At a glance
🎭 Only with a show
It isn’t open as a sight. You get in with an event ticket.
📅 June–September
The main season is the Athens Epidaurus Festival.
🚇 Akropoli
Line 2. From the station, 7 minutes on foot.
👀 Free view
You can see the arches from the street whenever you like.
Five thousand seats, and the Rock above them all.
Puccini’s Tosca, in 2012.
People find their seats as the light fades.
The stage lighting picks out the 2nd-century arches.
Photos: Tomisti (CC BY-SA 3.0), Leporello78 (CC BY-SA 4.0), Gregor Hagedorn (CC BY-SA 4.0), Taenaron (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
The theatre itself
The Odeon of Herodes Atticus was built around AD 161 by Herodes Atticus, a wealthy Athenian and tutor to emperors, in memory of his wife Regilla. The same man clad the Panathenaic Stadium (Kallimarmaro) in marble. It was an odeon, a roofed theatre for music: Pausanias writes that its roof was made of cedar. It held about five thousand people, just as it does today.
The tall stage wall, with its three rows of arches, is the first thing you see. In front of it is the orchestra, with its marble floor in a chequerboard pattern. The stands rise in a semicircle up the slope of the rock, and from the top rows you can see over the wall to Philopappos Hill.
The stands in a semicircle, the stage wall with its three rows of arches.
The marble floor in a chequerboard pattern in front of the stage.
From up here you see the whole stage. It does mean steps, though.
Behind the stage, Philopappos Hill.
Photos: Thodorisv (CC BY-SA 4.0), Bobby H (CC BY-SA 2.0), Jakub Hałun (CC BY 4.0), Ad Meskens (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
From ruins to the Festival
The theatre was destroyed in AD 267, when the Heruli sacked Athens. For centuries the stands lay buried under earth, and in Ottoman times the stage wall became part of the Acropolis fortifications. Excavations began in the 19th century, and by the early 20th century concerts were already being held here.
The marble stands you see today come from the restoration of the 1950s. Since 1955 the Odeon has been the heart of the Athens Festival. Maria Callas sang here in 1957, and since then its stage has hosted great names in opera, dance and music.
Before the restorations: stones and earth where you sit today.
Long before the Festival, the Odeon already had an audience.
Photos: William James Stillman (public domain), Bundesarchiv (CC BY-SA 3.0 de) · Wikimedia Commons
What’s on
The Athens Epidaurus Festival programme is announced in spring, and the season at the Odeon runs from June to September, with some events in May or October too. The biggest nights take place here:
- Opera, often from the Greek National Opera.
- Dance and ballet, Greek and international companies.
- Ancient drama, tragedies and comedies.
- Concerts, from symphonic music to Greek song and jazz.
For this year’s programme and the Festival’s other venues, see our guide to the Athens Epidaurus Festival.
Tickets: how it works
Always start from the Festival’s official website, aefestival.gr, or from the link given by each night’s organiser. Advance sales usually open in spring. The big nights sell out fast, so don’t leave your ticket to the last minute. Avoid resale sites.
Prices vary a lot by show and zone. The cheapest seats are usually in the top rows. Look at the seating plan before you pay: at the Odeon, not all seats are the same.
💡 Which seats to choose
The middle rows of the lower tier, a little off-centre, give the best balance between stage, sound and a feel for the space. The front rows are too close for opera or dance. The top rows are cheaper and have a view over the city, but they mean lots of tall steps, without handrails all the way. If your knees aren’t great, choose low down.
What to wear and what to bring
- Something light for your shoulders. Even in July, after 22:00 there’s a bit of a breeze, especially up high.
- Shoes with a good grip. The steps are marble, polished by time. No high heels, no flip-flops.
- A small cushion, if the organisers allow it. You’ll be sitting on marble for two or three hours.
- A small bag. Large backpacks and professional cameras usually aren’t allowed in. Taking photos during the performance is usually forbidden.
There’s no dress code. Athenians dress simply but with care. The Odeon has no roof, so if it rains the organisers decide on the day. Check your email and texts.
The evening, step by step
- Arrive 30–45 minutes early. Security checks and the climb to your seat take time, and the doors close once the show starts.
- The entrance is on the pedestrian street of Dionysiou Areopagitou, below the Acropolis. You’ll see the queue.
- Food and water aren’t easy to find inside. Eat something beforehand and bring a small bottle of water, if allowed.
- Afterwards, Plaka and Koukaki are right next door, but they fill up. If you want a table, book ahead.
No ticket: where to see it
If you don’t manage to catch a show, you can still see the Odeon. The great arches of the outer wall are visible from Dionysiou Areopagitou, day and night. The best view, though, is from above: when you climb up to the Acropolis from the south slope, the path runs right above the stands, and you see the whole theatre below you.
The arches from Dionysiou Areopagitou, freely, no ticket needed.
The Acropolis right above.
The stage wall was once three storeys high.
Photos: Jebulon (CC0), George E. Koronaios (CC BY-SA 4.0), Julian Lupyan (CC0) · Wikimedia Commons
The best view of the theatre, without a show.
Behind the theatre, Philopappos Hill and the sea.
Photos: George E. Koronaios (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
🚇 How to get there from Ioulianou 50
One change, at Omonia. Allow about 25 minutes door to door.
- Ioulianou 50 → Victoria station: 3 minutes on foot.
- Line 1 (green), towards Piraeus: one stop, to Omonia.
- Line 2 (red), towards Elliniko: three stops, Panepistimio, Syntagma, Akropoli.
- Akropoli → Odeon: come out onto Dionysiou Areopagitou and walk west along the pedestrian street, below the Rock, to the theatre entrance.
Getting back: shows usually end after 23:00. Check the time of the last train on stasy.gr. Otherwise a taxi to Ioulianou takes about 10 minutes. Ask to be picked up on Rovertou Galli or Makrygianni, because Dionysiou Areopagitou is pedestrianised.
🚇 Ioulianou 50 → Odeon by metro
Line 1 to Omonia, Line 2 to Akropoli, and 7 minutes on foot along Dionysiou Areopagitou.
🗺️ From Akropoli station to the entrance of the Odeon
The orange line is the way from the station to the public entrance on the pedestrian street of Dionysiou Areopagitou: 7 minutes. Point 4 is the view from above, from the Acropolis path. Tap each number to see what it is.
Where it is in relation to the apartment
📍 From Angels Athens to the “Odeon of Herodes Atticus”
See at a glance how to get there from the apartment at Ioulianou 50. Drag the map and zoom in for details.
What to combine it with
Before an evening show, spend the afternoon at the Acropolis Museum, five minutes from the entrance, and climb Areopagus Hill for the sunset. If you don’t get a ticket, the pedestrian street of Dionysiou Areopagitou is one of the loveliest evening walks in the city, and on summer nights you can often hear the music from the street.
Frequently asked questions
Can I visit during the day without a show?
Not as an archaeological site. You can see it from outside on Dionysiou Areopagitou, and from above when you climb the Acropolis from the south side. To sit in the stands you need a show ticket.
Do the ancient dramas have surtitles?
Many productions have English surtitles, but not all. Check the show’s page on aefestival.gr before you buy.
What if it rains?
The organisers decide on the day. Check your email, texts and the show’s page. In July and August rain is rare.
Is it accessible for people with reduced mobility?
There are places for wheelchairs and companions at certain points, but you need to book them in advance through the organisers. The top rows involve many steps.
— Kathy
