Athens is one of the best cities in the world to go for a drink. If that sounds a little extreme; if you’re thinking we should take it down a notch, maybe say “Athens offers a great drinking scene” or “bartenders are ambitiously aiming for the stars,” you haven’t been keeping up. Athens is, really, one of the best cities in the world to go for a drink.

The latest proof supporting this is the new World’s 50 Best Bars list, which was announced this week. On it we find renowned The Clumsies and Baba au Rum, two bars which have placed on the list for years (Baba is a staple on the list, first appearing on it as the first Greek bar to make it on in 2013, while The Clumsies placed as high as number 3 in 2020) in 19th and 20th place, respectively. In addition, newly opened Line also made it into the top 50, placing 31st, and a fourth Athenian bar, Barro Negro, nearly made it, placing as number 52.

The bars at both The Clumsies and Line are run by co-owner bartender duo Vasilis Kyritsis and Nikos Bakoulis, and both bars made it onto the list in their first year of operation. Another thing they have in common is creativity; the former is known to organize themed international bartender gatherings, and the second focuses on sustainability and experiments with wine, bread and beer, using unexpected ingredients (the name “Line” refers to the timeline of fermentation).

Baba au Rum, meanwhile, has a typical bar-on-the-corner feel, while serving some of the best tiki cocktails you can imagine, and bartenders at Barro Negro mix drinks inspired by Mexico.

Those who have been observing the blossoming of the city’s bar scene may point out that it no longer has a bar in the top 10, however, the real star of this show is not one bar, but the city itself. With three bars in the top 50, Athens is the fifth most featured city on the list (below three cities twice its size – New York, London and Mexico City – and Barcelona, which also has three bars in the top 50, two of which placed number 1 and 3).

Add to this that Athens bars – even the award-winning ones – offer excellent value for money, and that the city’s bars and restaurants stay open later than most in the world according to a study earlier this year, and the message appears to be (gin)-clear: You want nightlife? Go to Athens.