National Gardens, Athens. Photo by Jane Foster
|
National Gardens
|
When:
|
Daily
|
|
Where:
|
National Gardens
|
| Costs: |
Free
|
| Opening Hours: |
Dawn to dusk
|
Designed as the grounds of the 19th-century royal palace, now the Parliament, the National Gardens in Syntagma display lush planting, duck ponds, strutting peacocks and a small zoo. With two cafes, it offers a welcome green retreat from urban chaos.
The National Gardens (Kings Gardens, or Ethnikos Kipos) provide a welcome patch of greenery in downtown Athens. Peacocks, water, ducks, a small botanical museum and a tiny zoo mean that you can happily spend a few hours away from the traffic.
If you walk out to Irodou Atikou Street you will see those who guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Further downhill a puppet theatre sets up in summer, and there are usually plenty of crowds milling about or chilling out.
|