(Athens) One of the world’s most visited ancient monuments, the Acropolis of Athens, has launched private tours for 5,000 euros ($7,350) outside official opening hours, according to the Greek Heritage online ticket sales site on Tuesday.
These private tours, reserved for groups of up to five people, which sparked controversy when they were announced, begin at 7 a.m. or can be held in the evening after 8 p.m.
“This exclusive service is available only for four groups of up to five people at a time and can include a personal guide” if guests wish, according to the Hellenic Heritage website, which advertises the tours as The Acropolis Experience.
According to Greek media, a first private visit took place last Saturday after the official closure, carried out by a Russian couple accompanied by their own guide.
On the front page, the daily newspaper Kathimerini headlined Tuesday “Russian couple make first VIP visit” while the newspaper Your Nea announced a “first visit at 5000 euros”.
Contacted by AFP, the National Organization for Archaeological Resources (ODAP) responsible for managing the Acropolis did not immediately respond.
On Tuesday, at the Greek heritage site, it was possible to book a private tour without a guide from July 12.
Escape the crowd
These private tours will then take place on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday and should allow you to escape the crowds that climb the “Sacred Rock” located in the historic center of Athens every day.
Announced last December, these private tours of the Parthenon and other treasures of the Acropolis were initially scheduled to begin on December 1er April, but the Ministry of Culture finally indicated to AFP that their launch had been postponed.
The union of guardians of Greek archaeological sites said it was opposed “to the way in which these private visits are organized, which are carried out without their participation,” its president, Georgia Kondyli, told AFP.
“We have not had any information about the organization of these visits,” she added, insisting that “it is a cultural site.” “We can understand that there is a financial necessity behind this measure, but the organization could have been different,” Georgia Kondyli lamented.
On June 21, the ODAP website published a call for tenders for a “personalized visitor reception service” with a budget of 37,200 euros without providing further details.
Overtourism
Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Acropolis of Athens, built in the 5th centurye century BC, continues to see its attendance increase, particularly due to tourists embarking on cruise ships.
During the summer of 2023, up to 23,000 visitors flocked there on some days, creating long queues at the bottom of the Acropolis as overtourism threatens Greece.
The Acropolis recorded a record number of visitors last year, with nearly four million, an increase of more than 31% in one year, to the point that the ODAP had to introduce time slots to stem the flow.
Greece’s conservative government is accused of seeking to increase private management of the country’s museums and ancient sites, which brought in more than 121 million euros to the state in 2022.
In February 2023, the Greek parliament passed a law making it easier to exhibit rare antiquities in museums abroad, a reform that archaeologists worry could pave the way for the long-term “export” of rare objects, and which they want to block.
The Acropolis of Athens is open to the public every day from 8 am to 8 pm. The regular entrance ticket costs 20 euros ($29) and combined with other ancient sites, 30 euros ($44).
On June 12 and 13, the Acropolis of Athens, like other archaeological sites in the country, had to partially close in the middle of the day, due to the first heatwave of the year with temperatures reaching up to 43°C.
Last summer, the Acropolis of Athens had already had to close its doors for a few days during a two-week heatwave in July, unprecedented in its duration.