Athens scavenger hunt
Monastiraki Square is a vibrant hub where ancient ruins meet lively markets and energetic city life. Built over the hidden Eridanos River, it uniquely showcases a 10th-century Byzantine church alongside an 18th-century Ottoman mosque.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a symbolic monument where the elite Evzones guards perform their famous ceremonial change of watch. Carved in the 1930s, the cenotaph features a chilling relief of a dying ancient Greek hoplite to honor fallen soldiers throughout history.
Winding beneath the Acropolis, pedestrianized Dionysiou Areopagitou connects ancient ruins with neoclassical architecture and street performers.
Known as the Tower of the Winds, this ancient octagonal marble clocktower once functioned as a weather vane, sundial, and water clock.
Carved into the southern slope of the Acropolis, the magnificent Roman Odeon of Herodes Atticus still hosts world-class live performances beneath ancient open skies.
Athens scavenger hunt
Monastiraki Square is a vibrant hub where ancient ruins meet lively markets and energetic city life. Built over the hidden Eridanos River, it uniquely showcases a 10th-century Byzantine church alongside an 18th-century Ottoman mosque.
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a symbolic monument where the elite Evzones guards perform their famous ceremonial change of watch. Carved in the 1930s, the cenotaph features a chilling relief of a dying ancient Greek hoplite to honor fallen soldiers throughout history.
Winding beneath the Acropolis, pedestrianized Dionysiou Areopagitou connects ancient ruins with neoclassical architecture and street performers.
Known as the Tower of the Winds, this ancient octagonal marble clocktower once functioned as a weather vane, sundial, and water clock.
Carved into the southern slope of the Acropolis, the magnificent Roman Odeon of Herodes Atticus still hosts world-class live performances beneath ancient open skies.

Athens Treasure Hunt and Self-Guided Tour

Rated 4.54 out of 5 based on 91 customer ratings
(91 customer reviews)

5 out of 5 from 2 verified bookings

Explore the city at your own pace with a self-guided experience.
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Make a day of itInteractive guides by World City Trail, delivered with your tickets.

What is a city guide?

Your own guide to Athens on your phone: hand-picked places, each with why to go, what to order and a practical tip.

  • Tick places off
  • Your own notes
  • One tap to Maps
  • Open now, near me
  • Works offline
  • Print it or save as PDF
See the guides, a short video and all the details →
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Loved by thousands of travelers and locals

  • No time limit – use your ticket whenever you want
  • Secure checkout - Instant confirmation

Included: your personal Trail Map with every city you finish, the kilometres you walk and your flag collection. See an example →

Download on the App Store Get it on Google Play

Everything you need for a flexible self-guided city experience

Explore the city at your own pace

✔ Discover hidden gems & highlights
✔ Enjoy a flexible self-guided experience
✔ Explore freely with no schedule
✔ Perfect for couples, students, companies, friends & families

How your city experience works

✔ Instant ticket purchase
✔ Easy access via the World City Trail app
✔ Quick setup with your booking details
✔ Start anytime and explore freely
✔ Pause and resume anytime

Why travelers choose this tour

✔ Instant access after purchase
✔ Optional AI voice narration — listen instead of read
✔ Discover top attractions & food spots
✔ Customize your route anytime

What kind of game is the Athens treasure hunt?

The Athens treasure hunt is a self-guided city game you play on your phone: you walk between 10 landmarks, solve a riddle at each one by looking closely at what is in front of you, and unlock the stories and legends behind it. It takes about 2 hours, with around 50 minutes of actual walking over 3.9 km, and you start whenever you like.

Highlights include the Evzones at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Byzantine church of Kapnikarea, Monastiraki Square, the Areopagus Hill with its view of the Acropolis, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, the Monument of Lysicrates and the Tower of the Winds. The route leads from the modern centre into Plaka, where ancient, Byzantine and 19th-century Athens lie only a few minutes apart.

  • Durationabout 2 hours
  • Walkingabout 50 min · 3.9 km
  • Stops10
  • LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Greek

How the hunt works between Syntagma and Plaka

The marble does the talking

Each of the 10 stops sets you a single riddle, answered from what stands in front of you: an inscription beside a monument, a relief on a wall of marble, the figures carved around an octagonal tower. No reading list and no dates to memorise, only attention.

Guards, legends and lawsuits

Every solved riddle hands you the story behind the stop: the Evzones who keep watch over a fallen warrior carved in 1932, the Ottoman builder who is said to have burned a column of the Temple of Olympian Zeus to make lime, the ancient council that tried murder cases on the Areopagus and lent its name to the Supreme Court of Greece. Prefer listening to reading, and the audio narration handles it.

Four kilometres, two thousand years

Google Maps carries you between the stops, 3.9 km in all with 50 minutes of walking, from the modern centre into the lanes of Plaka. It is the shorter of the city games, which leaves the afternoon open.

A coffee in Plaka whenever

Nothing counts down, so sitting out the heat under a plane tree costs you nothing. Carry on later the same day or on another one, and shift the stops in the app if your hotel stands closer to the Acropolis than to Syntagma.

See the route and attractions →

How it works

  1. Book online Choose the number of players. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
  2. Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
  3. Play when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.

Who the hunt was written for

An afternoon that explains Athens

In 2 hours the route ties together Parliament, a Byzantine church in the middle of a shopping street, the Ancient Agora, the rock of the Areopagus and the lanes of Plaka. Instead of a list of ruins you come away with a city that holds together.

Children among the marble

The clues are visible things, so children often get there first: the Evzones in uniform below Parliament, the eight wind gods and their sundials on the Tower of the Winds, the bell tower of a church in Plaka. Only one condition, that a grown-up is in the team. Marble paving, steps and the bare rock of the Areopagus rule out a wheelchair and make a pushchair difficult.

Colleagues out of the office

A team holds up to 5 players and each plays on their own phone, so several teams can take the same 10 stops and compare notes at the Tower of the Winds. Streets, squares and a hillside are all the game needs, which means nothing is reserved.

Good to know

  • Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
  • No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
  • Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
  • Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
  • Teams of up to 5 work best; bigger groups split into several teams, one ticket per player.
  • Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.

The route: from Syntagma below the Acropolis into Plaka

10 stops · about 50 min walking · start: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier · finish: Tower of the Winds

The hunt starts at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Syntagma Square and follows Ermou Street past the Kapnikarea church to Monastiraki Square and the Library of Pantainos. You then climb the Areopagus Hill, walk below the Acropolis to the Odeon of Herodes Atticus and the statue of Makriyannis, and return through Plaka past the Monument of Lysicrates and the church of Agios Nikolaos Rangavas to finish at the Tower of the Winds. The app lets you nominate a different opening stop and reshuffle the rest, and because all ten riddles are solved on the outside, the treasure hunt needs no entry ticket of its own.

Open the route map ↗

  1. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

    1Tomb of the Unknown SoldierStart

    Set into the wall below the Parliament, the monument was unveiled on 25 March 1932 and shows a fallen ancient warrior with helmet and round shield, carved by the sculptor Fokion Rok. The Evzones of the Presidential Guard watch over it day and night, and the inscriptions on either side quote Thucydides.

  2. Panagia Kapnikarea

    2Panagia Kapnikarea

    The small Byzantine church of Panagia Kapnikarea dates from the 11th century and stands right in the middle of Ermou Street, one of the city's main shopping streets. It was nearly demolished in the 19th century, when the new streets of Athens were laid out, and was saved after King Ludwig I of Bavaria, the father of Greece's first king, Otto, intervened.

    Read the full story →

  3. Monastiraki Square

    3Monastiraki Square

    Monastiraki means little monastery, after the small Pantanassa church that survived from a much larger convent. On the square stands the Tzistarakis Mosque of 1759, whose Ottoman builder, according to tradition, burned a column of the Temple of Olympian Zeus to make lime, and today it belongs to the Museum of Greek Folk Art.

  4. Library of Pantainos

    4Library of Pantainos

    The Library of Pantainos was built around AD 100 by Titus Flavius Pantainos at the edge of the Ancient Agora and dedicated to Athena and the Emperor Trajan. Only foundations and column bases remain, but an inscription from the library records its rules, including that no book could be taken out.

  5. Areopagus Hill

    5Areopagus Hill

    The rocky Areopagus, the Hill of Ares, lies just northwest of the Acropolis and gave its name to the ancient council that judged murder cases. The Apostle Paul preached to the Athenians here, a bronze plaque at the foot of the rock carries his speech, and Greece's Supreme Court is still called Areios Pagos today.

    Read the full story →

  6. Odeon of Herodes Atticus

    6Odeon of Herodes Atticus

    The wealthy orator Herodes Atticus built this stone theatre in AD 161 in memory of his Roman wife Regilla. Its seating and orchestra were restored with Pentelic marble in the 1950s, and with about 5,000 seats it is the main venue of the Athens Festival.

  7. Statue of Ioannis Makriyannis

    7Statue of Ioannis Makriyannis

    This statue honours General Ioannis Makriyannis (1797–1864), a hero of the Greek War of Independence, and stands near the Acropolis Museum in the district that bears his name. Makriyannis learned to write only as an adult, and his Memoirs are considered a classic of modern Greek prose.

  8. 8Choragic Monument of Lysicrates

    This small round monument in Plaka was erected in 335/334 BC by Lysicrates, a wealthy sponsor whose chorus won the prize at a festival of Dionysus, and once carried the bronze tripod awarded to the winners. It is one of the earliest buildings with Corinthian columns on the outside, and Lord Byron stayed in the Capuchin monastery that later enclosed it.

  9. Church of Agios Nikolaos Rangavas

    9Church of Agios Nikolaos Rangavas

    This small Byzantine church in Plaka dates from around the 11th century and takes its name from the Rangavas family. According to tradition, its bell was the first to ring in Athens when the Ottoman garrison handed over the Acropolis in 1833, after a long period in which church bells were banned.

    Read the full story →

  10. Tower of the Winds

    10Tower of the WindsFinish

    The Tower of the Winds, or Horologion of Andronikos of Kyrrhos, is an octagonal marble tower in the Roman Agora, built in the late Hellenistic period. Each of its eight sides carries a relief of one of the wind gods, with sundials carved below, and inside it once held a water clock.

91 reviews for Athens Treasure Hunt and Self-Guided Tour

  1. Rated 5 out of 5

    Anonymous (verified owner) –

  2. Rated 5 out of 5

    Anonymous (verified owner) –

    We had a blast walking through the attractions of this AMAZING city! Will be repeated.

  3. Rated 5 out of 5

    michael– Israel –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Очень понравилось!

  4. Rated 5 out of 5

    Daniel– Sweden –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

  5. Rated 4 out of 5

    France –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Très bien faite. Permet de visiter la ville en étant guidé. Sans cela nous n’aurions pas decouvert tout ce que nous avons vu.

  6. Rated 5 out of 5

    United Kingdom –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    This was a really good way to get to see Athens. We saw lots of interesting things combined into a lovely walk. We stopped several times for drinks and food, so took all day. We definitely would not have been able to cover so much on our own. On the downside, the clues are not great, but this wasn’t the point for us. Very good value for money too.

  7. Rated 5 out of 5

    Victoria-USA –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

  8. Rated 5 out of 5

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  9. Rated 5 out of 5

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  11. Rated 5 out of 5

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  12. Rated 5 out of 5

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  41. Rated 4 out of 5

    Viktoria– Austria –

    Collected on GetYourGuide

    Den Kindern (13 und 9) hat es gut gefallen, sie waren sehr motiviert. Aber wir haben die Rallye auf 3 Tage aufgeteilt und dazwischen andere Sachen gemacht. Manche Rätsel sind schwer verständlich. Routenplaner könnte besser sein, wenn man die Tour nicht auf einmal macht sondern unterschiedliche Start Punkte hat.

Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a team need for the Athens treasure hunt?

The Athens treasure hunt fits into about 2 hours. Of that, 50 minutes is walking, the route measures 3.9 km and there are 10 stops, while the riddles, the photographs and the views take the rest. Stop at any point and the game keeps your place for later.

What is the starting point, and where does the trail end?

It starts at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier below Parliament on Syntagma Square and ends at the Tower of the Winds in the Roman Agora, deep in Plaka. Staying in Plaka yourself, you can turn the sequence around in the app and walk up towards Syntagma instead.

Is anyone waiting for us, or is there a time to book?

Neither applies. Your booking reference arrives by email, unlocks the hunt in the World City Trail app and sits there until you want it, whichever day that turns out to be. Each player buys a ticket, and the game runs on each of their phones.

Do the Acropolis and the Agoras have to be paid for?

Not for the hunt, which never crosses a ticket barrier. The Odeon of Herodes Atticus is read from the walkway of Dionysiou Areopagitou beneath it, and the Library of Pantainos and the Tower of the Winds from the edges of the Ancient and Roman Agora. The Acropolis itself, the Ancient Agora, the Roman Agora and the Odeon are paid archaeological sites, and visiting any of them is a separate trip that you arrange yourself. The Areopagus rock is open and free to climb, and Agios Nikolaos Rangavas and Kapnikarea are working churches where quiet and modest dress are expected when the doors are open.

Is it fun for children?

Yes, provided a grown-up takes part. Athens gives them plenty of targets: the Evzones standing guard in their uniforms, the eight winds carved one to each side of the Tower of the Winds, the bell of Agios Nikolaos Rangavas, the little round monument of Lysicrates in a Plaka corner. The marble and the rock of the Areopagus are slippery when wet, no part of it suits a wheelchair, and a pushchair is awkward on the steps.

Can we play in Greek?

You can. Greek is one of the seven versions here, along with English, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Dutch, and you set it in the World City Trail app before the first riddle.

Is it suitable for a company team day?

Very much so. One ticket per person, five players per team at most, several teams on the same route, released from Syntagma at a few minutes' distance and met again in Plaka. The hunt occupies no venue, so there is no room to book and no schedule for anyone to miss.

What should a team carry?

A charged phone with mobile data, a power bank, water and a hat in summer, shoes that hold on polished marble, and a light rain jacket in winter, since every riddle is in the open air. Earphones make the narration easier on Ermou Street, where the crowds are thickest.

Syntagma, then two thousand years downhill

Tickets go one to a player, and the reference is in your inbox before you have closed the tab. You choose the afternoon you stand in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, open the app and let the first riddle send you down Ermou Street.

Book your tickets →

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