Dryades Hotel, Athens

Advantages: Position, Price
Disadvantages: Basic (but plentiful) breakfast

...The Plaka Hotel is a real find. It is ideally situated at the foot of the Acropolis and is amongst ,or within easy walking distance, of many of Athens attractions. It is on the corner of a small side street just a hundred yards or so from the metro station that is at the end of the line from the airport. Some bedrooms do have a direct view to the Acropolis. The hotel staff are friendly and helpful and the accomodation is generally clean and modern. Our room was quite small but not so much that it was a problem. There was an adequate amount of storage space. The bathroom was small and a bit dated but ok, considering the price! We paid £33 a night for a double room with breakfast and thought this was a real bargain. Make sure you compare sites for prices as they vary considerably. The breakfast was quite basic but included... Read review

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Advantages: fun, charming and diverting city with plenty of interesting things to see and do; great variety of bars and restaurants
Disadvantages: has some shonky areas, may bring you to spend more than you'd like

...since been challenged. Why you would want to, I don't know, but it would make for an interesting mediation and negotiation session. As far as accommodation goes, there is an enormous Holiday Inn in the centre of town - if you can't find a room here, you're struggling. But even if they are full, for whatever reason, there are still a few variously scary motels and hotels scattered around. Being a city where the focus is on living rather than touring, the selection may be limited, but it's not a resort town, so if you're after five-star luxury, you're better off somewhere a bit fancier and less student-oriented. The Holiday Inn we stayed at was perfectly adequate - comfortable, reasonable-sized rooms, without being ornate. It's pretty much the standard motel room you'd find anywhere. Not terrific, but not bad either. Athens is... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Vibrant, cheap excellent public transport. Famous historic sites. Eating out
Disadvantages: Not as 'Greek' as it used to be. Poor air quality. The drivers!

...still have to 'mind the gap', as some Metro stations were built on curves in less enlightened times. WHERE WE STAYED Our hotel for this stay was The Art Hotel, Marni Street. This was a short walk to the central Omonia Square, and therefore close to the Metro. I've written about this separately so I won't dwell on the fact except to say that the rooms were good, if a little small, and the people were wonderful. The walk back to the hotel at night involved short one-sided conversations with a lot of young ladies standing on street corners, but there was no menace to the enterprise, which brings me to… A SAFE PLACE? Like anywhere prone to getting crowded, it pays to know where your wallet is, especially after dark but on the whole, Athens seems to be a largely low-crime-rate city where you can relax a bit. Unlike... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful