Money
The euro has replaced the drachma since January 1st,
2002. The euro (sign: € ; code: EUR) is the official currency of the country
and of the eurozone. It is used daily by 332 million Europeans. The euro is
divided into 100 cents. Notes are issued in €500, €200, €100, €50, € 20, €10
and €5. Coins are issued in € 2, € 1, 50c, 20c, 10c, 5c, 2c and 1c
Changing Money – Currency
At the airport there are banks and ATM machines. Most hotels will
change money for their guests. There are several banks and bureau de change in
the downtown area where currency can be converted.
Banking hours
Banks are open to the public from 08:00 to 14:00 Monday to
Thursday (to 13:30 on Fridays). They are
closed on Saturdays and Sundays.
There is a plethora of ATM’s in the downtown area. Most of them are
in front of bank stores, in the Metro stations and in Department stores.
Greek & Foreign Press –Magazines
Major international newspapers and magazines from around the world
are sold in several kiosks at Syntagma Square opposite to the Parliament
building and in front of McDonald’s. There is a store also closed to the Omonia
Square Metro station on Panepistimiou Avenue.
There are also newspapers published in Greece in the English and
German language. Amongst them, The Athens News which is a daily English
language newspaper focused on Greece and some international news and the German
daily paper the Athener Zeitung.
Bookstores
Eleftheroudakis (main store: 11, Panepistimiou Avenue and two
smaller stores on 41, Panepistimiou Avenue and 20, Nikis street) is one of the
largest bookstores in the downtown Athens area and has a very long tradition.
The main store is located on Panepistimiou Avenue closed to Syntagma Square. It
offers one of the best selection of books in English in Athens. The bookstore’s
offer covers a wide variety of topics, and although it is primarily a Greek bookstore,
it has special sections dedicated to titles in English and other foreign
languages. A large selection of titles related to Greece can be found and this
bookstore can serve as a great source of information and knowledge for tourists
visiting Athens whether you are interested in Greek history, travel guides,
maps, ancient and modern Greek literature.
Papasotiriou Bookstore (stores in Athens: 35, Stournari Str. - 37, Panepistimiou Avenue - 39, Ermou Str.) Most branches of
Papasotiriou have a section with English language mainstream books. They have
though a wide variety of technical books written in English.
Public (1, Karageorgi Servias street, Syntagma Square) has also a
section dedicated to titles in English and other foreign languages.
Librairies Kaufman (28, Stadiou Street) Mostly French books, but
also some German, English and Spanish.
Best Book Hunters (41A, Z. Pigis 41A) Greek and foreign language books.
Bookstop (69, Akadimias & Mavrokordatou 2) Even though the bookstore specializes on
foreign language books taught at schools, educational institutions and language
schools around the country it also offers a variety of fiction and non-fiction
books in the original language. They carry also a broad selection of
dictionaries and other reference material from almost all languages into Greek
and vice versa. Travel guides and maps by several publishers can be found in
the bookstore.
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