Distractions are delightfully rampant in Athens. Wake up with plans to visit one of the city’s fine museums, like the Benaki, then, after strolling the picturesque, albeit touristy, streets of the village-like Pláka, the sight of a buzzing alfresco café inspires a shift in priorities with the promise of a silky freddo espresso. Such alluring spontaneity is especially felt in Koukaki and Makriyianni, the verdant, pedestrian-friendly adjoining neighborhoods just below the Acropolis. Despite the presence of this visitor-clogged landmark that surreally pops out in the midst of an urban landscape, and several museums, they remain remarkably hushed, inviting wandering and lingering.

The National Museum of Contemporary Art, Athens (EMST) Photo: Spiros Rekounas

What to Do:Archaeology aficionados will first hightail it here for the Acropolis Museum, where the likes of life-size marble statues and relief-decorated slabs offer an insightful overview of the ancient site in a refreshingly divergent setting of glass and concrete. In stark contrast to those well-preserved friezes is the nearby National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST). Opened last fall in the old FIX Brewery building, it symbolizes a new chapter of modernity in the city’s long, rich artistic history. The petite Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum, a decorative arts haven tucked away in a mansion, showcases 40 years of ornate baubles crafted by Lalaounis, the celebrated Greek goldsmith. His pieces, which have adorned many a glamorous celebrity through the decades, double as artifacts with their thoughtful, intricate references to nature and bygone civilizations.