The best time for visiting the Acropolis Museum in Athens is early morning or late afternoon (or Friday evenings) but buy tickets online.
The Acropolis Museum in Athens is entirely separate from the Acropolis Hill archaeological site. The museum has different opening hours and separate tickets.
Is it better to visit the Acropolis Hill or the Museum first? For visitors with prior knowledge of the Acropolis and Parthenon, it doesn’t matter much. Otherwise, it may be sensible to visit the museum first but a good guide will still be indispensable to make sense of the site.
Buy tickets for adults online but reduced and free tickets are only available for purchase from the ticket desk inside the museum.
Opening Hours of the Acropolis Museum in Athens
Visiting the Acropolis Museum is easy as the museum is open every day and opening hours are relatively long.
In the winter season, from 1 November to 31 March, the Acropolis Museum is open:
- Monday to Thursday from 9 am to 5 pm
- Friday from 9 am to 10 pm
- Saturday and Sunday from 9 am to 8 pm
- The archaeological site under the museum is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm.
In the summer season, from 1 April to 31 October, the Acropolis Museum is open:
- Monday from 9 am to 5 pm
- Tuesday to Sunday from 9 am to 8 pm, but
- Friday from 9 am to 10 pm.
- The archaeological site under the museum is open daily from 9 am to 8 pm, except closing already at 5 pm on Monday.
Final admission to the museum is half an hour before closing. Galleries start closing 15 minutes before the official closing time of the museum.
The Acropolis Museum is closed on 1 January, 1 May, 25 and 26 December. Expect shorter hours and closures during Orthodox Easter weekend, 24 and 31 December.
When Is the Best Time to Visit the Acropolis Museum?
The best time to visit the Acropolis Museum is early morning when it is at its quietest and the security queues are shorter. The museum is generally also quieter late afternoon or early evening — arrive at least two hours before closing time.
The museum can get busy mid-morning, lunchtime, and early afternoon but on a very hot (or rainy) day the cool museum may still be more pleasant than being exposed to the elements on the Acropolis Hill.
Try to avoid visiting the Acropolis Museum on weekends, school holidays, and public holiday weekends.
Buying Tickets for the Acropolis Museum
Entry tickets for the Acropolis Museum are:
- €20 — general admission for adults over 25 years.
- €10 — for non-EU youths and children 6 to 25; EU nationals over 65 years.
- Free — all children under 6 years; EU youths and children 6 to 25 years.
Full-fare general admission tickets are best bought online. Tickets bought from the museum website have specific one-hour time-slot reservations. Tickets from resellers are usually valid anytime during the calendar day and are skip-the-line tickets (once through security). Go directly to the gallery entrance and scan the barcode or QR code.
Many combination deals are available: the Turbopass is for serious sightseers and is best value when used for several days while the Athens Pass includes entry to the Acropolis Museum, Acropolis Hill with Parthenon, and 6 further archaeological sites.
Reduced admission and free tickets are only available in person and for immediate use from the ticket desk inside the museum building. Reservations are not possible and queuing up is the only option.
The Acropolis Museum does not participate in free Sunday schemes. Entry is free only on 6 March, 25 March, 18 May, and 28 October. Queuing up for tickets at the museum is currently the only way to visit on free days. Visitors with limited time in Athens could probably spend it better elsewhere than in the queues or overcrowded museums.
Booking Tours for the Acropolis Museum
Guided tours make it easy to explore the highlights of the Acropolis Museum. Museum tours are usually around 75 to 90 minutes. Check whether advertised prices already include museum entry when comparing prices.
Combination tours of the museum and the Acropolis Hill with the Parthenon are a good time saver, as the guide need not repeat the same explanations at both sites. Such tours usually last around three hours, although longer tours with more sites may offer better value. The museum is the easier part to comprehend without a guided tour.
The explanations inside the museum are in both English and Greek but are not that good at painting the bigger picture. The free audio guide is fairly comprehensive if not the most user-friendly. Audio guides by resellers are often easier to use.
What is Seen in the Acropolis Museum in Athens?
The surviving sculptures, reliefs, and items found during the excavation of the Acropolis Hill site are on display in the Acropolis Museum in Athens. The museum also has high-quality casts of most sculptures now in other museums, primarily in the British Museum in London.
After scanning tickets, visitors walk up a slope reminding of the ramp Athenians used in antiquity to reach the Acropolis from the Agora. Many items found on the Acropolis Hill are displayed along the walls of the walkway. These range from simply daily utensils and tools to votive offerings and smaller sculptures.
At the top of the stairs, turn around and look up at the five original caryatids.
The first floor of the museum is mostly used for sculptures from the Acropolis. Particularly interesting are discoveries of some of the sculptures from the pediment of the earlier temple that preceded the building of the Parthenon.
Photography is usually not allowed in the so-called sculpture garden — the section of the museum on this floor facing away from the Parthenon.
Before going up the escalators, study the five caryatids from the Erechtheion close-up. (The sixth one is in the British Museum and is better preserved.) Photography is usually allowed.
The second floor is mostly used for presentations and temporary exhibitions. Be prepared to show museum tickets to re-enter the museum if visiting the bookshop, café-restaurant, or terrace now. It is better to go to the top floor first.
Top Floor with Parthenon Marbles
The top floor is the true highlight of the Acropolis Museum. The floor is skewed to the rest of the museum to align with the Parthenon. The hall within a glass-walled gallery has the same dimensions as the Parthenon.
The pediments, friezes, and metopes are displayed as they were on the Parthenon but much lower down so visitors and not only the gods can have a close-up look.
Many of the sculptures and reliefs were damaged in the explosion of 1687 and further by pollution from the 20th century. In 1801, Lord Elgin carted off the best examples, which are in better condition but of course, displayed in the British Museum. High-quality casts from the London copies are displayed while negotiations continue on the return of the originals.
Small models show the appearance of the originals, although in antiquity the sculptures would have been painted. The east pediment illustrated the birth of Athena while the west pediment showed the fight between Athena and Poseidon for control of Athens.
The frieze illustrated the parade held every four years when all Athenians visited the Parthenon for a large celebration that culminated in presenting the statue of the goddess Athena with a new robe and the slaughter of 100 cattle. The metopes showed various battle scenes from mythology and Greek history.
Top Tip: It is somewhat expensive, but if visiting the British Museum in London, book an early morning, out-of-hours tour of the Greek sculptures to see the magnificent Parthenon marbles in peace.
Views of the Parthenon from the Acropolis Museum
The views of the Acropolis and Parthenon from the top floor are magnificent. For photos free of window glare, visit the open terrace of the café (no consumption required) one floor lower. Show tickets to return to the museum, or take the express elevator down to the exit.
It is also possible to enjoy this view for free. Request a free museum shop or restaurant pass at the ticket desk and use the elevator to the second floor rather than entering the museum directly.
The restaurant-café is airy and pleasant enough but fairly pricy. Many restaurants are in the streets nearby, especially close to the metro station.
Archaeological Excavation Under the Acropolis Museum
Any construction in Athens exposes a wealth of archaeological finds and building the Acropolis Museum was no exception. The museum is built on pillars to the archaeological excavation beneath the museum remained largely undisturbed.
In addition to the foundation and walls, some finds are displayed in museum cases. Although interesting, other museums (including the one upstairs) have better items on display, so missing this area if visiting in the evening after closing time is not that big a loss.
The entrance to the excavations is separate from the museum. Before ascending the stairs to exit the museum complex, follow the walkway to the left. Simply scan the museum ticket again.
More on Visiting Athens
- Acropolis & Parthenon:
- Acropolis Museum
- Ancient Agora — Archaeological Site and Museum
- 5-Day Combination Tickets — Worth it?
- Cheap Public Transportation to Athens Airport — Bus X95 is cheapest, Metro M3 is fastest.
- Odysseus — the official website of the Ministry of Culture and Sports has better information than the very old-fashioned design.
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