Lauren S
Google
We did the Acropolis Mythology & Food Tour which was essentially a combo pack of the Beat the Heat Acropolis tour and the Food tour.
The Beat the Heat tour is definitely the best way to go since the top of the Acropolis can get HOT and crowded! Our guide Michael was wonderful and a great story teller! He was very knowledgeable about the myths and fielded our group’s questions easily. The Acropolis itself was breathtaking and despite me and my partner knowing quite a bit of Greek mythology already, we still learned quite a bit! Michael also included some facts about the architecture and facts about some of the minor gods. The climb up to the Acropolis is a bit steep, but it’s not too long and Michael went at a nice, slow pace to accommodate for all fitness levels. Since we got the package, Alternative Athens had another guide escort us to the Food tour meeting spot and ensured we were on time, which was very helpful as the two spots were about a 20 minute walk away.
Now for the Food tour: DO NOT EAT BEFOREHAND! You will want to try everything and there is so much food, that you don’t want to be hindered by stomach space! We had Mary Kate as our guide and we could not have asked for a better person to spend our time with. I was expecting just walking place to place with the historical context only at the food stops, but Mary Kate also gave us the history of the neighborhoods we passed through and showed us some historical spots. We also appreciated her candid takes on Athens and how personable she was with us (my partner thought she was so cool that she wanted to be friends with her 😆). The food was phenomenal at each spot, with both sweet and savory bites. We also did an olive oil tasting hosted by a wonderful lady (her name is slipping my mind) who even let us try a Kalamata olive oil that has a nice kick and wasn’t a part of the regular tasting. My favorite bite was the saganaki (fried cheese) at the taverna and my partner’s favorite was the pork gyro at Thannasis. But don’t sleep on any of the dishes because the marinated anchovies were a surprise hit! (I personally have only had anchovies in cesar salad and these were so fresh and light!)This tour was definitely so worth it and truly made our time here at Athens. Plus afterwards, Mary Kate sent us her personal food recommendations as well as some Greek recipes so that we could make some of the foods we tried at home!
Both tour guides were phenomenal and exemplified the hospitality of the Greeks! We definitely recommend booking your tours with Alternative Athens!!