Attica, Greece — Towns & Travel Guide

What is Attica known for?

Attica is known above all as the region around Athens, the capital of Greece. It was the territory of Athens in the age of the ancient city-states, and the whole Athens metropolitan area still fills this peninsula reaching into the Aegean Sea. Few places in Greece carry a longer past than Attica.

The mines of Laurion made the region an important mining district, down on the southern tip of the peninsula. Athens ties it all together.

Where is Attica?

Attica forms a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Sea, one of the regions of Greece. Land borders close it off on two sides, with Boeotia to the north and Megaris to the west. The rest is all Aegean coast.

The Aegean Sea has shaped the region since ancient times. At the southern tip sits Lavrio, where the ancient mines of Laurion cut into the ground. The peninsula narrows toward the water there.

Its outline, a broad peninsula tapering to the south, is unmistakable on the map. The whole Athens metropolitan area fills the peninsula. The city of Athens sits at its core, ringed by the suburban cities and towns that make up the rest of the region.

Beyond them, the open coast runs down toward the sea on almost every side. Roads and rail fan out from the city of Athens across the peninsula. The sea is always close by.

Attica is compact, a single peninsula holding a capital city, its suburbs and a long stretch of coast. Boeotia and Megaris close the land side, and the Attic Peninsula sets its whole shape.

What is Attica like?

Attica is bound up with the story of Athens more than any other Greek region. In the age of ancient city-states, the whole peninsula was the territory of Athens, and that inheritance still shapes the culture of the region on the Aegean Sea. The past is close at hand.

The name Attica reaches back into Ancient Greece itself. Ancient sites and modern streets share the same ground across the Attic Peninsula. Greek is the everyday language, spoken from central Athens to the smallest coastal town.

Life in Attica is the life of a capital region. The city of Athens gives it museums, markets and a pace unmatched elsewhere in Greece, while the coast along the Aegean Sea pulls people out to the water in summer. The sea is part of everyday life.

Old mining towns like Lavrio add another layer, their history tied to the ancient mines of Laurion. Suburban towns and coastal resorts each keep a character of their own. Food, faith and festival follow the wider Greek pattern, shared across the peninsula.

In the end, it all centres on Athens.

What is the history of Attica?

Attica has been the land of Athens since the days of Ancient Greece. In the age of the city-states, the whole peninsula formed the territory of Athens, and the ancient mines of Laurion worked the southern tip of the peninsula. The name is ancient.

The modern region of Attica was drawn up in 1987, gathering the Athens metropolitan area into one administrative unit. Old and new sit close together on the Attic Peninsula.

What is the climate of Attica?

Attica has a dry Mediterranean climate on the Aegean Sea. Summers around Athens run long, hot and dry, while winters stay mild along the coast, with most of the year's rain falling in the cooler months. The sea softens it.

Breezes off the Aegean Sea take the edge off the summer heat across the peninsula. Snow is rare down on the coast.

How do you get to Attica?

Attica is reached through Athens, the arrival point for most visitors to the region. Flights land near Athens, and roads and rail run in from Boeotia to the north and Megaris to the west, tying the peninsula to the rest of Greece. The sea offers another way in.

Ferries call at Lavrio on the southern tip, linking Attica to the islands of the Aegean Sea. From Athens, the rest of the region is close.