Mpati Beach is a very nice, relatively long (about 800m), sandy beach. It is mainly visited by the locals from the village above this beach: Palaio Faliro (Παλαιό Φάληρο). During the week though it serves also many visitors, from other places around the city center, who come here for a quick, refreshing swim after work.
This has mainly to do with the fact that this beach is very (very) close to the city center of Athens: by car, it is only 8 km. away from Athens (Syntagma square). One drawback is that there is no real parking spot here. You will have to find yourself a parking in the streets of Palaio Faliro (Παλαιό Φάληρο).
For this reason most people will come here by taking the tram line (number 3) from the Syntagma square (the main square of Athens) towards 'SEF' (Στάδιο Ειρήνης και Φιλίας) translated as the 'Peace & Friendship Stadium'.
The stop here is called 'ΕΔΕΜ' (EDEM). In this way, you will reach the beach in about 30 minutes.
For the more 'sportive' people among us, this beach is also, in a safe way, approachable by bicycle. It will link, in a few days, the following article: Around Athens - Biking: Thissio - Athens Riviera.
The picture below shows how the entrance to the beach looks like:
On the left side of the entrance there is a small playground so that the younger children have something to do in the case they got bored of the sea. The playground is fenced to assure that the children, when they totally go up in their game, not accidentally run towards the tram lines and the street.
Also for the 'bigger children' among us their are 2 playgrounds ;-)
1. Beach Tennis:
2. Beach Volley:
Regarding accommodation, there is (still) some space for improvement but as of June 2020, the beach has Life Guards, Showers (not very nice but hey they work!) and Dressing Cabins:
Because of its shallow waters and its very soft sandy texture, this beach is very suitable for families with smaller children. Another advantage is that it is so close to the center that the children don't have to sit for hours (you know children experience time in a different way: minutes are hours and vice versa) in the car.
As you can tell from the picture above, on the backside of the beach (facing towards the sea), there are a lot of trees but unfortunately they don't really offer good shade. So if you are sensitive to the sun, please bring an umbrella and a lot of sun cream. Temperatures can get very hot here as this beach is facing directly south!
Totally in the back of the beach there is even a small wood here? So far, I haven't understood how it got here. Is it natural? Did somebody create it? But when? some of the trees are (already) really big. If you know the answer, let me know.
On the far left side of the beach (facing towards the sea), there are 2 taverns to enjoy a delicious dinner on the beach. Very nice and romantic during sunset!
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Tavern 'The Tavern':
- Tavern 'EDEM':
(Tip: try to read also the Greek reviews on sites like TripAdvisor, even with translation software. Many times, the opinions are very different from the English ones).
QUICK DETAILS:
LOCATION : 37°55'15.3"N+23°41'48.8"E (37.9209209 23.6946949).
TYPE : SANDY.
FACILITIES :
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PARTLY ORGANIZED (life guards, showers & dressing cabins).
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CHILD FRIENDLY (shallow waters, fine sand & playground).
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BEACH ACTIVITIES (beach tennis & beach volley).
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TREES WITH (LITTLE) SHADE. (an umbrella is recommended).
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ACCESSIBLE BY CAR, TRAM & BICYCLE.
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NO PARKING.
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TAVERNS ON THE BEACH.
