About Athens

Athens, named after the Greek goddess Athena is a bustling cosmopolitan metropolis with a population of around 3.7 million people. With its wealth of history and culture, Athens has been a popular destination for travellers since antiquity. Home to a vast number of 4 and 5 star hotels, the city is currently the 6th most visited capital in Europe.

Over the past decade, the infrastructure and social amenities of Athens have been radically improved, in part due to the city's successful bid to stage the 2004 Olympic Games. The city constitutes the dominant centre of economic, financial, industrial, cultural and political life in Greece, and is fast becoming a leading business centre in the European Union.

Infrastructure Projects

The Greek state, aided by the E.U., has poured money into major infrastructure projects such as:
� State-of-the-art "Eleftherios Venizelos" International Airport
� Expansion of the Metro system
� New Attiki Odos ring-road system
� Pedestrianisation of Dionysiou Aeropagitou street, forming a scenic route from the Temple of Olympian Zeus, continuing under the southern slopes of the Acropolis and finishing just outside the Temple of Hephaestus
� Transformation of the grounds of the old Athens Airport (Hellinikon) into a massive landscaped park (which when finished will be the largest in Europe)

Facilities

� The Athens Mall, shopping centres & Boutiques
� Department stores
� Restaurants
� Cafes
� Bars, clubs & casinos
� National Archaeological Museum
� Herodes Atticus Theatre
� Mount Parnitha National Park
� Olympic stadium
� University of Athens
� National Library
� Athens Academy (private college)
� Athens General Hospital
� Eleftherios Venizelos Intl. Airport
� Metro, trams & railways system
� Taxi�s
� Ferries