Varkiza Beach, Athens: A New Owner Renamed Yabanaki in 2024, and Not Everyone Is Happy About the Change

Greece | Varkiza | Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni, Athens Riviera, Attica

I went to Varkiza expecting the long-established beach park most guides still describe under its older name, Yabanaki, and found a place mid-transition instead. New owners took over in 2024 and rebranded the whole complex as Varkiza Resort, replacing the previous neglected-but-affordable character with wooden structures, straw umbrellas, and a deliberately understated, earthy aesthetic. The redesign is genuinely well-reviewed by some visitors. It is just as genuinely disliked by others, and I think the honest picture sits somewhere between the two rather than at either extreme.

One specific and detailed account I came across, from a grandparent visiting with two young grandchildren, described paying sixty euros for a set of loungers and an umbrella in the first three rows on a weekend, with prices dropping to around twenty euros further back from the water — alongside a new policy banning outside food and coolers entirely, the previous sit-down restaurants replaced with food trucks and a couple of pricier beach bars with limited menus. A separate account described an outright rude interaction with staff while simply inquiring about a bungalow rental. I’d weigh these against the equally genuine praise for the cleaner, more modern look the redesign has produced, and treat my own visit as a chance to judge the current balance for myself rather than relying entirely on either side of the dispute.

Varkiza itself sits in the area locally called Megalo Daktylo — the Large Finger — part of the Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni municipality, roughly two kilometres south of Vari proper. The town carries a working fishing port and fish market alongside its beach-resort identity, and after dark, the area is home to Island, one of the most famous summer nightclubs in Athens, built directly into the rock of a cliff overlooking the sea — a genuinely striking setting regardless of one’s interest in the club itself.

Getting There: 22 Kilometres From Athens, via Poseidonos Avenue or Metro Plus Bus

The drive from central Athens follows Poseidonos Avenue south past Glyfada, Kavouri, and Vouliagmeni, covering roughly 22 kilometres — the same general route I described reaching Kavouri Beach Vouliagmeni Athens Greece, a short distance further north on the same coastline. By public transport, Metro Line 2 to Elliniko, followed by Bus 122 or 171 toward Saronida, drops directly at the Varkiza stop, the full journey taking roughly an hour to seventy-five minutes.

Free parking exists both in dedicated lots and along the street, though spaces become genuinely scarce during peak summer, and arriving early is the practical advice every account repeats.

The Beach: Golden Sand, Shallow Water, an Organised Resort and a Free Stretch

Varkiza divides between the paid Varkiza Resort section and a free, unorganised stretch for anyone preferring to bring their own gear without the entrance fee. The sand is genuinely soft and golden, a welcome change from the pebbled beaches more common elsewhere on this coast, and the water stays shallow and calm for a considerable distance, well suited to families. Within the resort, water sports operators offer windsurfing, kiteboarding, water skiing, banana rides, and stand-up paddleboarding, alongside beach volleyball, beach tennis, and free aqua aerobics sessions. A children’s playground with a small train and bouncy castles sits within the complex, and bungalows are available for day use.

Dog-friendly sections exist along parts of the beach, and the wider promenade carries a genuine range of dining beyond the resort itself, from seafood tavernas to more casual cafés.

Ta Vlaxika and the Meat Tavernas of Vari

A short distance inland, the area known as Ta Vlaxika, in neighbouring Vari, carries its own distinct culinary identity — a cluster of traditional Greek tavernas specialising in spit-roasted and charcoal-grilled meat, including lamb chops and kokoretsi, particularly popular in the colder months when the restaurants close their windows and light their fireplaces, though many also open their roofs in summer for the breeze. For visitors who’ve already covered Lomvarda Beach Koropi Attica Greece further along this same stretch of coast, Ta Vlaxika offers the inland counterpart to a day otherwise spent entirely on the sand.

Varkiza Beach, formerly and still often called Yabanaki, changed ownership in 2024 and was rebranded as Varkiza Resort, bringing a more polished aesthetic alongside higher prices, a no-outside-food policy, and genuinely mixed reviews from longtime visitors. Golden sand, shallow calm water, an organised paid section and a free stretch alongside it, extensive water sports, a children’s playground, and the famous Island nightclub built into the cliff nearby after dark. Varkiza sits in the Megalo Daktylo area of the Vari-Voula-Vouliagmeni municipality, with Ta Vlaxika’s traditional meat tavernas a short drive inland. Twenty-two kilometres from Athens.

Drive via Poseidonos Avenue, or take the metro and bus. Decide whether the resort’s current pricing suits your day before settling in, or use the free stretch instead. Eat at Ta Vlaxika if you want the inland counterpart to the beach.