National Gallery - Alexandros Soutsos Museum

The museum is very well designed from the exterior and interior. The nice gardens, external sculptures and beautiful coffe place at the lower level and restaurant on the upper. We were very much impressed with the history of Greek painters, knowledge we didn't. Tetsis works are remarkable as as his story. Lytras work is marvelous.

Big modern gallery, mostly Greek artists who I don’t know much about (though we went for the Tetsis temporary exhibition). Well laid out over four floors (3rd floor was closed but we were still there about four hours) with a nice cafe downstairs. Near the military museum if you’re not worn out by this one. 10€ entry or 15€ with the temporary exhibition. Recommended.

Interesting and eclectic Greek art collection mostly from from 1800s to 1950s (with a non-Greek/international art collection in -1 floor). Bit disappointing that of the 500+ art pieces on display in permanent and temporary exhibitions, not a single piece shown by a female artist. 3rd floor was closed for renovation. Free entry on first Sunday of the month (Nov-March), usually €10. Free luggage storage.

The art is great but the third floor is closed for renovations, the lighting and glare are terrible and docents will sternly tell you which direction to go, even if you’ve already been all the way through. Tickets are expensive for the size of the collection. The cafe is highway robbery. Nice new building which makes you think: they paid so much money and they couldn’t pay for a lighting consultant? You can barely see some of the prints because of the glare. A first class space with semi-amateur lighting.

I visited the National Gallery in December with my mum, who is in her 80s. We arrived at 10 am just as it opened and there was no queue, which made it a fantastic alternative to the busier sites in Athens. It was lovely to wander around the floors, and even with one closed, the temporary exhibition in the basement was excellent. The lifts made it very easy to get around with an older parent, although if there were more seating throughout to sit and enjoy the works, that would help as well. However, the experience was let down by the roaming room attendants. They had a bit too much attitude—almost like military police. The text on the painting labels is very small (especially for older visitors), so you naturally have to lean in to read it, but the moment you do, you are pounced on by the staff. Some of them also have incredibly squeaky shoes—if they are going to hover like that, they should perhaps wear slippers! I appreciate that rules must be followed, but it would be better to install ropes and larger signage so everyone can read comfortably without being scolded. That said, the coffee and service in the café were excellent, and the toilets were clean and accessible. Please don't let your amazing museum down—take this feedback on board to improve the customer experience. We love Athens!

Fell in love with its collection. I think it helped me understand the nature of Greece art more or at least see more clearly its complexity. Very interesting mix. Must-visit place.

National gallery of Greece.. modern building.. three floors full of paintings plus one underground floor for a temporary exhibition.. we went Saturday morning.. you can easy go by foot if you live at the centre of Athens or by public transportation. If you like art generally you will find something to enjoy.. from classic painting up to modern art as you can see from the photos.

Only went to the permanent exhibition. Unfortunately one of the three floors was closed. Leaving us 66,7% to see for 100% of the price. A very nice collection, with some breathtakingly beautiful paintings. No pictures to show for, because the centries were on my heels almost all of the time. That did not make for a relaxing viewing. They have a small book of the collection in the shop, which I got. Unfortunately you need to buy the very big and €70 costing full book for most of the paintings that made my heart beat faster... Too bad it's either too small with too much missing, but portable, OR too big and too heavy, but containing the full permanent collection. But do visit and marvel at the diversity and high quality of the greek fine art painters.