Athens hotels and tour guides

[avidtraveler92583]

Anyone have a suggestion for a hotel in Athens near major sites? I would love to see the Acropolis at night. We will be staying a few days prior to our cruise 5/5/07. We always prefer the smaller hotels to the larger ones. Also any suggestions for tour guides in Athens? Thanks in advance for your help.

[RTLS]

Not a personal recommendation as we haven't stayed there yet but we have booked the Magna Grecia boutiquie hoteld for a pre cruise stay next April We booked after reading the reviews on http://www.tripadvisor.com. Check it out!

[Margy]

We havne't been there yet (will be there in Oct. 2006) but out TA recommended the Divani Palace Acropolis which is at the foot of the Acropolis, with magnificent view of the Parthenon. Check it out.

Margaret

[Paisley12]

Our group stayed at the Grand Bretagne in Athens before our cruise in May. This is a Beautiful hotel within walking distance to the Plaka and other areas of interest. I would HIGHLY recommend this hotel for its location, friendliness and beautiful rooms. It definitely is a 5 star hotel. The Acropolis is near by taxi or tour. You will LOVE the Acropolis by day and at night there is a restaurant at the foot of it that has views by night. It was breathtaking.

 

Depending on your room you can have a great view of the Acropolis. Check out the Gardens across the street from the hotel also. Another thing, go into the subway across from the hotel. This subway is so clean ... AND they have a cut away view of an excavation beautifully displayed along with artifacts from the archeological dig. Not to be missed. I would not have thought to go here but our tour guide told us about it. I'm glad he did.

[orchestrapal]

We agree with staying at the Grand Bretgange, it was aperfect hotel in the best location.We were upgraded to a full suite and really enjoyed that.

We used Spiro as a driver/guide,(has his own web site just look for Spiro Athens) who picked us at the airport, toured with us for a day and then the 3rd day took us to the ship. He was wonderful and even picked us up on time, with the whole area aroud the hotel closed because of a parade. He got us to the ship in record time, while the whole Oceania tour group sat in the lobby waiting for a bus that was 1 1/2 hours late.:o

[Phoenix cruiser]

We stayed at the AVA Hoetl in June. It is adajecent to the Plaka (one block away) and the closest hotel we found to the main entrance to the Acropolis. Also only a few blocks from a Metro station.

[hybrn8]

Stayed there in late May and thoroughly enjoyed it. Small, a few hundred yards from Plaka and the metro, with view (from our room anyway) of Acropolis. DO NOT book through any service - go directly to them via fax. We arrived with confirmation in hand to be told there was no booking - luckily there was a room! AVA Hotel has too much street life (equals noise) for me and the Grand Bretagne was out of our budget. We used George the taxi driver to get us from airport - link to him elsewhere, I am sure. However, day of cruise there was a taxi strike and George was not able to take us to the pier. He did, however, get us on one of the ship's minivans. Was a bit irritating. We were prepared, however, to take the metro/bus but would have been a nuisance with luggage! We enjoyed Athens very much and would recommend at least 2 days there. We DID NOT enjoy Oceania and will never, ever cruise on any of their ships again.

[avidtraveler92583]

What happened on your Oceania cruise that so made you dislike it. The overall consensus seems so favorable. Thanks for the tip on the Hotel Hera

[hybrn8]

Where to start? First, the cabin attendants and most of the dining room(s) staff were great.

We thought the overall decor was tacky and very garish. No understated elegance, just loud and ugly (flocked wallpaper as an example).

We thought the concierge and destination staff were more than useless as all efforts and energies were expended for passengers who took their horribly overpriced tours.

We thought the ship should have had onboard lecturers who gave good info about the ports.

We thought the entertainment was lame, at best.

We thought the food was boring and the kitchen inflexible.

We thought a ship holding 650 passengers was just too large.

We thought the internet charges were over the top and the staff at that area was not helpful.

In fact, if it didn't/couldn't result in $$$$ being 'earned', then Oceania wasn't interested.

The library had not a single reference book on the Med and the excuse was that the ship had just come from Asia (don't they have ability to have books sent to meet the ship?).

And, charging a couple bucks for water as people are disembarking to go on the tours was just plain rude.

I always suspected I was strictly a Windstar cruiser (having taken several) and this trip on Nautica validated that.

[Three Amigas]

I also recommend the Divani Acropolis. I could see the Acropolis when standing on the balcony of our room. It was a true view, not a "peek" or "glimpse" that was obtained only by twisting and turning your neck a certain way. The hotel is a very short distance from the promenade that surrounds the Acropolis and not too far from the monument's entrance.

 

I have also stayed at a smaller hotel, a couple blocks from the Grand Bretagne, the Athens Cypria, on Diomias Street (relatively quiet, for Athens). Nothing as magnificent as the Bretagne, but the room and bathroom were clean and comfortable, the hot water was hot, and the A/C was cold. And we received a plate of fresh fruit upon our arrival. :D

 

You can have breakfast included in the room rate or get just a room and rely instead on the tempting goodies (both sweet and savory varieties) at the bake shop around the corner. We found the location ideal - a couple blocks to the Syntagma Metro stop and a block from a fabulous chocolate shop and a great store that sold a huge variety of bulk nuts and dried fruit (the dates and apricots were heavenly), as well as cookies and candies. There are also a variety of textile shops in the area and the Athens flower market was a half dozen or so blocks away. It was very easy to get to the Plaka from the Athens Cypria.

 

Athens is fascinating - a mix of modern and ancient civilization. Wherever you stay - enjoy!

[whyme]

Anyone have a suggestion for a hotel in Athens near major sites? I would love to see the Acropolis at night. We will be staying a few days prior to our cruise 5/5/07. We always prefer the smaller hotels to the larger ones. Also any suggestions for tour guides in Athens? Thanks in advance for your help.

Drop me an e mail and I will give you the guides we used in Athens ,,We cruised on the Nautica,,Athens to Istanbul and the Black Sea

whyme71842@aol.com

[Andee]

We stayed at the Athens Cypria and liked it very much--sk for a room on the 6th floor with a balcony view of the Acropolis.

 

We were also very satisfied with Spiros as our guide.

[Aussie Gal]

We have stayed at the Grand Bretagne three times now and have always loved the location of the hotel. Last time we were there we had an Acropolis view room which is a little smaller than the rooms overlooking Parliament House but the view is awesome particularly at night.

 

It is a beautiful grand old hotel but has every modern convenience and you cannot beat the service provided. It is not cheap but well worth the money.

 

We will be returning in May 2008 after we leave the Nautica and we will book the Grand Bretagne again. I always book directly with Starwood and watch the prices regularly from when I have booked. I usually book about 10 months in advance and find that I get the best rates the earlier I book.

 

Jennie

[sancarlos]

If anyone doesn't like Oceania Cruises, I would certainly be afraid to recommend a hotel or guide in Athens. We think Oceania is the best and I have also sailed Windstar Cruises.

[stingraynz]

If you are looking for transportation and a fine host we used and were very happy with Paul at http://www.***** his email is admin@*****. He is not a tour guide and will not accompany you into the sites.

 

If you are looking for a very knowledgeable and all around wonderful guide from Athens we used Gemma Economopoulou. Her email is geconom@otenet.gr

 

We stayed at the

King George II Palace

3, Vas. Georgiou A' Street

Syntagma (Constitution) Square, 10564 Athens, Greece

http://www.lhw.com

reservations@lhw.com

For general inquiries: info@lhw.com

 

Our preference would have been the Grande Bretagne but the prices were a little steep, this hotel is literally right next door and was gorgeous! The rates were half the price of the GB and I would certainly stay there again. This Syntagma Square address was walking distance to almost everything and was also a main metro stop to get you anywhere else.

 

Hope you enjoyed Athens as much as we did.