A complete guide to Mount Lycabettus
Have you ever went to Athens? If the answer is yes and you didn’t visit Mount Lycabettus, you should go there again. If you are at least 50% fit, there can be no other excuse for missing visiting the mount Lycabettus. The mount Lycabettus is the highest place in the city. If you want to spend a full afternoon watching the beauty of Athens city, Lycabettus is the best place for you. Mount Lycabettus situated in the middle of the city, so you can easily get the full view of the city climbing on that. The mount Lycabettus begs for climbing, if you stay some days in Athens, you will climb it, sooner or later.
Facts about Mount Lycabettus
Lycabettus is the highest point of Athens city. Initially, Mount Lycabettus was not a part of the city. But gradually the area of the city increased and the mount became a part of it. The Mount Lycabettus is 909 feet high. It is twice as high as the top point of the city. There are many stories about the naming of the mount, you have the freedom to believe any of the stories, in this article, and we are skipping those stories. At this point, you can ask me that the mount’s height is less than 1000 feet, still it’s a mount? Or it can be called Lycabettus hill? The Lycabettus is 909 feet, less than 1000 feet, but it looks like a perfect mountain if you look at the upper side. Moreover, it’s not a simple step climbing hill. But the ground side of this is covered by buildings of the city. So, you can call it both, local people also pick both, you can just follow them!
Views from the Mount Lycabettus
Since it’s situated in the middle of the city, you can see the views of all four sides of the city from the top of the mount. There are details about what you’re going to see at the fixed viewing platforms of the mount. Still, as a tourist, you can bring your own binocular and Athens tourist map to get a better idea of the views. Here we going to give you a brief idea of the 360-degree views from the mount to get started:
1. View to the southeast: climbing to the mount, the first side you will want to stare is the southeast side of the city. Like all other visitors, you will love to see the beauty of the acropolis of the city. You will easily spot the Erechtheion, a Greek temple, situated in the southeast part of the city. If you wait till sunset, you will see the most beautiful scene of the city. The sun goes down and the city lights start getting brighter. This scene is particularly beautiful. You will find the acropolis museum from the left of your viewpoint. From that point, you will also see the syntagma square, Hotel Grande Bretange and the Greek parliament.
2. View to the south: Kolonaki is the most affluent residential area of Athens. You will find that from that point. Besides, you will see a large green area near the syntagma square, that’s the Greek national garden. In the national garden, you’ll find a large yellow building, this building is called Zappeion, this building is used for cultural exhibition and official functions. South of this yellow building, you will find a large U-shaped building. This the stadium where the first modern Olympic game was held. The name of the stadium is Panathenaic Stadium.
3. View to the West: to the west, the first thing you’ll notice is some red-tiled roofs. This is the Athens university area and those red-tiled roofs are the buildings of Panepistimiou campus of the university. The University is situated in the district Omonia. You may also find the central fish and meat market of Athens, these markets are with glass and steel roofs. You will also notice the crowd market streets of Monastiraki.
4. View to the Northwest: to the Northwest, you will find the Athens best Museum. You will find a large building with a garden in front of that. This is the National Archaeological Museum. The best in Athens. This museum is separated from the main tourist area of Athens.
5. View to the North: to the north, you will see another hill that is Strefi hill. This is one of the seven hills of Athens. If you want to see the mount Lycabettus from somewhere else, Strefi hill is the best option for you.
6. View to the East: To the east, you will see another residential area. That residential area is also called Lycabettus. The colorful, orange and yellow amphitheatre just below the summit is the Lycabettus theatre. This is really a modern addition, where outdoor performances are staged, mainly during the summer.
How to reach it?
There are some viewpoints and a church at the top of the mount. To go there, there are several ways available. If you want to reach the top on foot, be sure that you’re able to climb steps. If you think you’re not capable of, there is funicular for you. If you’re going for steps climbing, wear sturdy and comfortable shoes. Don’t follow other people who aren’t wearing sturdy shoes. Your safety is yours. If you are good at climbing than you can reach there within just 40 minutes. It usually takes 30 to 90 minutes to climb based on your fitness.
You can go there with cable cars that start the journey from the intersection of Aristippou and Plutarchiou Street.
Conclusion
Mount Lycabettus worth visiting, if you ever go to Athens, don’t forget to visit that. To get the full astonishing view of the Athens city, no place is better than the Mount Lycabettus. Be careful in choosing the climbing way, if you’re not fit, you can use cable cars. That’s better.
