Sick of Feeling Like a Tourist? There’s a Tour for That.

When I landed in Athens last May, I pictured pristine marble temples and tree-lined promenades. Instead, in the Petralona district where I stayed, I encountered shuttered shops, uneven sidewalks and buildings covered in graffiti — a side of the city that didn’t match the tourist brochure.

As I wandered, I began to ask: why do some parts of this ancient metropolis feel forgotten rather than revered? A traditional walk up to the Acropolis wouldn’t answer that. So I searched and found something different: the Athens Social and Political Walk. The tagline caught me: “How did the ‘cradle of democracy’ become the ‘basket case of Europe’?” I booked it.

I met our guide, a 35-year-old political scientist, and five other inquisitive travellers near busy Omonoia Square. He explained that modern Athens bears little resemblance to the Athens of Plato. Today, the city is a lab for every major 21st-century social challenge — rising gentrification, massive wealth gaps, refugee and migrant unrest, and infrastructure neglect.

Tourism strains places like Athens, Buenos Aires, Mexico City and Rio — yet new experiences such as this one are emerging. They let visitors see beyond the postcards and engage with the real people who live there.

Over three hours, we walked through neighbourhoods tourists often skip: where old apartment blocks abutted boutique hotels, and where briefcases and backpackers shared the sidewalk. Our guide brought stories of corruption, displacement, and grassroots activism — connecting empty storefronts to broader political forces.

I left with a transformed view of Athens: not just as a site of ruins, but as a city with a raw, alive narrative. I wasn’t alone. One fellow traveller observed that much of traditional tourism “feels dismissive of the people who live in these places.” He said it plainly: “It’s no surprise that a place like Athens struggles to find a modern identity because we ignore the locals.”

Our guide, who also hosts walks like Understanding the Refugee Crisis and Greek LGBTQ History, noted that most participants book at the last minute. That suggests we only look for truth when the usual guides don’t scratch the surface.