The bohemian neighborhood of Psiri in Athens is a fantastic place to visit if you want to experience a more authentic and less touristy side of Greece’s vibrant capital. It’s one of the oldest areas in Athens, conveniently located near major attractions, and filled with artisan shops, coffee bars, and street art during the day.

At night, Psiri transforms into a lively nightlife district with bustling bars and restaurants. I spent a few days exploring the area, so here’s my guide to the best things to do, street art, restaurants, and places to stay in Psiri, Athens.

Psiri is close to the Acropolis hill and the ancient Agora, forming part of the “Historic Triangle” that was the heart of Athens in ancient Greek and Roman times. The neighborhood took its current form before the Greek revolution of independence against the Ottomans in 1821, with the central square of Plateia Iroon laid out in 1850.

In 1809, the English poet Lord Byron stayed on Agias Theklas street, where he wrote a famous love poem to the “Maid of Athens,” his landlady’s daughter. During the late 1800s, Psiri became a hangout for criminal gangs like the koutsavakides, who styled themselves with long handlebar mustaches and wore their jackets with only one sleeve on. After 1900, the area was cleaned up, and small businesses and workshops moved in, thriving during the first half of the 20th century. However, the area gradually declined as residents moved to quieter neighborhoods. By the 1980s and 1990s, Psiri had a reputation for being run down and unsafe.

The area’s fortunes improved in the run-up to the 2004 Olympics, with the opening of Monastiraki station nearby and changes in license laws attracting investment. Psiri is now designated as a “nightlife” district, encouraging bars and restaurants to open. In the last decade, it has become gentrified, a trendy place to live and stay, with many small boutique hotels.

A visit to Psiri is more about soaking up the authentic atmosphere of a working Athens neighborhood than visiting museums or historic sites. During the day, when Psiri is quiet, it’s the perfect time to wander around, look at the street art, and browse in the artisan shops. At night, the narrow streets buzz as Athenians gather in bars and restaurants to catch up with friends, eat, drink, and listen to music.

One of the most enjoyable things to do in Psiri is to check out the street art and murals around the neighborhood. The best spots to find street art include the streets of Protogenous and Pallados, which run from the main street of Athinas. For gifts and souvenirs, hunt around Taki, where there’s a jewelry shop specializing in worry beads, and the Boubouki shop selling fragrant handmade soaps by Sabater. The Kartousa Art Shop on Georgiou Karaisakaki showcases local arts and crafts.

If you’re into vintage and antiques, Psiri is your happy hunting ground, with many shops more at the “junk shop” or “flea market” end of things. The streets that border Monastiraki or near the fruit stalls of the Central Market are good places to look.

With such an arty, creative vibe in Psiri, it’s no surprise there are a number of art galleries in the area, focusing on contemporary artists. If you want to take a look, pass by A. Antonopoulou Art or The Project Gallery. Try also Alpha Delta Gallery or the Alibi Gallery. It’s best to check the gallery websites to see when they are holding exhibitions, as they may be closed in between.

The streets of Psiri closest to the Varvakios Central Market of Athens are full of specialist food shops. Along the northern edge of Psiri, Evripidou Street is known as the Spice Street of Athens, with numerous shops selling herbs, spices, dried foods, and deli goods. Evripidou is a feast for the senses, with strings of dried chili, garlic, and spices hanging along the shop fronts.

Shopping for a picnic or wanting to taste some local cheese and charcuterie? Evripidou Street is the place to head for. The best-known shops serving Pastourma (air-dried veal) or Soutzouki (dried spicy sausage) are Miran and Karamanlidika. Both have an amazing array of dried sausages hanging from the ceiling. While Miran only sells to take away, Karamanlidika also has a meze restaurant on the corner of Evripidou and Socratous.

The Central Municipal Athens Market, also known as the Varvakios Market, is on the edge of Psiri. The surrounding streets are home to numerous great food businesses, regularly featuring in food tours of Athens. In the covered area of the market, airy halls are devoted to fresh fish and meat, seen at their best in the early morning and winding down after lunch.

The shops around the perimeter of the market are where you can stock up on spices or dried fruits. Also, look out for the cheese shops around the edge of the market. Chat with the stallholders to discover which part of Greece these cheeses come from. Try a sliver or two and buy some cheese to eat later for a picnic.

Once you’ve finished looking around the covered area of the Central Market, cross the Athinas road to the open street market opposite. Here you’ll find stalls full of beautifully polished and presented fruit and vegetables at incredibly reasonable prices. Buy some seasonal fruit like peaches or cherries to eat later. We found a fantastic range of olives here, with stallholders happy to let us try a few different types to help us decide which to buy.

In the warmer months, it’s a delight to wander around Psiri at night and soak up the atmosphere of people having fun. This neighborhood is where Athenians come to relax and meet their friends over a drink or bite to eat. In Athens, being a nightlife district does not mean drunkenness and rowdy behavior, as there is no culture of heavy drinking in Greece. Instead, it’s about sitting around with your friends, chatting, enjoying good food, and a convivial atmosphere.

Some of the bars may have the music turned up loud, and there are also nightclubs in the area. If you find it too noisy, just look for a quieter spot a little further along the street, where you can enjoy a drink and a good meal. The range of restaurants and bars to choose from in Psiri is huge. You’ll find traditional tavernas or Ouzo bars that serve mezes with the drinks, to super-trendy cocktail bars or cafes serving world cuisine.

We stayed at Athens4, a small design hotel centrally located in the old commercial and financial district of Athens. The hotel is in a quiet, pedestrianized side street, yet in 5 minutes you can walk to the heart of Psiri to enjoy the bars, restaurants, and nightlife. The building was originally home to a textile factory. In homage to these connections, Athens4 has used lots of unique textiles, wall coverings, and handcrafted furnishings in the rooms.

Part of the same family of boutique hotels as Athens4, 18 Micon Street is a 15-room boutique hotel in the heart of the Psiri neighborhood. This converted warehouse uses industrial references of brick, wood, and cement softened by tactile fabrics in its individually designed rooms. A few of the suites have terraces with Acropolis views. If you’d prefer a self-catering apartment, they also have Micon Lofts just across the street.

Close to the Thisio metro on the edge of Psiri, Asomaton is a 19-room luxury boutique hotel that was originally a carriage repair shop. It was transformed from dereliction in contemporary industrial style while retaining the heritage brickwork. There’s a small indoor pool and a roof terrace with Acropolis views. The rooms showcase the work of New York-based Greek artist Philip Tsiaras.

Heading to Psiri to explore in the daytime or for a night out in the numerous bars and restaurants? The best place to start is the central square of Plateia Iroon or “Hero’s Square.” This small paved area is closely packed with shaded tables belonging to the various cafes around the square. Each cafe’s tables, chairs, and umbrellas are slightly different in color, but if you are not sure where to sit, then check with the cafe you’d like to be served by. Named after the heroes of the Greek revolution, Plateia Iroon is the prime coffee spot in Psiri and a great place for people-watching.

By night, the square becomes busier, and many of the tavernas and restaurants have traditional live music. From Plateia Iroon, narrow streets radiate out which are treated as if pedestrianized, although cars may pass through them during the day. Streets like Taki and Ag. Anargion, Proteodenous, and Miaouli are full at night with bars and restaurants, which you may not even notice in the daytime.

The streets of Sarri and Evripidou that bound the northern edge of Psiri have less to offer after dark. Once the spice and deli shops close, they are rather quiet, so I probably wouldn’t venture there at night unless to visit a specific restaurant.

Here’s a roundup of some of the best restaurants in Psiri that we tried when we stayed nearby at the lovely boutique hotel, Athens4.

Bougatsadiko Thessaloniki on Plateia Iroon is a traditional pie shop where you can get a slice of feta cheese pie or bougatsa, the sweet breakfast pastry of Greece. Originating in Thessaloniki, bougatsa is made with layers of filo pastry filled with custard cream. The bakery will normally ask if you want it sprinkled with icing sugar and cinnamon, to which the answer is always yes!

Nancy’s Sweet Home, also on Plateia Iroon, is a pastry shop ideal for