One of the great museums of the world

Noteworthy for: The gold Mask of Agamemnon in the Mycenean Halls is a big draw; discovered in a royal burial shaft, it is believed to date from around 1500 BC.

You could lose yourself for days in the vast rooms, transfixed by the 8,000sqm of antiquities displayed here. Staggering in itself is the sophisticated astronomical computer 1,500 years ahead of its time which is able to predict the movement of stars and planets. Even after trying to decipher the earliest Greek writing or ogle the Neolithic pottery and gold-horned Bull's Head, you've still only seen a fraction of the highlights.

The museum was originally opened to house the finds from the 19th century excavations in and around Athens, but it has become a treasure-trove from all over Greece. The five large permanent collections include Prehistoric, Sculptures, Vase and Minor Objects, Metallurgy and Egyptian and Near Eastern Antiquities. Rather than trying to see it all, concentrate on the collection you find most intriguing.