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Mount Lycabettus

Mount Lycabettus

Address: Base: 15-min walk northeast of Syntagma Square; funicular every 10 mins from corner of Ploutarchou and Aristippou (take Minibus 060 from Kanari or Kolonaki Square, except Sunday) Tel: 210 722-7065.Open: Funicular: Monday to Sunday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m.Admission: Funicular €4

Mount Lycabettus (In Greek: Lykavittos, Λυκαβηττος) is a Cretaceous limestone hill in Athens. At 277 meters above sea level, the hill (also known as Lycabettos or Lykabettos) is the highest point in the city that surrounds it. Pine trees cover its base, and at its peak are the 19th century Chapel of St. George (Agios Georgios Church), a theatre, and a restaurant.

The hill is a popular tourist destination and can be ascended by the Lycabettus Funicular, a funicular railway which climbs the hill from a lower terminus at Kolonaki.

Lykavittos appears in various legends. Popular stories suggest it was once the refuge of wolves, possibly the origin of its name (which means “the one (the hill) that is walked by wolves”). Mythologically, Lykavittos is credited to Athena, who created it when she dropped a mountain she had been carrying from Pallene for the construction of the Acropolis after the box holding Erichthonius was opened.