Athens, the ‘city of intellect’, is the capital of Greece is considered the country’s intellectual and artistic centre, a ‘jewel’ of the ancient world. It’s a popular visitor destination. Although the city can be hot, crowded, and traffic-filled, there is some excellent running in Athens, combining its famous sites and hilly terrain. Note: If you’d like to have an in-person guided running experience in Athens, we highly recommend our friends at Go! Running Tours.
It’s great to start with our ‘runseeing’ tour of some of the city’s historic highlights. Other great places to run in Athens include several wonderful parks, Mount Lycabettus, and trails around the Acropolis. Just outside the city, we love running at the the Syngrou Estate. Trail runners will love Ymittos Mountain. Just south of Athens, there’s wonderful seaside running in Faliro and Piraeus. Many of our routes incorporate Athens’ historic and archaeological sites. And those who like running hills will find great options in Athens!
NOTES: this is a crowded city, with lots of traffic. Running on some of main roads might be challenging or not that pleasant, so seek out some of the routes we’ve pointed out. Also, remember that Athens is hilly…and HOT in the summer. Athens hosted the 2004 Olympic Games, which led to major changes in the infrastructure: a new international airport, new metro lines and a regional highway were constructed, and millions of indigenous trees and shrubs were added to the region.
Note: Many thanks to RunninGreece for their help with this guide! We encourage you to enjoy one of their wonderful running tours.