Lycabettus Hill: funicular price, hours, and the walk up

💡 The Short Version: The Lycabettus funicular is €13 return, €10 one way, and takes about 3 minutes in a tunnel from Aristippou 1 in Kolonaki. The operator calls it the cable car. It runs 09:00 to 02:30, every 30 minutes and every 10 at peak hours, and in winter it may stop earlier. The hill is 277 metres high, and the walk from the Lycabettus Theatre car park takes 5 to 10 minutes. At the top are the church of Agios Georgios and the Orizontes restaurant. The sun sets at 17:05 to 17:14 in December and 20:41 to 20:51 in June, after the Acropolis has closed. Or book a tour: the evening e-bike tourad with Acropolis views from the Hill of the Nymphs is from €48 (GetYourGuide).

The funicular and the walk

• The cable car. Two cars of 34 people leave together from both ends of a 210-metre line and pass in the middle. It was inaugurated on 18 April 1965 and runs every day of the year. The operator, a group of catering companies that also runs the restaurant, is at lycabettushill.com.
• The starting point. Aristippou 1, at the end of Ploutarchou Street in Kolonaki. The nearest Metro station is Evangelismos (line 3).
• Frequency. Every 30 minutes, and every 10 minutes at peak hours. In winter the last car may leave earlier than 02:30.
• On foot. The path from the car park of the Lycabettus Theatre takes 5 to 10 minutes. The city’s tourism site says you can also climb the stairs.

A Lycabettus funicular car in its station. Photo: Charles Haynes, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

The sunset, and what is at the top

The sun sets at 20:41 to 20:51 in June and at 17:05 to 17:14 in December. The cable car runs until 02:30, so the hill is open for the city after dark. The Acropolis closes before sunset in every month, so the hill is where the sunset is seen from: best views in Athens compares it with Philopappos Hill and the Areopagus.

The Acropolis and the city from the top of Lycabettus. Photo: Jakub Hałun, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

• The church of Agios Georgios stands at the summit. On Good Friday the candle-lit procession of Greek Orthodox Easter starts from the church and winds down the hill.
• The Orizontes restaurant is at the top, run by the same group as the cable car, and is open daily from 12:30 to 00:30.
• The Church of Saint Isidore is built inside a cave on the south-west side of the hill.
• The hill. Lycabettus is 277 metres high, the highest point in the centre of Athens. Its stone was quarried for several of the city’s neoclassical buildings.

The chapel of Agios Georgios at the top of Lycabettus. Photo: Jebulon, Wikimedia Commons, CC0.

Tours worth paying for

There are no Lycabettus tickets or tours on GetYourGuide. This evening ride goes to the Hill of the Nymphs for the view. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.

Evening e-bike tour

From €48 · 2 hours · 577 reviews

Athens: 2-Hour Highlights Tour by E-Bike After Sunsetad is an evening ride through the lit city with views of the Acropolis from the Hill of the Nymphs, in English, Dutch, French or Spanish. Cancel up to 24 hours ahead for a full refund.

Practical information

• Where: Lycabettus Hill, Kolonaki, 114 71. The cable car station is at Aristippou 1.
• Hours: 09:00 to 02:30 for the cable car. Check before a winter evening, because it may stop earlier.
• The one thing that ruins a visit: a winter evening. The cable car may stop earlier than 02:30, and in December the sun sets before 17:15.

The Acropolis closes at 17:00 in winter, so see it first and go up the hill after. The Benaki Museum is in Kolonaki, and the Cycladic and Byzantine museums are near Evangelismos station: see Athens museums. What to book before you go to Athens has the closed days for every sight. The roofs with a view of the rock are in rooftop bars in Athens, and sunset times by month are in the best time to visit Athens. The Good Friday procession from the church of Agios Georgios is in Easter in Athens in 2027.