Cape Sounion - Temple of Poseidon

The Temple of Poseidon has marked the tip of Attica for two and a half millennia - built between 444 and 440 BC in the great Periclean construction age, its slim Doric columns of local Agrilesa marble stand on a cliff some 60 metres above the sea, the first and last piece of home ancient sailors saw on the Aegean run. Myth stationed King Aegeus here, watching for Theseus's sails and giving the sea his name in grief; Romantic travellers came for the melancholy, and a name carved on one pillar is traditionally attributed to Lord Byron. Today the temple is the closing ritual of an Athens trip: the coast road curls out past the Apollo Coast beaches, the colonnade catches the late light, and the sun drops into the sea in front of a cliff-top audience that applauds most evenings.

The main sights

• The colonnade - surviving Doric columns luminous against the sea.
• The sunset - the Aegean swallowing the sun before the temple.
• The cape panorama - islands from Kea to the Peloponnese haze on clear days.
• The fortress traces - remains of the ancient walls and ship-sheds below.

When to go

Any season works - winter sunsets are the clearest and least crowded. In summer, come 90 minutes before sundown to claim a spot; midday visits trade atmosphere for solitude.

Good to know

The temple itself is roped off, so you circle rather than enter, and sunset brings coachloads - this is a shared ritual, not a private one. The site is compact; the drive is half the outing, so take the coast road and swim on the way.

Nearby

The Apollo Coast beaches, Lavrio's mining-town harbour and the temple of Athena Sounias.