we're delighted that you're joining us on our wedding day and looking forward to welcoming you to what will be a magical day.

for those of you not familiar with athens, we've put together some information below to assist you during your stay. we'll be hosting the wedding reception at the royal olympic hotel where we have arranged a coach service to transport guests between the ceremony and reception; there are plenty of other hotels around and we've put together some options all within a few minutes' walk to the reception venue and coach shuttle.

should you need any more information or have any questions, please contact us directly on [email protected].

we look forward to seeing you in february!

alex and nena

our wedding ceremony will take place at 5pm at agios dimitrios loumbardiaris church, a very beautiful 16th century church set in the scenic surroundings of the pine woods between filopappous hill and the acropolis. the church owes its fame to a three hundred and fifty year old legend; when facing certain destruction from the ottomans who were preparing to destroy the church with the cannons of propylaea, the canons were struck by lightning, halting the attack and saving the chapel... shocking! rest assured we're looking forward to a far more relaxing day!

there is ample parking nearby and the reception venue is a short drive away. click here to see the map. for all guests who wish to use it, the shuttle coach to the church will leave the royal olympic hotel at approximately 4:15pm.

following the wedding, we will be welcoming guests to the ioannis rooftop garden at the royal olympic hotel. We'll be dining and dancing against the backdrop of panoramic views of the athenian skyline including the acropolis, the temple of zeus, lycabettus hill and beyond.

Athens is a three and a half hour flight from london with approximately ten flights a day to and from heathrow and gatwick airport. british airways, aegean airlines and easyjet all run daily flights. we recommend using skyscanner to book tickets as it allows you to compare all airlines at the same time.

once landed, central athens is 45 minutes away by taxi. They run 24/7 from outside the terminal. the yellow taxis offer a fixed price to the city centre; €35 during the day and €50 after midnight. make sure you confirm the fixed fare before leaving the airport as the taxi drivers take great pleasure in overcharging tourists to and from the airport! the fixed fare includes tolls, although they may charge a little extra for large and heavy bags; take note girls, you know who you are!

for the more adventurous types with less luggage, the metro train station at the airport has trains to syntagma square running every thirty minutes, from 6:30am to midnight. take the blue metro line train heading to aegaleo. once you reach syntagma station, change for the metro line 2 (red) train heading to agios dimitrios. acropolis metro is the next stop and all the hotels listed below are within a 10 minute walk from the station, see the map below. tickets cost €8 for an individual and €14 for two people.

during your stay, taxis and the metro are a great way to get around athens and much cheaper than the uk. just remember to validate your ticket by inserting it into the silver gates as you enter the station. a validated ticket gives you unlimited travel for an hour and a half.