In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The Acropolis is €30, €15 reduced, one price all year, from the Ministry of Culture’s own ticket shop, tickets.hh.gr. Every ticket is for a time slot, and the site admits 20,000 visitors a day; changes are allowed until 2 hours before entry, and tickets are not refundable. There is no skip-the-line ticket: the Minister has said none can exist at the Propylaia, and the slot is the queue control. It closes before sunset in every month, at 20:00 in summer and 17:00 from 1 November. It is free for everyone on the first and third Sunday from 1 November to 31 March, and on six days a year, the next on 28 October 2026. UK, US, Canadian and Australian visitors aged 18 to 25 pay €30. In a heatwave it closes at midday. Or book a tour: the small-group Acropolis tourad is from €30.80 (GetYourGuide), and the entry ticket is extra.
Tickets and prices
The Ministry of Culture’s ticket seller is Hellenic Heritage, at tickets.hh.gr; its plan page is hh.gr. Search results for “Acropolis tickets” include many sites with the monument’s name in their web addresses that are resellers, not the Ministry. Prices are per person.
| Ticket | Price | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Full | €30 | Everyone not in a group below |
| Reduced | €15 | EU citizens over 65, from 1 October to 31 May; chaperones on school trips |
| Free | €0 | EU citizens up to 25; children up to 18 from outside the EU; everyone on the free days below |
- The slot. The ticket is for a single entry on the date and time you choose. The Digital Guide app is included.
- Changes. Up to 2 hours before the slot, at most 2 changes a ticket. Tickets are not refundable.
- The cap. Since 4 September 2023 the site admits at most 20,000 visitors a day, in hourly zones between 08:00 and 20:00. About half of visitors want to enter between 08:00 and 12:00, the Minister said that year.
- Last entry is 20 minutes before closing.
- One use. The ticket covers the rock and the slopes. Leaving by the main gate or the south slope exit ends the visit, and the same ticket cannot be used to go back in.
- Price history. The ticket was €20 from April to October until 31 March 2025. The multi-site combined ticket ended in March 2025, so every site is priced alone: see Athens archaeological sites.
The free days, and who can use them
| When | Who |
|---|---|
| First and third Sunday, 1 November to 31 March: 1 and 15 November, 6 and 20 December 2026; 3 and 17 January, 7 and 21 February, 7 and 21 March 2027 | Everyone |
| 28 October 2026 (a Wednesday); 6 March, 18 April, 18 May 2027; the last weekend of September (25 and 26 September 2027) | Everyone |
| Any day | EU citizens up to 25, with an ID card or passport; children up to 18 from outside the EU, with a passport |
UK, US, Canadian and Australian visitors aged 18 to 25 pay the full €30. The €15 rate does not apply to non-EU students. The Acropolis Museum follows its own list: see Acropolis Museum tickets. Free things to do in Athens has the full calendar.
Where to buy
GetYourGuide’s prices are its lowest “from” prices.
| What | The Ministry | GetYourGuide | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry ticket | €30, Digital Guide app included | €36 for entry-only listings, with an audio guide | The Ministry’s shop, tickets.hh.gr |
| Guided tour | Entry only | From €29 for the guide; the ticket is extra | GetYourGuide, if you want the guide |
Tours worth paying for
A tour on GetYourGuide is the guide’s fee. On the first two listings the Acropolis ticket is an option added on top, so with the ticket the price is the tour plus €30. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.
Athenian Tours group tour with the Acropolis Museum option
From €29 · 2 to 4 hours · 14,240 reviews
Athens: Acropolis, Parthenon & Acropolis Museum Guided Tourad is run by Athenian Tours in English, Italian or French, as a shared or private tour. The €29 is the guide only: add the Acropolis ticket, and the Acropolis Museum ticket if you want that part, as options when you book, or buy them yourself at least a day ahead and confirm a time with the company. It takes 1.5 to 2 hours for the Acropolis alone and 3 to 4 hours with the museum. There are two meeting points, depending on the option, and you should arrive 20 minutes early. Luggage, large bags and strollers are not allowed. Cancel up to 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
Athens Blue small-group tour
From €30.80 · 2 hours · 438 reviews
Athens: Acropolis Small Group (max: 8) Guided Tourad is run by Athens Blue in English, with a licensed guide. The title says a maximum of 8 people. The tour covers the Acropolis, the Parthenon and the Erechtheion with its Caryatids, and the south slope with the Theatre of Dionysus. The Acropolis ticket is an option, added as “Guided tour with Acropolis tickets”, and a reviewer notes that it is charged at the full €30 even for visitors who qualify for free entry. The group meets by the sign of the Acropolis Metro station on Makrigianni Street. Cancel up to 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
Athens Walks Acropolis and Ancient Agora with all entrances
From €85.50 · 4 hours · 641 reviews
Acropolis & Ancient Agora Guided Tour including all Entrancesad is run by Athens Walks in English, with a licensed guide and headsets. The Acropolis and Ancient Agora tickets are included, which makes it the one listing here with nothing to add. You meet at Porinou 5, a short walk from the Acropolis Metro station, climb the south slope, cross the Acropolis, and finish at the Ancient Agora. The €85.50 compares with €50 for the two tickets at the operators’ prices. Cancel up to 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
What to see
Allow 2 hours on the rock, and more if you add the south slope. The Acropolis has been a sacred hill since the 8th century BC, and the buildings you see went up in the second half of the 5th century BC under Pericles. The route follows the path up from the west.
The Propylaia, the gateway to the Acropolis. Photo: Berthold Werner, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
- The Propylaia. The monumental gateway at the top of the west slope, and the way onto the rock.
- The Temple of Athena Nike. The small temple on the bastion to the right of the Propylaia.
- The Parthenon. The temple of Athena, designed by Iktinos and Kallikrates, with sculpture overseen by Pheidias. The museum’s page says work began in 447 BC and took fifteen years. Restoration of the Acropolis monuments, begun in 1975, is still in progress.
- The Erechtheion. North of the Parthenon, with the Porch of the Maidens, the Caryatids, where the Panathenaic procession ended. The figures on the porch are copies: the originals are in the Acropolis Museum.
- The edge of the rock. Views south to the Odeon of Herodes Atticus and across the city.
- The south slope. Leave by the south slope for the Theatre of Dionysus, where the plays of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes were first performed, and the sanctuary of the healing god Asklepios.
The west front of the Parthenon. Photo: George E. Koronaios, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What to skip: nothing on the rock; it is small. Pick the slot instead: about half of all visitors want to enter between 08:00 and 12:00.
The Porch of the Maidens on the Erechtheion. Photo: Coolcaesar, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.
Private visits: the Acropolis Experience, run by Hellenic Heritage from 1 April to 31 October, is a two-hour visit for up to 5 guests at 06:00 or 20:00 on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, at €5,000 a group. It is on tickets.hh.gr.
The Theatre of Dionysus on the south slope of the Acropolis. Photo: Jebulon, Wikimedia Commons, CC0.
The sunset, and the heat
The Acropolis closes before sunset in every month. In June it closes at 20:00 and the sun sets at 20:41 to 20:51; in December it closes at 17:00 and the sun sets at 17:05 to 17:14. Best views in Athens lists the hills and rooftops open for sunset.
In heatwaves the Ephorate of Antiquities of the City of Athens closes the site at midday. The closures reported in the press:
| Date | Closed |
|---|---|
| 14 July 2023 | 12:00 to 17:00 |
| 12 and 13 June 2024 | 12:00 to 17:00; the Ministry said ticket holders could enter between 17:00 and 20:00 |
| 17 July 2024 | Midday to 17:00 |
| 8 and 9 July 2025 | 13:00 to 17:00 |
| 22 to 27 July 2025 | 12:00 to 17:00, with the Ancient Agora, Roman Agora, Olympieion, Lyceum and Hadrian’s Library |
Every closure began at midday or 13:00, so a morning slot is clear of them.
Practical information
- Where: Acropolis of Athens, 105 58. The main entrance is on the west slope, by the Propylaia. The south slope entrance is at the corner of Dionysiou Areopagitou and Thrasyllou.
- Getting there: Acropolis Metro station (line 2) is about 12 minutes on foot; Monastiraki (lines 1 and 3) is the other station; bus 230 stops at the Acropolis.
- Hours: 1 April to 31 August 08:00 to 20:00; 1 to 15 September 08:00 to 19:30; 16 to 30 September 19:00; 1 to 15 October 18:30; 16 to 31 October 18:00; 1 November to 31 March 08:00 to 17:00. Last entry is 20 minutes before closing.
- Closed: 1 January, 25 March, 1 May, Orthodox Easter Sunday (2 May 2027), and 25 and 26 December. On Good Friday it opens from 12:00 to 17:00.
- Bags: large luggage is not accepted. Small backpacks and handbags can go in. The cloakroom is north of the main entrance, outside the site.
- Rules: no food or drink, no smoking, no pets. The Ministry recommends footwear suitable for walking.
- Lift: a lift on the north side serves visitors with reduced mobility and parents with two or more infants. Call the guards’ office on +30 213 1317762 an hour before you arrive; it does not run in severe weather or strong winds. Ticket validation for visitors with disabilities is at the main entrance only.
- The one thing that ruins a visit: a midday slot on a heatwave day. The site closes from 12:00 or 13:00 to 17:00.
The Acropolis Museum is the next ticket to book, and the Ancient Agora the next site. Plaka and Anafiotika lie below the north slope, and the Panathenaic Stadium is a short ride away. What to book before you go to Athens has the closed days for every sight, and Athens walking tours compares the guided options. Hotels beside the hill are in hotels near the Acropolis and where to stay in Athens, the heat closures and the hours by month in the best time to visit Athens, and the Easter and Christmas closed days in Easter in Athens in 2027 and Christmas in Athens. Athens in one or two days fits the slot into a day, and the bars that look at the lit rock are in rooftop bars in Athens.
Common questions
How much is an Acropolis ticket?
€30 for adults and €15 reduced, one price all year since 1 April 2025. Before that it was €20 from April to October. The ticket covers the rock and the slopes, includes a free Digital Guide app, and is used once.
Do I need to book a time slot for the Acropolis?
Yes. Every ticket is for a date and a time, and the site admits at most 20,000 visitors a day, in hourly zones from 08:00 to 20:00. Changes are allowed up to 2 hours before entry, at most twice per ticket, and tickets are not refundable.
Is there a skip-the-line ticket for the Acropolis?
No. The Minister of Culture has said that because of the layout of the Propylaia no such service can exist; the timed slot is what controls the queue. Entry-only tickets sold elsewhere are the same €30 ticket with extras added.
When is the Acropolis free?
For everyone on the first and third Sunday of each month from 1 November to 31 March, on 6 March, 18 April, 18 May, the last weekend of September and 28 October. Children up to 18 from outside the EU and EU citizens up to 25 are always free. UK, US, Canadian and Australian visitors aged 18 to 25 pay €30.
What are the Acropolis opening hours?
1 April to 31 August 08:00 to 20:00; 1 to 15 September 19:30; 16 to 30 September 19:00; 1 to 15 October 18:30; 16 to 31 October 18:00; 1 November to 31 March 17:00. Last entry is 20 minutes before closing. It is closed on 1 January, 25 March, 1 May, Orthodox Easter Sunday, 25 and 26 December.
Does the Acropolis close in the heat?
In heatwaves the Ephorate of Antiquities of the City of Athens has closed the site at midday: on 14 July 2023, 12 and 13 June 2024, 17 July 2024, 8 and 9 July 2025, and 22 to 27 July 2025, from 12:00 or 13:00 to 17:00.
Can I see the sunset from the Acropolis?
No. It closes at 20:00 in summer, when the sun sets at 20:41 to 20:51 in June, and at 17:00 in winter, when it sets at 17:05 to 17:14 in December. Philopappos Hill, the Areopagus and Lycabettus are the places for sunset.
How long does the Acropolis take?
Allow 2 hours for the rock, and more if you add the south slope with the Theatre of Dionysus. Guided tours of the rock run 1.5 to 2 hours.
