125 new lighting poles line Dionysiou Areopagitou and Apostolou Pavlou with warm evening light.
Athens’ pedestrian promenade beneath the Acropolis has a new lighting scheme, designed by Eleftheria Deko and funded by the Onassis Foundation. The completed project was handed over to the City of Athens on Monday, 5 October 2026.
The two streets run along the southern and western sides of the Acropolis, offering residents and visitors a walk beneath its monuments. For the story behind this setting, our history of Athens follows the city from its ancient beginnings to the modern capital.
Warm light beneath the Acropolis
Of the 125 new poles, 106 stand in existing positions and 19 have been installed at new points. All are placed on the building side of the streets, which keeps the view towards the Parthenon open.
Each pole is five metres tall, with a simple design and a sand-coloured finish that blends with the surrounding stone during daylight. After dark, the fixtures cast warm light similar to the illumination of the Acropolis walls. Its intensity is kept below that of the monuments, so the Acropolis stays the main focus.
Paths, planting and archaeological details
Low-level fixtures have been added to the side path along Dionysiou Areopagitou and to Theorias Street. Gentle lighting also reaches planted areas that were dark before. Archaeological remains illuminated for the first time include the Roman cistern just before the entrance to the Odeon of Herodes Atticus.
Special lenses and fittings help reduce glare and light pollution and distribute the light more evenly. The fixtures have a long service life, and municipal services can monitor and adjust their operation remotely. The City of Athens has taken responsibility for maintaining the installation.
Six years of work around the Acropolis
The promenade lighting follows a series of improvements supported by the Onassis Foundation around the Acropolis. In 2020 these included new lighting for the rock and its monuments, also designed by Deko, an inclined elevator and improved routes for visitors with mobility difficulties. A tactile route and guiding aids for visitors with visual impairments followed in 2022.
Deko also designed the lighting for the C. P. Cavafy sculpture on Dionysiou Areopagitou, created by sculptor Praxitelis Tzanoulinos. The latest project extends her work from individual monuments to the surrounding public promenade.
Seeing it for yourself
For an evening walk, begin near the Acropolis Museum and follow Dionysiou Areopagitou west towards Apostolou Pavlou and Thissio. Arrive around dusk to watch the daylight fade over the monuments and see the promenade in its new evening lighting. Allow time to pause along the way and look back towards the Acropolis.
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