Hotel Grande Bretagne, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Athens

“THE classic hotel in Athens… its Parthenon vistas are spectacular but take note… even “view” rooms' views vary greatly!”

This is THE best hotel in Athens… there may be newer ones or more modern ones, but this is the city's equivalent of the George V or the Ritz. That said, it’s not on that level nor are the room rates. But it has the feel of an old classic that’s very well maintained. The location can’t be beat… it’s… more

This is THE best hotel in Athens… there may be newer ones or more modern ones, but this is the city's equivalent of the George V or the Ritz. That said, it’s not on that level nor are the room rates. But it has the feel of an old classic that’s very well maintained. The location can’t be beat… it’s right on the main square (Syntagma) and Parliament (watching the changing of the guards is kind of fun) and if you look to the right… there is THE Parthenon IN the Acropolis. Just a 10-15 minute walk up a hill. Not too taxing... it's a moderate slope. The Acropolis Museum (good not great yet a must-see) is a 10 minute walk downhill to the left. The Olympic Stadium and Botanical Gardens are also nearby and worth walking to, and the hotel is in the best shopping area of the city. Not that you come to Athens to shop. We arrived after dinner flying from LA via Amsterdam and were beat. We got shown our “Parthenon” view room. Well, it’s a laughable description for some rooms and we had already splurged not just to look at the cityscape. Ours was on the third floor overlooking the intersection with a narrow but tall door off to one side (the wrong side) and only if you wedged yourself against a wall could see the Parthenon. This would not do! So we marched down to the front desk and after an hour of negotiating ended up with the best room in the house (part of the larger Maria Callas suite), thanks to the efforts of the very nice and kind Rooms Manager Fotini. She saved the day and the trip. We thought we’d see her again to thank her AGAIN as she deserved it but alas, she was not working the remainder of our stay. BTW, the other clerks at the front desk including Anna were very nice. That said, don’t accept the first room they show you. We ended up on almost the top floor with a terrace for a little more money and it felt like the George V… only with the Parthenon the subject of your view… not the Eiffel Tower. Amazing place to spend a few days and nights… we unfortunately had very wet weather the second half of our stay but got to see lighting strike seemingly on top of the Parthenon… I now get why Greek mythology is so lightning-heavy. On the other hand, the weather was so bad no one else was on our floor and we had the terrace (each room has one and they are only separated by some low plantings) to ourselves. In summer, privacy could be an issue. The decor is fine but a bit dated in style and color but in a charming way and the central lobby is a place to see and be seen by locals. There’s a good gym one floor down but the star of the show is the Rooftop Restaurant and Bar! DEFINITELY get breakfast included and start your day up there. Amazing full-on Parthenon views from most seats and there’s an outdoor seating area as well. (Alas, I believe they allow smoking out there. Very much like the Hotel Eden in Rome. Really, really nice. The Acropolis in December was pretty magical and this hotel made being in Athens in not the driest weather a delight. All the staff were good to us but Maria at room service on our first night was especially sweet. Thanks again, Fotini! I will always love my first time in Greece thanks to your hospitality.

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