Travel Guide Côte Sud

With its large palm-lined avenue that runs along the entire coast, its white building bars, its beaches and the intense blue of the sea that stretches endlessly, the southern coast of Athens is a small paradise, half an hour from the city centre. In magazines, it is nicknamed the Riviera, in memory of the celebrities it attracted in the 1960s, such as Onassis, Maria Callas, Sofia Loren... Today, many tourists stay here rather than on an island, probably for convenience: the place is only 40 minutes from the airport. The Athenians friendly call it the paralia ("the beach") and migrate every summer to this new entertainment centre. Clubs, restaurants, cafés and beaches are literally taken by the locals from May to September. In winter, the coast once again becomes a charming, quiet and peaceful suburb. But under its quiet surroundings, a fierce battle is being fought between private and public beaches. The mayor of the municipality of Ellinikon even began a hunger strike in 2007 to remove the barriers on a beach and finally restore free access to its citizens. It is true that with entrance tickets around 8 € per person on private beaches, even if they have the advantage of being chic and glamorous, with music, bar, deckchairs and parasols, the budget increases quickly! On the free beaches, the atmosphere is family and good-natured, a little more popular. The choice is yours....To go there. Thanks to the tram, the south coast and its beaches can be reached easily and very comfortably, albeit slowly, from the city centre (Syntagma). The bus is also an option.