from the Cycladic Islands of the Aegean Sea, which was the founder’s home region. Additionally, the museum occasionally holds temporary exhibitions of renowned Greek and international artists.

Address: Neofitou Douka 4, Athina 106 74
Nearest metro station: Evangelismos
Official website

Goulandris Museum of Modern Art

Twins often diverge in personality and lead distinct lives. This isn’t the case however between the founder of the previous museum and his twin brother, Vassilis Goulandris. They both made it big with ships and collected art; the difference being that the latter was fonder of the contemporary and the pictorial. His astounding collection—evaluated at some US$ 3 billion and including masterpieces of artists such as Picasso, El Greco, and Van Gogh—is on public exhibition in this museum.

Address: Eratosthenous 13, 116 35
Nearest metro station: Syntagma, Evangelismos
Official website

Tours and Activities in Athens

National Museum of Contemporary Art

Founded at the turn of the millennium, this is the sole Greek national institution devoted exclusively to contemporary art. It maintains a particular focus on 21st-century conceptual art of sociopolitical themes, displaying a permanent collection of some 1,400 pieces from diverse art fields and holding occasional limited exhibitions. The museum is housed in the historical, 19th-century factory of Fix brewery, which is a relic in its own right.

Address: Leoforos Kallirrois & Amvrosiou Franzti, 11743
Nearest metro station: Syngrou Fix
Official website

Byzantine & Christian Museum

Here you will find an impressive assortment of more than 25,000 exhibits—ranging from gilded icons to parchment manuscripts—dating from Greece’s Byzantine period (3rd to 15th century AD). As during those times Christianity enjoyed practically a monopoly on arts, the artifacts are all but exclusively religion-themed.

Address: Leof. Vasilissis Sofias 22, 106 75
Nearest metro station: Evangelismos
Official website

National Historical Museum / Old Parliament

One of Greece’s oldest museums, this one showcases Greece’s more recent history, between the Fall of Constantinople and WW2, with a particular emphasis on the Greek Revolution of the 1820s. It is housed in the Old Parliament House of Greece.

Address: Stadiou 13, 105 61
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

National Gallery

Also known as the Μuseum of Alexandros Soutsos, this gallery exhibits a permanent collection of 1,000+ paintings. The works date from the Renaissance onwards and are principally composed by Greek painters. Some works of legendary artists such as Picasso and Rembrandt are also held.

Address: Leof. Vasileos Konstantinou 50, 115 25
Nearest metro station: Evangelismos
Official website

Museum of Ancient Agora

Greek for market, the Agora was the heart of social life in ancient Athens. Besides being one of the city’s most eminent archaeological sites, it maintains a small museum of its own. That is housed in the adjacent reconstruction of the Stoa of Attalos Arcade, which in antiquity functioned as a shopping arcade and today is one of Athens’ most picturesque buildings. The exhibits were unearthed during excavations on the spot and include items from busts to casual houseware.

Address: Adrianou 24, 105 55
Nearest metro station: Thissio
Official website

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Goulandris Natural History Museum

An extensive collection of biological and geological exhibits representing the variety of Greek wildlife. Includes 200.000 species of plants of which 145 have been documented thanks to the museum’s research.

Address: Levidou 13, Kifisia 145 62
Nearest metro station: Kifisia
Official website

Floating Naval Museum – Battleship Averoff

The acclaimed flagship of the Greek navy during a big part of the 20th century. It contributed greatly to Greek victory in the Balkan Wars and remained in service during the two World Wars until its decommission in 1952.

Address: Marina Flisvos, Trokadero, Paleo Faliro 175 10
Nearest metro station: Trokantero (tram)
Official website

Athens War Museum

A wide collection of warfare-related exhibits, ranging from prehistoric axes to fighter jets.

Address: Rizari 2-4, Athina 106 75
Nearest metro station: Evangelismos
Official website

Numismatic Museum

An enormous collection of over half a million mostly coins but also medals, gems, stamps, and other items made during the millennia of Greek civilization.

Address: El. Venizelou 12, Athina 106 71
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Athens City Museum

Housed in the royal palace of modern Greece’s first monarch, King Otto, it exhibits a variety of artworks and relics representing past life in the city of Athens.

Address: loannou Paparrigopoulou 5-7, Athina 105 61
Nearest metro station: Panepistimio
Official website

Hellenic Maritime Museum

Situated near Greece’s largest port, it illustrates the rich maritime history and tradition of one of the world’s most famous seafaring civilizations.

Address: Akti Themistokleous, Athina 185 37
Nearest metro station: Dimotiko Theatro
Official website

Jewish Museum of Greece

It reveals the history of the erstwhile vibrant Jewish community of Greece, prior to its eradication during the Nazi occupation.

Address: Nikis 39, Athina 105 57
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Museum of Greek Folk Musical Instruments

Displays hundreds of handmade, often centuries-old traditional Greek musical instruments.

Address: Diogenous 1, Athina 105 56
Nearest metro station: Monastiraki
Official website

Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology

It showcases hundreds of original objects and functioning replicas of ingenious ancient Greek contraptions, such as a reproduction of the Antikythera Mechanism: broadly considered the world’s first analog computer.

Address: Pindarou 6, Athina 106 71
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Psaropoulos Museum of Traditional Greek Pottery

Displaying a collection of thousands of ceramic vases, it illustrated how Greeks dealt with storing before the advent of plastic.

Address: Melidoni 4, Athina 105 53
Nearest metro station: Thissio
Official website

Museum of Modern Greek Culture

It exhibits costumes, jewelry, and various articles representing the Greek folk culture of the past two centuries.

Address: Areos 10, Athina 105 55
Nearest metro station: Monastiraki
Official website

Museum of Illusions

Possibly Athens’ coolest museum, it tricks the visitors’ senses while interactively teaching them about the science of vision.

Address: Ermou 119 Entrance from, Astiggos 12, Athina 105 55
Nearest metro station: Thissio
Official website

Benaki Museum of Islamic Art

Originally exhibited in the main Benakis Museum, this is the new home of the Islamic part of that guy’s astounding art collection.

Address: Ag. Asomaton 22 & Dipilou 12, 10553
Nearest metro station: Thissio
Official website

Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum

An international center for jewelry and decorative crafts, it maintains a priceless collection of rare, particularly golden and silver, jewels.

Address: Kallisperi 12, Athina 117 42
Nearest metro station: Acropolis
Official website

Hellenic Children’s Museum

Certainly the most fun museum for kids, where they can learn and acquire skills through collective playing activities.

Address: Vasileos Georgiou B 19, Athina 106 75
Nearest metro station: Evangelismos
Official website

Hellenic Motor Museum

It preserves and exhibits hundreds of rare old cars, dating as far back as the beginning of the 20th century.

Address: Ioulianou 33, Athina 104 33
Nearest metro station: Victoria
Official website

Herakleidon Museum

Whereas it started off as an art museum, today it has evolved into an interactive center of science popularization, with a focus on ancient Greek technology.

Address: Iraklidon 16, Athina 118 51
Nearest metro station: Thissio
Official website

School Life and Education Museum

Operating under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Education, it displays old schoolbooks and other educational material from Greece and abroad.

Address: Agias Filotheis 17, Athina 105 56
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Hellenic Cosmos Cultural Center

A hypermodern educational institution, it teaches history and science through interactive exhibitions and virtual reality tours.

Address: Pireos 254, Tavros 177 78
Nearest metro station: Kallithea
Official website

Frissiras Museum

A collection of some 3,000 contemporary paintings and sculptures apropos the human form.

Address: Monis Asteriou 3 & 7, Athina 105 58
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Technopolis of Athens

Literally meaning the art city, it is a renowned cultural center operating in a historical industrial zone and holding numerous exhibitions, concerts, and other events.

Address: Pireos 100, Athina 118 54
Nearest metro station: Kerameikos
Official website

Plato’s Academy Digital Museum

Operating on the ground of Plato’s Academy, it gives you a virtual tour of one of history’s most influencial thinkers’ ideas.

Address: Alkmeonos 1, Athina 104 42
Nearest metro station: Metaxourgio
Official website

Kerameikos Museum

Situated in the archeological site of ancient Athens’ most important cemetery, it exhibits various, particularly sepulchral anqtiquities.

Address: Ermou, Athina 105 53
Nearest metro station: Thissio
Official website

Paul and Alexandra Canellopoulos Museum

A collection of 6,500 artifacts spanning the entirety of Greek history.

Address: Theorias 12, Athina 105 58
Nearest metro station: Monastiraki
Official website

Athens Pinball Museum

Update: As of Dec 2022, Athens Pinball Museum appears to be permanently closed.

A pretty unique collection of over 100 working pinball machines.

Address: Makri 2 &, Dionysiou Areopagitou, Athina 117 42
Nearest metro station: Acropolis

Museum of the History of Greek Costume

Offering a sartorial trip of Greece, it showcases thousands of outfits from antiquity to modern times.

Address: Dimokritou 7, Athina 106 71
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Epigraphic Museum

The largest of its kind in the world, it conserves thousands of original Greek and Latin stone inscriptions.

Address: Tositsa 1, Athina 106 82
Nearest metro station: Omonoia
Official website

Museum of Greek Children’s Art

A rather brilliant concept, this one exhibits paintings of little artists aged between 5 and 14.

Address: Kodrou 9, Athina 105 58
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Benaki Toy Museum

A collection of some 20,000 toys and other children items from around the world and eras.

Address: Leof. Posidonos 14 &, Tritonos 1, Paleo Faliro 175 61
Nearest metro station: Trokantero (tram)
Official website

Athens University History Museum

It exhibits books, manuscripts, scientific instruments, medals, and various heirlooms of the University of Athens.

Address: Tholou 5, Athina 105 56
Nearest metro station: Monastiraki
Official website

Marika Kotopouli Museum

It hosts a permanent collection and various periodic exhibitions of modern art.

Address: Alekou Panagouli 14, Zografou 157 73
Nearest metro station: Megaro Mousikis
Official website

Dromokaition Psychiatric Hospital

Quite an interesting one, it safeguards and presents the history of Greece’s notorious, oldest mental health institution.

Address: Iera Odos 343, Chaidari 124 61
Nearest metro station: Agia Marina
Official website

Angelos & Leto Katakouzenos Foundation

The preserved house of an old aristocratic couple.

Address: Leof. Vasilisis Amalias 4, Athina 105 57
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Criminology Museum

It exhibits historical objects related to the practice of the forensic science in Greece.

Address: Mikras Asias 75, Athina 115 27
Nearest metro station: Ampelokipi
Official website

Hellenic IT Museum

It exhibits old computers and other electronic equipment related to the brief yet marvelous history of information technology.

Address: Petrou Spiropoulou 2, Moschato 183 46
Nearest metro station: Moschato
Official website

Hellenic Air Force Museum

It preserves several historical military aircraft.

Address: Dekelia Air Base, Tatoi, 13671
Nearest metro station: Kifisia
Official website

Melina Mercouri Museum and Cultural Centre

Housed in a picturesque old factory and dedicated to one of Greece’s most celebrated women, this one depicts life in early 20th-century Athens.

Address: Iraklidon 66, Athina 118 51
Nearest metro station: Thissio

Greek Film Archive & Museum

An archive of over 10,000 and an exhibition of historical cinematographic equipment.

Address: 134-136 Megalou Alexandrou Street,. Athens 10435
Nearest metro station: Kerameikos
Official website

Postal & Philatelic Museum of Greece

Besides the oldest Greek stamps, it exhibits various gear previously used by the Greek postal service.

Address: Ioannou Fokianou 1, Athina 116 35
Nearest metro station: Syntagma
Official website

Athens Museums Map