Gay Athens: our complete travel guide for LGBTQ travelers

Del Sol is a great gay bar to come for drinks with friends or with your Seby. It's right in the heart of the Gazi gay area making it the ideal starting point for a gay night out in Athens. Although we came to Del Sol in the evening for cocktails (which are delicious by the way!) it's also a fantastic brunch spot during the day to nurse an intense night-out at Sodade – pizza for me, pancakes for Seby…

“Where The Greek Gay Bears Play”… bears and chasers, this one's for you. It's our favorite gay bar in Athens. A great place to meet local guys, but most importantly, an awesome place just to hang out. Big Bar feels like your friendly neighborhood dive bar where everyone knows everyone. To say it's friendly is an understatement. We felt no judgment and no attitude here, which is why we love it. They have drag shows, karaoke parties, and even exhibitions almost every night.

Trap is a cozy unassuming gay bar in Gazi where we loved coming for late-night drinks. You know those nights when you just want to chill with friends and don't fancy heading to a nightclub? Trap fills that void – a bar that's open until the early hours where you can just hang out with friends. The music is also on point – if you're into Greek pop music like I am ('cause hello…everyone should be!) you'll want to have your Shazam to hand when hanging out here.

Samis Bar is one of the oldest gay bars in Athens. We love the eclectic mix of people that come here every night. It's super queer in that respect. Cocktails here are as legendary as their weekend live DJ sets. The summer months are particularly lovely as the crowd spills out into their beer garden. Samis bar is located in the Metaxourgeio neighborhood, which is around a 10-15 mins cab ride to the east of the Gazi gay scene.

Ble Papagalos literally translates to “Blue Parrot”, which is used to describe a colorful, playful, and social creature that embodies freedom. The super cute waiters at Ble Papagalos definitely embody a playful and colorful spirit as far as we're concerned! Ble Papagalos works closely with Athens Pride and always has a strong presence in the annual parade. Cake, coffee, and brunch rule the school at this cutesy cafe.

Rooster is the only gay space in the historic downtown area of Athens – right behind the old cathedral. As well as great coffee, we love the strong support given by Rooster to young local artists. They host art exhibitions featuring paintings and photography from some of the most talented up-and-coming young queer artists.

Klosterion is an art cafe and cocktail bar. It's located in the Metaxourgeio neighborhood of Athens so it has a very local vibe. It's a popular place to come and meet a Grindr date or to have a brunch catch-up with a group of friends. We love the vibe here, particularly during the summer months when the outdoor area opens up and sprawls onto the pavement with cool red sun parasols.

Sodade2 is the most popular gay club in Athens, going strong since the year 2000. And when we say popular, we really do mean it – on weekends you can hardly breathe in here cause it gets so busy! But it's a lot of fun. The music is a mix of pop and Greek hits.

The crowd is mainly local gay guys as well as gay travelers who are also in town. You can never hate a night out at Sodade2. The only downside is that smoking is allowed indoors, so as mentioned above, you'll leave reeking of cigarettes.

This is one for the cool pop kidz – guys in their 20s and 30s, who, like us, LOVE pop music. Shamone has been going strong on the Athens gay scene for over a decade. It gets super busy on weekends when they have drag shows, but it doesn't feel as crammed here compared to Sodade2. We love that Shamone calls itself “straight friendly”. Also note, it's “celeb friendly” so keep an eye out for any celebs hitting the Athens gay scene on weekends!

S-Cape (sometimes called EsCape Club) in Gazi is another very popular gay club in Athens to check out. Every evening they have a party, although weekends are the most popular as well as the drag shows on Wednesday evenings. The most iconic thing about S-Cape club that we loved? They've got lifesize cages on stage to get your groove in. They make for quite hilarious Insta Stories!

BEqueer is the best LGBTQ alternative club in Athens. Whereas the others attract mainly gay cis men, BEqueer has a very mixed crowd. This is a popular playground for the gender-fluid folk of Athens. It's only open on Friday and Saturday evenings when it has live DJ-themed parties with drag shows. Music is a mix of modern pop and classic Greek hits.

Bizzar is one of our favorite Greek gay clubs in Athens. It's a very local crowd who come to party to the latest Greek hits with some classics thrown in. This is the place to come to get a real flavor of local gay life in Athens. Although a predominantly gay male crowd, everyone is welcome at Bizzar.

Bizzar gay parties are only open on Friday/Saturday evenings. On the remaining nights, Bizzar is available to book for private parties of up to 50 people – a fantastic idea for a special birthday or anniversary.

You've been partying at Shamone or Sodade2 and want to head to an after-party for more? This is the place to head to! Moe Club is open until the early hours and is where the late-night party boys all end up at. The focus is on Greek music here so expect a very local crowd (which we're not complaining about!).

Moe gets cruisier and cruisier as the night goes on. Word of advice, don't bother coming here until after 4am. That's when Moe's comes alive – i.e. when the other gay clubs have started to close up for the night.

The XLSIOR gay party in Mykonos every August has become so popular that it's expanded to the country's capital city. It takes place during the Easter holidays, usually in April. It's a weekend of parties with the hottest Circuit-party-type muscle boys from all over. The climax of the weekend is the WE Party, which usually takes place at Oddity club (located at Hrakleidon 61) in Athens.

Outview is Athens' awesome LGBTQ festival that takes place just after the Easter holidays. It's been going strong since 2007, with each year growing in popularity. They celebrate and honor the best LGBTQI-themed movies and shorts. As well as film screenings they have Q&A sessions with the directors/actors, debates, masterclasses, and an award ceremony.

Be careful not to confuse it with Georgia's Athens Pride when researching it online! This is Athens' annual gay Pride event that takes place in June. The festival includes various parties usually hosted by the gay bars and clubs across Gazi (Alexander Sauna too!), culminating with the Athens Pride Parade on the final day.

What XLSIOR is to the muscle queens, Bearly is its antithesis – a breath of fresh air if you ask us! This is the best gay bear event in Greece that happens in July/August. It only started in 2021 but has grown massively in popularity since. Every summer, the hottest bears from all across Europe descend on Athens for this event. Check their website and social media for the dates of the next one.

Dopios is our favorite restaurant in Athens. Most tourists will (quite rightly) head to the many restaurants in and around Plaka for a romantic view of the Acropolis. You'll quickly find that they all offer the same sort of menu.

We stumbled on Topias because we wanted a change. We were not disappointed. It's local food but with a Greek twist… tzatziki with avo anyone? Herring salad? Grilled sardines wrapped in grape leaves? Trust us, every dish here is really good. Oh, and make sure you leave room at the end for the walnut cake!

One of the best places to head to for delicious Greek Gyro. We found it on Tripadvisor from the many 5* excellent reviews when looking for a place to grab a bite in Monastiraki. Victory is also a good spot to get coffee and/or fresh juice. Other delights here to try out – their moussaka, and their octopus salad. Seby particularly loved their souvlaki – so much that after dining here a few times I started calling him Seby Souvlaki…

Another gem we found in the Monastiraki area. Everything here was spot on – the food, the service, the wine… Seby's favorite was the pork tenderloin, mine the orzo prawn dish. It was divine…heavenly! Another dish we recommend is their Euphoria “exotic salad”… our pleasure! Portions are generous, prices are reasonable… what's not to love?

Prosopa (which means “faces” in Greek) is a more upmarket restaurant in Athens, with the price tag to go with it. It's worth the money though, especially if you want to impress a date. The setting is really beautiful. In terms of the food, pasta rules the school here – I left with very happy memories of the squid ink pasta. For Seby, he said he will never forget their octopus.

The Athens Gate Hotel's restaurant was recommended to us mainly for the epic views of the Acropolis and Temple of Zeus. It's one of the most famous rooftop restaurants in Athens, so we highly recommend booking beforehand, especially in the busy summer months (we got turned away the first night we tried to dine here). If you don't make it here for food, we recommend coming here for romantic cocktails for the view.

Athens has always been dominated by this famous 5th-century BC landmark – the Acropolis. It is a hilltop citadel with several ancient monuments like the Temple of Athena, and the Porch of the Caryatids, but the most famous (and iconic) of all is the Parthenon. There's an excellent museum here (called the Acropolis Museum) which we recommend visiting to learn more about the complex.

As with all world wonders though, it gets super busy, so our advice to you is either come early at 8am when it opens (before tour buses arrive en masse) or at around sunset – usually 6/7pm (closing time is 8pm) for the best light. If sunset is late and you're kicked out at 8pm, then head to Areopagus Hill next to Acropolis to enjoy the sundown.

There are a total of 7 “headline” historical sites in Athens to check out. Along with the Acropolis, the others are the Temple of Zeus, Roman Agora, Ancient Agora, Aristotle's School, Hadrian's Library, and Kerameikos Ancient Cemetery. Each one is spectacular in its own right and worth a visit.

We recommend setting aside a whole day to visit them all – start early with the Temple of Zeus, then visit all the others, leaving the Acropolis for last (at sunset).

We love exploring the cutesy picturesque village-like streets of Plaka. It is a neighborhood on the northern side of the Acropolis. Plaka is renowned for its narrow winding pedestrian cobblestone streets and village-like squares lined with bougainvillea-trimmed buildings. It is very touristy, packed with lots of souvenir shops, sidewalk cafes, and restaurants.

Despite this, Plaka retains an authentic charm that keeps you wanting to come back for more. Oh, and a unique souvenir to buy? For some reason, phallic-shaped bottle openers are super popular here!

Oh, this is quite a site to behold! If you want to inject a bit of camp couture into your trip head to Syntagma Square every day just before 11am. At the “Tomb of the Unkown Soldier” bang on 11am, the changing of the guards' ceremony takes place.

Their guards wear a pretty dramatic traditional outfit which includes pleated skirts, leg tassels, and pompom shoes, all topped with a snazzy red hat… Shantay Dears, you all SLAY!

Hiking up to the top of Lycabettus Hill is our favorite thing to do in Athens. It's the city's highest point (745 ft/227m high) and has the best views across the entire Attica peninsula. Hiking up is the most rewarding, but there's also a cable car. Up at the top is the unassuming quaint whitewashed St. George's Church that looks over the sprawling capital below.

In terms of facilities, there is a restaurant and cafe near the church so you can make a day of it. The biggest heads-up we can give you – the Acropolis lies to the west of Lycabettus Hill. In other words, this is THE best spot to watch the sunset in Athens. You're welcome!

Seby said he knew I was The One when, early on in our relationship on our first trip to Athens as a young gay couple, I took him to a bar in Monastiraki for a sundowner cocktail with a view of the iconic world wonder of the city. It really is a beautiful setting and one to use to woo your lover.

There are many rooftop bars, mainly in Monastiraki each offering views of the Acropolis. Some of the best ones that we recommend include Anglais, Couleur Locale, A for Athens Rooftop Bar, and the 360 Cocktail Bar. Also note some of the hotels we mentioned above also have their own rooftop bar, like PAME House, and SOUL.

The Saronic Islands are the closest island set to Athens, most of which you can visit as part of a day trip. The nearest ferry port is Piraeus which is around 30 minutes by taxi or metro from downtown Athens. It’s easy to buy tickets online or just turn up on the day you want to travel and get a ticket there.

We recommend pre-booking during the peak summer months (July/August). The main islands to visit on a day trip are Hydra (super pretty with no cars on the island), Poros (famous for its iconic lighthouse), and Aegina (closest island to Athens), each beautiful and unique in their own different way.