Nightlife

Greeks enjoy their nightlife so much that they take an afternoon nap to rest up for it. The evening often begins with a leisurely volta (stroll); you'll see this in most neighborhoods, including the main drags through the Plaka and Kolonaki Square. Most Greeks don't think of dinner until at least 9pm in winter, 10pm in summer. Around midnight, the party may move on to a club for music and dancing.

Check the Athens News (published Fri) or the daily Kathimerini insert in the International Herald Tribune for listings of current cultural and entertainment events, including films, lectures, theater, music, and dance. The weekly Hellenic Times and monthly Now in Athens list nightspots, restaurants, movies, theater, and much more.

Ticket Information for the Athens (Hellenic), Lycabettus & Epidaurus Festivals -- Tickets for the Athens, Lycabettus, and Epidaurus festivals are available at the Hellenic Festival Box Office, 39 Panepistimiou (in the arcade; tel. 210/928-2900). Hours are Monday through Friday 8:30am to 4pm, Saturday 9am to 2:30pm. (The name "Hellenic Festival" is an umbrella term for a number of summer festivals, including the Athens and Epidaurus festivals.) Advance booking for most events in the Hellenic Festival starts 3 weeks before each performance, 10 days before each event for the Lycabettus Festival. Ticket reservation and telephone booking (as above) are also possible by credit card (MasterCard or Visa), with the exact date and performance, number and category of tickets, and number and expiration date of the credit card. Tickets (if available) also go on sale at the box offices at each theater 2 hours before each performance. Events at the Odeion of Herodes Atticus on the slopes of the Acropolis are usually sold out by the day of the performance; for information, call tel. 210/323-2771.

Additional information is available at www.greekfestival.gr, www.athensinfoguide.com, www.breathtakingathens.gr.

Festivals

New festivals spring up every year in Athens and throughout Greece. You may want to check with the Greek National Tourism Organization to see what's new at your destination.

Hellenic Festival -- Early June through September, the Athens Festival (also known as the Athens or Greek Festival) features famous Greek and foreign artists from Elton John to Placido Domingo performing on the slopes of the Acropolis. You may catch an opera, concert, drama, or ballet here -- and see the Acropolis illuminated over your shoulder at the same time. To enjoy the performance to the fullest, bring a cushion to sit on (the cushions available are often minimal). Schedules are usually available at the Hellenic Festival Office, 39 Panepistimiou (in the arcade; tel. 210/928-2900; www.greekfestival.gr; Metro: Panepistimio). The office is usually open Monday through Saturday from 8:30am to 2pm and 5 to 7pm, Sunday from 10am to 1pm. You will have better luck if you come here in person rather than try to reach the office by phone. If available -- and that's a big if -- tickets can be purchased at the Odeion of Herodes Atticus (tel. 210/323-2771 or 210/323-5582) several hours before the performance. Again, you will have better luck going to the ticket office than phoning, although if your hotel has a concierge, he or she may be able to obtain tickets (15€-50€) over the phone. Shows begin at 9pm.

Athens International Dance Festival -- Founded in 2003, this festival takes place during the first 2 weeks of July at the Technopolis arts complex, 100 Piraeus, Gazi. This is not the place to go for a traditional rendition of Swan Lake; groups performing here push the envelope of contemporary dance. Schedule and ticket information is at tel. 210/346-1589 or 210/346-7322 (www.greekfestival.gr).

Athens International Film Festival -- Over 100 features and shorts represent more than 2 dozen countries for 10 days in mid- to late September in various venues across the city (tel. 210/606-1963; www.aiff.gr).

Epidaurus Festival -- From late June to late August, performances of ancient Greek tragedies and comedies (usually given in modern Greek translations) take place at Epidaurus, in Greece's most beautiful ancient theater. This makes for a long evening, but a memorable one. If you purchase bus service along with your ticket (about 2 hr. each way), the evening doesn't have to be exhausting. You may want to inquire as to whether the bus/boat excursion from Piraeus to Epidaurus offered in 2002 has been reinstituted; contact the Greek National Tourism Organization, the Hellenic Festival Office, or the Rex Theater box office (tel. 210/330-1881) on Panepistimiou just outside Spiromilios Arcade.

European Jazz Festival -- Founded in 1999, this festival, usually held at the end of May, brings together Europe's best jazz musicians in the Technopolis center, 100 Pireos, Gazi (tel. 210/346-0981; www.culture.gr.).

Lycabettus (Likavitos) Festival -- The Pet Shop Boys, Buena Vista Social Club, and other pop musicians make appearances here at the outdoor amphitheater near the top of Likavitos during the summer. For information on music and special events, check with the Hellenic Festival Office or Likavitos Theater (tel. 210/722-7209). Tickets may also be available at Ticket House, 42 Panepistimiou (tel. 210/618-9300 or 210/360-8366; www.tickethouse.gr).

Rockwave Festival -- Popular groups and performers (Led Zeppelin, Metallica, Pearl Jam, the Killers, Moby, Placebo, and others) from around the world perform each year at various venues in and around the city. For more information on what's taking place during your visit, check with the Greek National Tourism Organization, Ticket House , or visit their website at www.rockwavefestival.gr.

Movies

Central Athens has lots of air-conditioned theaters (mostly multiplexes now) showing new-release Greek, American, and European films. Listings appear in the Athens News, in Kathimerini (the English-language insert in the International Herald Tribune), and in the weekly Hellenic Times.

If you're in Athens in summer, look for listings of neighborhood open-air cinemas; it's a pleasant way to pass an evening, although some old favorites have closed in recent years. Many of the open-air cinemas are family owned and run, and all are great places to watch Athenian families watching films -- which is to say, talking to each other, pursuing runaway toddlers, munching snacks, and sipping cold drinks, all the while keeping up a running commentary on the film. We're fond of Dexameni in Dexameni Square, Kolonaki (tel. 210/362-3942), where there always seems to be a breeze on a hot evening. Cine Paris, on Kidathineon in the Plaka (tel. 210/322-2071), is one of the oldest in town -- and has great views of the Acropolis, as does charming Thission on Apostolou Pavlou (tel. 210/342-0864), just off the pedestrian walkway that runs around the Acropolis to the Ancient Agora. Aigli, inside the Zappeion Gardens (tel. 210/336-9369), is the ideal place to enjoy a flick with a glass of wine. Shows begin after 9pm.