Working Remotely in Athens, Greece
This is part of my remote work travel series where I review places I visit as a digital nomad.
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Athens can experience crazy wildfires and a roaring heatwave and still come out as one of my favorite European cities — that’s how much I love it here.
When people think of Athens, it’s seen as a pit stop prior to island hopping. And whilst I do recommend a good hop to an island or two, Athens itself is actually really amazing — especially for digital nomads.
Where to Stay in Athens, Greece for Digital Nomads
When I was originally doing research on Athens, Greece with my partner, we had heard there were issues with crimes and drug use in Athens. While this is true for some parts of the city, I would say Athens feels no more unsafe than LA or NYC. In fact, I found Athens to feel much safer than certain areas of those cities.
Where you stay is important, however. For the best experience of the city, I recommend staying in Psyri. While I didn’t stay there, The Foundry Hotel is definitely where I’ll be staying next time, it looks absolutely stunning.
My partner Kyle and I stayed in Selina in the Psyri neighborhood for a week before moving into this gorgeous Airbnb, which was more in the Ermou area. I’d recommend both of these places, although Selina is a more traditional hotel/hostel with lots of rooftop parties, so plan accordingly.
Plaka is much more touristy, but also has a ton of cool things to do.
Basically, try to stay anywhere within this circle if you’re wanting a great walkable experience in Athens:
And avoid the neighborhoods north of this circle. Technopolis is okay and pretty residential, but it’s a very far walk from most of the things you’ll want to access.
Location is important in Athens, and while it’s easy to get around using public transportation, you’ll miss out on the best parts of Athens if you’re too far outside of the city center.
What to Do in Athens, Greece for Digital Nomads
There’s so much to do in Greece that I’m overwhelmed thinking about it, honestly.
As a digital nomad, I have to remind myself that this is my life and I’m not on a constant vacation. 😅 …Which can be hard when I’m surrounded by so many adventures calling my name!
So while there are so. many. things to do in Athens, I’ll just list some of my favorites:
Visit the island of Milos and rent a boat. Go to Milos, and just skip the ferry and fly instead. 40 minute flight > 4 hour ferry every time. Not to mention it’s not that much more expensive to fly. Spend two days in Milos, and on day one rent a boat and go exploring. There are tons of boat tours, so pick one that fits your interests/number of travelers. I’m traveling with 20 other people here, so we were able to rent an entire catamaran for the day, which was epic. Pick something that better fits what you’re up to, and then rent a car and explore the island and the beaches. We dealt with a pretty stingy Airbnb host on the island, so I’d recommend just getting a hotel room instead of renting an Airbnb.
Visit the Acropolis at 8am or at sunset. If you’re visiting in the dead of summer, wake up early or get there late. The Acropolis is worth seeing but insanely busy, and you’ll want to do your best to avoid crowds. I don’t have a tour to recommend you since I didn’t love our tour experience, but you can opt to do both the Acropolis and then the Acropolis Museum if you want a guide to walk you through both. I think that was the best way to do it, but I know some people in our group felt rushed through the museum, and it was a pretty long tour at 4 hours.
Take a food tour of Athens. This food and bar tour was amazing, and while I don’t drink, I had a great time doing this with friends. I have a beef with most food tours as I feel like they take tourists to low-hanging fruit places, or take kickbacks from restaurants that aren’t very good but need business. This is not the case with the food tour I went on, as we went to some truly amazing spots that I ended up going back to all month long.
I truly just scratched the surface here in Athens, in part because I ended up getting sick and being bedridden for a week straight. (The downside of traveling with an autoimmune condition is that I get hit much harder when I get sick!)
There are many things left on my list to do when I return to Greece, such as going on day trips to Delphi and Meteora, going to Hydra, and hitting more islands like Corfu and Paros. However, I’ll be returning during a better time of the year, as the summer was absolutely insane temperature-wise, and it was sad to see the wildfires ravaging the islands again like the last time we almost came to Greece back in 2021. Climate change is real, and it was not kind to Greece this summer.
Where to Eat in Athens, Greece for Digital Nomads
Where not to eat in Athens, honestly — there’s so much good food here. I’ve rarely spent time in a European country that had such fresh vegetables and prioritized them in a beautiful way. Vegetarian options are aplenty, and the Greek salad is truly a delicacy here in my opinion. I’ve never had feta cheese that’s tasted as good as it does here. Never.
The brunch options in Athens are also truly stunning, and I broke my veganism for some worth-it egg-and-feta dishes here and don’t regret a thing.
Here are my favorite spots:
Hoocut. The wraps you will have at Hoocut will change your life, particularly the veggie wrap with a dolma inside. Get a wrap with a Greek salad for an affordable, fast casual lunch that will blow everything you’ve eaten out of the water in your life up until this moment. We ate here so. many. times and didn’t get tired of it. This is also a Gordon Ramsay pick if that means anything to you.
Maker’s Athens. This great brunch spot also doubles as a clothing store, and sells cute aprons. The staff here is a bit overworked and stressed sometimes (it’s a super popular brunch spot, so I get it!) but their feta, egg, and spinach crepe is amazing and so is their acai bowl. Get those dishes with a side of two freshly squeezed orange juices and you’ll be off to an amazing morning.
Dope Coffee. I got a matcha latte here that was totally fine (Europe has yet to crack a good matcha latte), but their filled sweet brioches here are amazing. Come here for the pasteries and a nice place to work and people watch, not necessarily the coffee.
Ergon House. This is a hotel that has no business having a brunch restaurant be as good as it is inside the hotel lobby. They have a truffle egg sandwich here that is so perfect, and is encased in a flaky round croissant. The restaurant has high ceilings and a greenhouse-like aesthetic and wasn’t too busy.
Feyrouz. This spirited Middle Eastern restaurant is very affordable and a cute hidden gem. There’s very little indoor seating, so you’ll need to snag a table outside most likely, but this Lebanese street food is excellent and informally served. Definitely get a few dishes as they’re fairly small.
Myller Coffeeshop. We were very kindly given a lesson on Greek coffee by Nik here, who steered us away from trying to seek out a Greek Frappe. Instead, he made us a Freddo Cappuccino that put me on a caffeine bender for the rest of the month and I couldn’t get enough of the drink. As the month comes to a close and I’m slowly switching back to a more mild matcha latte existence again, I’ll still have fond memories of the frothy fun that is a Freddo cappuccino.
Six D.o.g.s. This coffeeshop/restaurant/bar is one of the most visually stunning places we’ve been to. In Athens, houses used to share backyards where people would gather and throw events. While this is no longer the case in the city, Six D.o.g.s. has taken over a backyard that used to be that way, and it retains the communal, family feel in a new, trendy setting. I’m a sucker for moody vibes and string lights, so this was a really neat place to end up. Their Thai food and mocktails were tasty, but the main appeal is the location here.
Madame Phú Man Chú. As I was recovering from my illness for a week straight, I kept ordering pho and spring rolls from this tasty Vietnamese restaurant. So, in some ways, I credit this restaurant with my recovery. Pho is just also a perfect “sick” food.
Agora Square Restaurant. While this restaurant feels a bit more touristy, it was one of the first places we ate at when we arrived in Athens and were impressed by the traditional Greek dishes we had here. It’s not a place we went back to, but if you’re looking for a more traditional Greek dining experience, this place had some great options and the outdoor patio was nice — especially with all the fans and misters.
Lukumades. Greek donut balls are my kryptonite, and I had to have a lot of restraint as we lived right next to this epic dessert place all month. Get the donuts topped with honey with a side of ice cream and pistachio cream if you want the full experience.
Kokkion. The best gelato is served in steel tubs, not overflowing on display. That’s how you know it’s at the right temperature! Kokkion is the best gelato in Athens, and I highly recommend their tangerine ginger flavor if you’re wanting a light gelato on a hot summer eve.
One of the best perks of being a digital nomad is that going out to eat in new cities is a constant delight of novelty — but in Athens, we kept returning to our favorites, as they were that good. You can’t go wrong with most places in Athens — actually, I take that back. Don’t you dare waste any brunch time by going to Brunchers. You’ve been warned.
Where to Work Remotely or Co-Work in Athens, Greece for Digital Nomads
Unlike other European countries, Athens is more friendly towards the laptop-toting cafe crowd.
Six Dogs and Dope Coffee were two notable cafes where there were people co-working with laptops. Just note that Six Dogs is a coffeeshop by day, but turns into a more vibe-y bar and Thai restaurant at night.
Selina also has a great lobby to co-work in, as well as a designated co-working space. If you can catch some time on the rooftop before the DJ takes over, that would be another place to grab your laptop and go get some work done.
If you don’t have a great space to work in your accommodation, you shouldn’t have too much of a problem finding a place to settle down with your laptop.
Last Thoughts on Greece
Greece is a beautiful country with mindblowing feta cheese, astonishing food, and a true sense of culture that hasn’t yet been shaved down into what will attract tourists. Some cities like Rome feel more like an attraction rather than a real place that people live, and Athens has defied that gentrification momentum.
While the center of Athens does cater to tourists and English speakers, neighborhoods like Psyri bleed with culture. You can see it so clearly in the vibrant street art scene, and in the way local coffeeshops and boutiques have flourished. The streets feel friendly and alive, and I feel grateful to have been able to spend so much time here.
As a digital nomad, the affordability and accessibility of Athens feels very homey and familiar. It’s a great city to spend a month or two, and still have endless things to do.
Looking forward to my trip back here in the future!
My Ratings of Athens, Greece as a Digital Nomad
Affordability Rating for Athens, Greece: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5 — pretty affordable)
Food Quality Rating for Athens, Greece: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5 — GREAT quality food)
Adventures/Day Trips Near Athens, Greece: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5 — an overwhelming amount of amazing day trips)
Cafes/Co-Working Space Availability in Athens, Greece for Digital Nomads: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5 — a good selection of workspaces and cafes that are remote worker-friendly)
Digital Nomad-Friendly City Rating for Athens, Greece: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5 — friendly city for digital nomads)
Value of Accommodations for Remote Workers in Athens, Greece: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3/5 — good accommodations for the value)
Overall Rating for Athens, Greece: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)
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