Athens Summer Holidays: Plans, Sea Trips and Islands

Athens summer holidays run from three days to ten, and the length decides what fits. Three days hold the Acropolis and the old centre. Ten days add two islands. A Saronic cruise takes 12 hours, and a half-day at Cape Sounion takes 5 hours 30 minutes.

The Acropolis opens at 8 am from April to August, and the first timed slots sell out first. Anyone still choosing between regions can compare them all on the Greece Tours homepage, then return here to build the days.

How long do Athens summer holidays last?

Athens summer holidays work from three days to ten. Three days cover the city core. Five days add a sea day, seven add one island or a mainland overnight, and ten add two islands.

A three-day stay stays inside the city core. Wikipedia says Athens has a recorded history of over 3,400 years. It lists two UNESCO sites there, the Acropolis and the Daphni Monastery. One listing sells a pass for the Acropolis plus up to 5 more archaeological sites. Its duration line reads 2 hours to 3 days.

Two more listings fix the Acropolis visit at 2 hours. One is a guided tour with a museum option. The other is a ticket with an optional audio guide. In Athens summer holidays of three days, the Acropolis takes a morning and the sites around it take the rest.

Five days add a swim. Wikivoyage names South Athens as the district with the largest share of beaches reachable by public transport. Wikipedia says the coastal waters of Athens are accessible to swimmers again. Athens summer holidays of this length can spend one day on the Riviera or on a Saronic cruise.

Seven days reach one island or one mainland overnight. Wikivoyage lists Hydra, Aegina, Poros and Spetses as the nearest islands to Piraeus for a day trip. It advises extra days for islands further away, such as Paros, Naxos, Ios and Santorini.

Ten days hold two islands. Piraeus runs ferry routes to the Cyclades, Crete and the Dodecanese from its central port, says Wikipedia. Wikivoyage adds that flying is an option to the more distant islands. A ten-day run of Athens summer holidays gives each far island its extra days.

• 3 days: the city core and the sites on the pass. It suits a first visit.
• 5 days: the core plus one Riviera or Saronic sea day. It suits travellers who want a swim.
• 7 days: the same plan plus one island or one mainland overnight. It suits a first island.
• 10 days: the same plan plus two islands. It suits a trip split between city and sea.

Our Athens itinerary for first-timers lays out the first three days, one section per day. Use it for the core of Athens summer holidays, then add the sea and island days on top.

How does one day of Athens summer holidays run from morning to night?

A day of Athens summer holidays runs in three blocks. The Acropolis opens at 8 am. The midday break moves indoors or to the water. The evening starts when the site closes at 8 pm.

The Ministry of Culture page for the Acropolis lists daily summer hours of 8 am to 8 pm. They run from April 1 to August 31. Last admission is 20 minutes before closing. A travel guide puts the last summer entry at 7:40 pm.

The same guide says the standard ticket is single entry for the date and time slot you book. It asks for 90 minutes to 2 hours on the rock. In July and August it says to book far ahead, above all for the first slot of the morning.

The Ministry page gives two metro routes for the first block of Athens summer holidays. Line 2 stops at Akropoli station, 12 minutes on foot from the site. Lines 1 and 3 stop at Monastiraki. The metro operator lists 2 minutes on Line 2 from Syntagma to Akropoli.

The ride is part of the sightseeing. Wikipedia says the Monastiraki, Akropoli and Syntagma stations show ancient artifacts or replicas. It adds that archaeologists worked ahead of the engineers, then with them, for six years while the tunnels were built.

Athens summer holidays that stretch into autumn meet earlier closing times. The Ministry page moves the closing time to 7:30 pm on September 1 and to 6 pm on October 16. Our Acropolis opening hours page keeps the wider schedule.

The Acropolis Museum site lists summer hours of 9 am to 8 pm from Tuesday to Sunday. On Monday it runs from 9 am to 5 pm. The museum site says its cafe and restaurant open with the museum.

A travel guide puts the museum about 300 metres southeast of the Parthenon. It asks for 2 to 3 hours there. That makes the museum a ready midday block for Athens summer holidays.

Moving for the break is simple. The metro operator lists a Line 2 train every 6 minutes 20 seconds. That runs from 10:30 am to 2 pm, Monday to Friday. From 2 pm to 7 pm the gap is 5 minutes.

The other midday choice is the water. Wikipedia says underground currents from Mount Hymettus feed Lake Vouliagmeni, a brackish lake. It says the lake works as a year-round spa. A swim there takes the day south, so keep it for a sea-first day.

After closing, walk Dionysiou Areopagitou. Wikipedia calls it a pedestrianised street that starts at the Temple of Olympian Zeus and ends in Thiseio. It gives views of the Parthenon and the Agora. On Friday the Acropolis Museum stays open until 10 pm. Its second-floor restaurant stays open until midnight on Friday and Saturday.

Late nights fit Athens summer holidays. The metro operator lists the last Line 2 train toward Elliniko at Syntagma. It leaves at 12:23 am from Monday to Thursday and on Sunday, and at 2 am on Friday. Every Saturday, Lines 2 and 3 and the tram run all night. Airport routes are excluded.

Where do you stay during Athens summer holidays?

Plaka, Koukaki, Monastiraki and Kolonaki suit a sights-first trip. Glyfada and Vouliagmeni suit a sea-first trip. Athens summer holidays fit either base, but a coastal base needs a trip back to the centre for sightseeing.

Wikipedia places Plaka on the northeast slope of the Acropolis, between Syntagma and Monastiraki squares. It names Adrianou Street as the main street. The street divides Plaka into an upper part beneath the rock, Ano Plaka, and a lower part, Kato Plaka. Wikivoyage calls the main question Plaka or not Plaka.

Koukaki touches Plaka and Makrygianni on its north side, says Wikipedia. Two metro stations serve it: Akropoli, and one on Andrea Syngrou Avenue. A weekly vegetable market runs there every Friday. Two pedestrian zones hold cafes and restaurants, so a Koukaki base keeps Athens summer holidays within walking range of dinner.

Monastiraki is a flea-market district in the old town. Wikipedia names Pandrossou Street and Adrianou Street as its main streets. Its square has a metro station for Lines 1 and 3. A base there puts Athens summer holidays on two lines.

Kolonaki sits on the southern slopes of Mount Lycabettus. Wikipedia calls it upscale and names Evangelismos station on Line 3 as its metro stop. It lists the National Gallery of Greece among the museums and galleries there. A Kolonaki base ties Athens summer holidays to Line 3.

Wikipedia puts Glyfada on the Athens Riviera, on the Saronic Gulf coast, with a tram line along the seafront. It places Vouliagmeni 18 km south of the city centre. The metro operator lists 33 minutes on Line 6 from Syntagma to Pikrodafni, where riders change to Line 7. Line 7 runs on along the coast to Voula.

The same timetable sets the first Syntagma tram toward Pikrodafni at 5:30 am and the last at 12:50 am. On Fridays the last one leaves at 1:40 am. A coastal base for Athens summer holidays can return from a day in the centre on that schedule.

Wikivoyage says the coastal suburbs offer a scenic coastal view but mean travelling to Plaka and back for sightseeing. Pick the sights-first districts for Athens summer holidays built around early Acropolis entry. Pick the coast for a trip built around the water. Our guide on where to stay in Athens covers the Riviera and the central districts in more detail.

Which sea day trips belong in Athens summer holidays?

Four formats put the sea into Athens summer holidays. They are a three-island Saronic cruise, an Agistri swimming cruise, a Riviera catamaran and a Cape Sounion half-day. Each fits inside one day.

Wikipedia names Salamis, Aegina, Agistri and Poros as the main inhabited Saronic islands. It places Hydra and Dokos just beyond them, between the Saronic and Argolic gulfs. Our Saronic islands tours page covers each island in turn.

• Three-island Saronic cruise: 12 hours, with Hydra, Poros and Aegina.
• Agistri swimming cruise: 10 hours, with Agistri, Aegina and a swim stop at Moni or Metopi.
• Riviera catamaran: 5 hours, with a swim near the islet of Hydrousa.
• Cape Sounion half-day: 5 hours 30 minutes, with free time at the Temple of Poseidon.

The three-island cruise listing with the highest review count has 5,418 reviews. It serves a buffet lunch of chicken, fish, pasta and salad on board. It gives free time on Poros, Hydra and Aegina. This cruise is the longest of the four formats and fills a whole sea day of Athens summer holidays.

Hotel and port pickup is an upgrade on that listing, and it offers seven languages. On Hydra, the listing adds a donkey ride with a saddle. Wikipedia says wheeled vehicles are banned on Hydra, so horses, mules, donkeys and water taxis carry people.

Hydrofoils and catamarans from Piraeus stop first at Poros, which lies about 58 km south of the port. Wikipedia gives 40 minutes for the hydrofoil crossing from Piraeus to Aegina and about an hour for the regular ferry. Aegina is known for the temple of Aphaia, pistachio production and the pilgrimage site of St. Nektarios.

Two listings sell the Agistri swimming cruise, and both run 10 hours. Both serve lunch from a Greek buffet, both list wine and beer, and both list pickup. One names select hotels in central Athens. The other sails on a traditional wooden boat.

One of the two cancels the cruise in unfavourable weather and offers a new date or a full refund. Wikipedia calls Agistri a pine-covered island with 1,131 residents, an hour by boat from Piraeus and ten minutes from Aegina. It is a small island to add to Athens summer holidays.

Two catamaran listings sail the coast for 5 hours. One lists a crew of 2 and Vouliagmeni as its location. The other anchors near Hydrousa and lets you go ashore on the uninhabited island. Both serve a fresh meal with wine and list English and Greek. A 5-hour sail leaves the rest of the day free in Athens summer holidays.

The Cape Sounion half-day listing has 10,364 reviews. It leaves 2 free hours at the temple and includes a drive along the Athens Riviera. An audio guide is optional. A car-hire page puts the drive at about 1.5 hours, and Wikipedia puts the cape 69.5 km southeast of Athens.

Wikipedia dates the temple to 444 to 440 BC. Fifteen of its 34 columns still stand. The cape works as a half-day block in Athens summer holidays that ends at the Temple of Poseidon.

How do you add a Cyclades island to Athens summer holidays?

A Cyclades island joins Athens summer holidays through Piraeus or Rafina, the first and second ports of the city. Wikipedia calls Rafina the second port of Athens after Piraeus, and the island listings from Athens run 2 days.

Wikipedia ranks Piraeus as the largest port in Greece and the fifth largest passenger port in Europe. Its central port runs ferry routes to nearly all islands of eastern Greece. The routes reach Crete, the Cyclades and the Dodecanese.

One hop-on hop-off listing has 6,369 reviews. Its 4 bus lines include the Port of Piraeus and the Athens Riviera. Its ticket lists 2 days. That gives Athens summer holidays a way to scout the port a day before the ferry.

Rafina sits on the east coast of Attica and has 14,620 residents. Its port serves ferries to southern Euboea and to a large number of Cyclades islands. The article on Tinos lists Piraeus and Rafina among the ports linked to that island. It adds that Mykonos is 35 minutes away by ferry or high-speed boat.

Lavrio is the third port. Wikipedia places the town about 60 km southeast of the centre of Athens. The article on Kythnos says ferries link that island with Piraeus and Lavrio. The ride takes one to four hours, depending on the ship and the weather. Kythnos lies 56 nautical miles from Piraeus.

Wikipedia says Paros lies 8 km west of Naxos across a narrow channel. It calls the harbour of Parikia a major hub for Aegean ferries and catamarans. Sailings run each day to Piraeus.

Wikipedia gives Mykonos as 150 km east of Athens. It adds that Santorini has a major airport and that Syros has direct flights to Athens all year. An island with an airport suits Athens summer holidays with a tight schedule.

Two listings sell a Cyclades add-on with accommodation. Each runs 2 days, and each asks for a booking at least 10 hours ahead. One covers Santorini and Mykonos and says it arranges the transport and the accommodation. The other covers Santorini alone, with the Oia castle and the sunset.

Both listings turn a Cyclades island into a two-day block of Athens summer holidays. Our Athens to Santorini page compares the flight with the ferry in detail.

Which mainland day trips fit into Athens summer holidays?

Three mainland trips work as full days within Athens summer holidays. Delphi takes 10 hours, Mycenae, Epidaurus and Nafplio take 11 hours, and Meteora takes 14 hours. Each one keeps you away from the city all day.

The Delphi listing with the highest review count has 6,179 reviews. It runs 10 hours, offers skip-the-line entry, and stops at the Delphi Museum and the mountain village of Arachova. According to the listing, the museum holds the bronze Charioteer. Free cancellation applies.

The Greek national tourism organisation puts the drive from Athens to Delphi at 2 to 2.5 hours, about 180 km. It puts the intercity bus at about 2.5 hours. Both journeys fit inside one day of Athens summer holidays.

Wikipedia places the sacred precinct of Delphi on the southwestern slope of Mount Parnassus. Our Delphi day trip from Athens page lists the stops.

The Mycenae, Epidaurus and Nafplio listing runs 11 hours by coach and offers pickup. The listing offers a virtual reality device and an audio guide in 8 languages. The route passes the Corinth Canal.

Another page of the same tourism organisation puts the drive to Nafplio at 1.5 to 2 hours, about 140 km. That ride is shorter than the Delphi drive, which helps Athens summer holidays that need an earlier return.

Wikipedia lists Mycenae and the sanctuary of Epidaurus as UNESCO sites. The Lion Gate stands at Mycenae. The Epidaurus theatre had 34 original rows, Romans added 21 more, and it seats up to 14,000 people. It still hosts performances. The Palamidi castle, on a hill north of the old town of Nafplio, was the last major Venetian construction overseas.

The Meteora listing leaves Athens at 9 AM and runs 14 hours on an air-conditioned bus. It visits 3 monasteries from the inside, sees all 6, and includes the Hermit Caves and a sunset stop. Lunch offers about 10 dishes, vegan included.

Wikipedia places Meteora in the Trikala regional unit of Thessaly, in northwestern Greece. The rocks sit between the town of Kalabaka and the village of Kastraki. It says the monasteries went up mainly from the second half of the 14th century.

Four of the six are active and open to visitors. A Meteora stop in Athens summer holidays therefore includes working monasteries.

A night in Kalabaka or Kastraki splits the trip into two shorter days. That split suits Athens summer holidays with a free day to spare.

How do the Greek holiday dates change Athens summer holidays?

Two national holidays fall in the summer season. Whit Monday moves with Orthodox Easter, and the Dormition comes on 15 August. Banks close on Whit Monday. Buses run a Sunday timetable on 15 August, so Athens summer holidays need a plan for both dates.

Wikipedia’s article on public holidays in Greece counts twelve national holidays a year. Every Sunday is a public holiday as well. Only two of the twelve touch Athens summer holidays. A holiday that lands on a Sunday does not move to another day, except Labour Day.

Whit Monday follows Orthodox Pentecost, and Pentecost always falls on a Sunday, according to Wikipedia’s article on the holiday. Greeks call the Monday Agiou Pnevmatos, the day of the Holy Spirit. A travel.gr guide calls it the start of a three-day weekend that the city treats as the opening of summer.

The same guide says the day is a holiday for banks and state employees. It also says museums that shut on a normal Monday stay open for it. It names the National Gallery among them.

The Dormition falls on 15 August every year. Athens summer holidays in mid-August always meet it. Wikipedia’s holiday table calls it the leading celebration of the Virgin Mary. The article on the feast adds a fast that runs from 1 to 14 August beforehand.

A news guide to Athens in August says more than one million residents leave the city that month. A report on 15 August says the streets go markedly quieter and a large number of businesses close. Ferries from Piraeus, Rafina and Lavrio run at or near capacity. Athens summer holidays over that date need island tickets booked early.

A transport report from the same news site says buses and trolleybuses follow the Sunday timetable on 15 August. Visitors without a car plan around the Sunday timetable.

The Ministry of Culture’s museum portal lists six closing days for state museums. They are 1 January, 25 March, Orthodox Easter Sunday, Labour Day, 25 December and 26 December. Neither Whit Monday nor 15 August appears on that list. Banking, shopping and errands belong on the day before, and the museums stay on the plan.

Check both summer dates before you fix the arrival day of your Athens summer holidays. The Athens public holidays page covers the other ten.

Which evening bookings suit Athens summer holidays?

Seven evening listings fit Athens summer holidays. They are a food walk, a night walk, a bus ride, a bike ride and three shows. All seven run in English, and each one sets its own start rules.

Late planning still works for Athens summer holidays, because the listings set short cut-offs. The food walk and the night walk close 2 hours before the start. The bike ride closes 1 hour before. The theatre mystery closes 30 minutes before, and the Greek dinner show closes 4 hours before. The family theatre show closes only 5 minutes before.

• Open-top bus ride: 50 minutes, a live guide, 13 more languages with Greek among them, wheelchair accessible.
• Theatre mystery: 1 hour, with the player acting as the detective in the case of Callimachos.
• Family theatre show: 75 minutes, wine or juice included, pitched at all ages.
• Night walk: 2 hours, a small group, also in French or German, ending with a reading from the guide.
• Food walk: 3 hours, with a taste of dakos, a Cretan barley rusk, and olives. The listing holds 628 reviews.
• Greek dinner show: 3 hours, folk dances in Plaka, dinner at a taverna, pickup available.
• Sunset bike ride: 2 hours 30 minutes in the golden hour.

Age rules differ by listing, which matters for families on Athens summer holidays. The bus bars children aged 3 and younger. The bike ride sets an age range of 11 to 76. The mystery and the family show let children aged 4 and younger in free. They still need adding to the booking.

The bike ride passes Hadrian’s Arch and the Panathenaic Stadium. Wikipedia says the stadium was rebuilt in marble by 144 AD. It held the opening and closing ceremonies of the first modern Olympics. Another electric bike listing, with a private option and 1.5 to 2.5 hours on the road, also reaches the stadium.

The Greek dinner show sits in Plaka. Wikipedia describes Plaka as the old neighbourhood on the northern and eastern slopes of the Acropolis. It was built over the residential areas of the ancient town. A dinner there gives Athens summer holidays an evening inside the oldest part of the city.

Boat evenings are a separate plan, and the Athens sunset cruise page covers them.

Which indoor tours and classes fill the midday hours of Athens summer holidays?

Two food tours, two cooking classes and one museum ticket give Athens summer holidays a full midday block. The food tours last 3 and 4 hours. Both classes last 4 hours, and the museum ticket is valid for 1 day.

For Athens summer holidays, the street food tour is the shorter of the two food tours. It runs in English and pairs street food and desserts with beer or wine. It holds 4,201 reviews, the highest count in this group. Children aged 2 and younger join free.

The longer food tour walks through Varvakios Agora. Its listing names mezze, souvlaki in pita bread, gyros, pastries, wine and olive oil. The last stop is a meal in a downtown taverna. A private option is available.

The market and cooking class runs in English and Greek. You visit the market, cook, then eat your dishes with wine. The booking form takes up to 16 travellers, and a booking closes 10 hours before the start. The listing has a category for ages 6 to 17. Athens summer holidays with teenagers fit it.

The rooftop class runs in English and teaches traditional pies and an island-inspired salad. It ends with dinner and a view, and its booking form takes up to 20 travellers. The listing holds a 5-star rating from 522 reviews. It offers free cancellation and closes 4 hours before the start.

The museum ticket is for the National Archaeological Museum. Wikipedia places it in Exarcheia on Patission Street, near the Victoria and Omonia metro stations. The ticket offers an optional audio guide, comes in 9 languages and lets you scan the e-ticket at the gate.

The museum’s own website lists summer hours of Wednesday to Monday, 8:00 to 20:00, with last admission at 19:30. Wikipedia says the first national archaeological museum of Greece opened on Aegina. It adds that building the current home took 23 years in the late nineteenth century.

Wikipedia’s table of collections runs from prehistory and sculpture to vases, the Santorini frescoes, metal objects and Egyptian antiquities. That range is why one ticket can fill a block of Athens summer holidays without a second booking.

For a second indoor slot, the Athens museums guide covers the other main collections.

How do you book Athens summer holidays tours without losing a day?

Book the timed Acropolis slot first when you plan Athens summer holidays. Every ticket carries an entry time. A Greek travel blog reports that the morning slots fill first, led by the slots from 9 to 11 am.

A travel wiki states that Acropolis tickets are timed-entry and mandatory. It strongly recommends buying online in advance. It adds that in peak season the ticket offices can have no time slots left for the same day.

A tourism guide to Athens says that popular slots can sell out and advises booking ahead from spring to autumn. Treat the slot as the fixed point of each day. Book the other tours of your Athens summer holidays around it.

Arrive on time, not early. The wiki says the scanning queue stays closed to you until your entry time is less than 15 minutes away.

Both Acropolis tours carry the skip-the-line label, and one lists pre-arranged entry. A guide to summer holidays in Athens also advises buying skip-the-line tickets online to cut the waiting time. That same tour lists personal audio earsets, and the Meteora trip lists an optional audio guide.

The listings set their own cut-offs. One Acropolis listing sets a minimum of 10 hours between booking and start, and a second sets 4 hours. For a 9 am start, the 10-hour minimum means booking before 11 pm the night before. The Meteora day trip sets 1 hour.

Age bands differ too. The child band starts at age 6 on one Acropolis tour and at age 4 on the other. The Cape Sounio trip counts an adult from age 16. Both Acropolis tours list an EU citizen line marked with ID. Match the bands to your group before you book the tours of your Athens summer holidays.

The two Acropolis tours, the Cape Sounio trip and the Meteora day trip all state free cancellation. You can book the long trips early and cancel if the Acropolis slot moves. That keeps your Athens summer holidays flexible.

Language lines differ by listing. The booking widget of one Acropolis tour offers six languages, and the other offers three. The Cape Sounio trip states an audio guide in six languages. Pick the language line before you pick the date.

The morning slot goes first because the morning slots fill first, and a late booking leaves only the later hours. The evening trip goes last because it fills the part of the day that the Acropolis slot leaves free.

The Acropolis tickets guide covers ticket types, free days and the timed-entry system.

How do you choose between Athens summer holidays plans?

Choose with six points: days, sights or sea first, base, add-on, evening and indoor backup. Each point carries one listing or source fact, so two Athens summer holidays plans can be compared on numbers.

Plain numbers separate one plan from another in Athens summer holidays. Add up the hours of each trip and compare the total with your days.

• Days available: the Meteora day trip lists 14 hours, so it needs a full day of its own.
• Sights first or sea first: the Agistri swimming cruise lists 10 hours, so a sea-first plan gives a whole day to the water.
• Base district: the Cape Sounio listing states pickup available, so read its pickup details before you pick a district.
• Mainland or island add-on: the ferry listing for Aegina lists 75 minutes, so an island add-on can stay short.
• Evening plan: the Cape Sounio listing lists 5 hours and includes a sunset watch beside the Temple of Poseidon.
• Indoor backup: a travel wiki states that the Acropolis Museum needs its own timed-entry ticket, separate from the Acropolis.

The indoor backup sits close to the main sight. Wikipedia places the Acropolis Museum 280 metres from the Parthenon, on the southern slope of the same rock. One Acropolis listing also offers an upgrade to a guided museum visit.

Ratings and review counts help break a tie. The two Acropolis tours both show 4.7 stars, from 10,161 and 7,595 reviews. The Cape Sounio trip shows 4.3 from 5,696 reviews. The Meteora day trip shows 4.7 from 4,107 reviews and a bestseller label.

Group needs decide the rest. The two Acropolis tours and the Meteora day trip offer a private option. The two cruise listings count an adult from age 12. The Aegina ferry listing carries the wheelchair accessible label. Pick the plan whose listings match your group, then rank the trips inside your Athens summer holidays.

Group the six answers into two plans. A sights-first plan books the Acropolis slot, the museum ticket and one evening trip. Wikipedia puts the rock 150 metres above sea level, with a top of about 3 hectares. A sea-first plan books the cruise day, the ferry hop and the pickup.

Count the yeses for each plan. The plan with the highest number is the one to book first, and the other plan stays as the fallback. Our Athens vacation page covers the wider trip around these choices, from the airport to the old city.

What do visitors ask about Athens summer holidays?

Is a week enough for Athens summer holidays?

Yes. A week gives you seven days, and an Acropolis tour takes 2 to 4 hours, as two listings state. One morning covers it, so the other days of your Athens summer holidays can go to sea and mainland trips.

How long do the sea day trips take?

A Riviera catamaran takes 5 hours and the Cape Sounion half-day trip takes 5 hours 30 minutes. The Agistri swimming cruise runs 10 hours. The three-island Saronic cruise runs 12 hours and fills a whole day of Athens summer holidays.

Can one day hold the Acropolis and a swim?

Yes, if the Acropolis comes first. A tourism guide states that the ticket is single-entry, so you cannot go back in once you leave. A travel wiki names South Athens as the location of beaches on public transport.

Do tours pick you up at the hotel?

Two cruise listings state pickup available, and one of them tells you to check the pickup details. Confirm the meeting point on the booking page before you lock that day into your Athens summer holidays.

Can you add an island at short notice?

Yes, inside the cut-off of the listing. One cruise listing states a booking at least 30 minutes ahead, and the Aegina ferry listing at least 2 hours. Short notice works for Athens summer holidays when the calendar shows your date.

Which add-on needs the earliest start?

The Meteora day trip. It runs 14 hours, the longest trip on this page. Book that trip before the others, then fit the Acropolis slot on another day of your Athens summer holidays.