Table of Contents
Athens is a city that has always had the monuments. What it lacked, until recently, was the hotels to match them.
That's changed. Over the last decade, a generation of young Greek architects and hoteliers — many of them returning from careers in London, New York, and Berlin — has transformed the city's accommodation landscape. Neoclassical mansions have become design boutiques.
Brutalist apartment blocks have been reimagined as minimalist retreats. Former industrial buildings now house concept hotels with curated art collections and rooftop restaurants. The result is a hotel scene that has finally caught up with the city's food, culture, and energy.
The constant across almost every good hotel in Athens is the view. This is a city defined by a single monument — the Parthenon, sitting on the Acropolis hill at the center of everything — and the best hotels understand that putting you in visual relationship with that monument is the most powerful thing they can do.
A rooftop terrace, a glass of wine, and the Parthenon glowing above the city at night: it's one of the great hotel experiences in Europe, and in Athens, you can have it at almost every price point.
For the neighborhood-by-neighborhood guide to choosing your base in Athens, read our where to stay in Athens guide. This article focuses on the hotels themselves — the ones worth your money, organized by category.
Quick Answer: Best Hotels in Athens by Category
- Best luxury hotel: Hotel Grande Bretagne — the most iconic hotel in Greece, Syntagma Square landmark since 1874
- Best design hotel: Perianth Hotel — K-Studio architecture, contemporary art, Kolonaki sophistication
- Best boutique hotel: Mona Athens — Koukaki's creative spirit in hotel form, mid-century design meets Greek art
- Best Acropolis-view hotel: AthensWas — every room faces the Parthenon, design-forward, pedestrianized street
- Best for honeymoons: Electra Palace Athens — rooftop pool with Acropolis views, five-star romance in Plaka
- Best mid-range: Herodion Hotel — Acropolis Museum doorstep, rooftop bar, warm service, honest prices
- Best budget hotel: Marble House — a Koukaki pension with soul, garden courtyard, genuine warmth
- Best for rooftop experience: A for Athens — Monastiraki Square's most famous rooftop bar happens to have rooms
Luxury Hotels in Athens
Hotel Grande Bretagne
There is no hotel in Greece more storied than the Grande Bretagne. It has occupied the northeast corner of Syntagma Square since 1874, and walking through its lobby — marble floors, crystal chandeliers, the scent of fresh flowers arranged with the precision of a museum installation — is like stepping into a different century.
This is where visiting heads of state stay. This is where Athenians celebrate their most important occasions. This is where Athens performs its grandest version of itself.
The rooftop restaurant and bar have one of the most famous views in the city — the Acropolis, Lycabettus Hill, and the Parliament building all visible in a single panorama. Rooms are large by European standards, furnished in a classical luxury style that's been updated enough to feel current without losing its gravitas. The spa, with its indoor pool and thermal suite, is exceptional. The breakfast buffet is arguably the most lavish in Athens.
This is a splurge, and it knows it. But if you're beginning a honeymoon through the Greek islands, celebrating a milestone, or simply want to experience Greek hospitality at its most polished, the Grande Bretagne delivers a kind of experience that no boutique hotel can replicate.
Price range: €350–800/night
Best for: Celebration stays, luxury travelers, anyone wanting Athens at its most grand
Good to know: Even if you don't stay, book a sunset drink at the rooftop bar — the view is public and the cocktails are good. The hotel's concierge can arrange day trips to Delphi, Cape Sounion, and Nafplio with reliable operators.
Check prices for Hotel Grande Bretagne on Booking.com
Electra Metropolis
If the Grande Bretagne is Athens's classical grande dame, Electra Metropolis is its polished modern counterpart. This five-star opened on Mitropoleos Street — the axis between Syntagma and Plaka — and immediately established itself as one of the best hotels in central Athens. The rooftop pool has panoramic Acropolis views, the rooms are contemporary and well-designed with floor-to-ceiling windows, and the overall tone is smart, professional luxury without the weight of history.
The location is ideal: walk left and you're in Plaka within three minutes; walk right and you're at Syntagma Square in two. The ground-floor restaurant is genuinely good (not just hotel-adequate), and the lobby bar has the kind of atmosphere that attracts locals as well as guests — always a good sign.
Price range: €200–400/night
Best for: Modern luxury seekers, couples, business travelers wanting five-star amenities in the best location
Good to know: The rooftop pool is a genuine asset in Athens's summer heat — arrive early for the best loungers. Mitropoleos Street leads directly past the Metropolitan Cathedral into Plaka, making it one of the nicest walks in central Athens.
Check prices for Electra Metropolis on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Electra Palace Athens
The hotel that owns the most coveted swimming pool in Athens. Electra Palace sits in the heart of Plaka, and its rooftop pool looks directly up at the Parthenon from close range — the kind of view that makes you stop mid-stroke and stare. The pool terrace is intimate rather than vast, which makes it feel exclusive rather than crowded.
Rooms are classically decorated in a warm, traditional luxury style. The service is polished and personal. The breakfast buffet is one of the better hotel breakfasts in the city, with a mix of Greek and international options that goes well beyond the standard continental spread. The location deep in Plaka means cobblestone lanes, neoclassical buildings, and the Acropolis visible from nearly every angle.
Price range: €200–450/night
Best for: Honeymooners, couples, anyone for whom a rooftop pool with Acropolis views is a non-negotiable
Good to know: The pool is small and gets crowded in peak season — arrive early. The deep-Plaka location means some streets are too narrow for taxis; you'll carry luggage the last hundred meters. Worth it for the setting.
Find hotels in Athens on Booking.com, or compare prices on Agoda for the best deal.
Design & Boutique Hotels in Athens
AthensWas
If I had to recommend one hotel to a friend visiting Athens for the first time, it might be this one. AthensWas sits on Dionysiou Areopagitou — the pedestrianized boulevard along the southern base of the Acropolis — and every room faces the Parthenon. Every single one. The design is sharp, modern, and deliberately contemporary: clean lines, natural materials, subtle Greek touches that reference tradition without being trapped by it.
The rooftop restaurant serves creative Greek cuisine with a view that could justify charging twice as much. The location on the pedestrianized street means zero traffic noise, a rare luxury in Athens. And the experience of stepping out of the hotel lobby directly onto one of the most beautiful urban walks in Europe — the archaeological promenade connecting Plaka, the Acropolis, and Thissio — is something that never gets old.
Price range: €180–350/night
Best for: Design lovers, first-time visitors wanting the quintessential Athens experience, couples, photographers
Good to know: Request a higher floor for the best Acropolis angles. The hotel is a two-minute walk from the Acropolis Museum and five minutes from the entrance to the Acropolis itself. If you're planning to island-hop after Athens, the Akropoli metro station is steps away for the Piraeus connection.
Check prices for AthensWas on Booking.com
Perianth Hotel
The hotel for travelers who care about architecture and design as much as location. Perianth occupies a former residence in Kolonaki, reimagined by K-Studio — one of Greece's most acclaimed architecture firms, the same team behind Cosme in New York. Contemporary Greek art fills the common spaces, curated with genuine taste rather than decorator-catalog randomness. The rooftop restaurant serves modern Greek cuisine that draws locals as well as guests. The spa and pool area is a genuine retreat from the Athens heat.
Kolonaki is quieter and more upscale than the Plaka–Monastiraki–Syntagma triangle, which means Perianth attracts a different crowd — returning visitors, design professionals, people who've already seen the Acropolis and now want to eat, drink, and explore Athens at a more sophisticated pace. It's a ten-minute walk from Syntagma, so you're still very much central.
Price range: €250–500/night
Best for: Architecture and design lovers, returning visitors, couples seeking a refined atmosphere
Good to know: Kolonaki's hillside position means some uphill walking. The Lycabettus funicular is nearby — ride it at sunset for the most panoramic view of Athens. The hotel's restaurant is worth booking even if you're staying elsewhere.
Check prices for Perianth Hotel on Booking.com
Mona Athens
Koukaki has produced a handful of genuinely interesting hotels in recent years, and Mona is the standout. The design blends mid-century furniture with contemporary Greek art — a combination that sounds precarious but works beautifully. The rooftop terrace is intimate, the kind of space where you end up sharing wine recommendations with the couple at the next table. Rooms are well-designed with quality materials, and the overall atmosphere captures the creative, unhurried spirit of the neighborhood.
What makes Mona special is context. Koukaki is where young Athenians live — the sidewalk cafés, the independent bookshops, the natural wine bars, the sourdough bakeries. Staying here means you're part of that daily rhythm rather than observing it from a tourist enclave. The Acropolis is still a ten-minute walk away. You just approach it from the local side.
Price range: €160–320/night
Best for: Design-conscious couples, anyone wanting a boutique experience embedded in local Athens life
Good to know: Some rooms are compact — standard for Athens, but worth noting. Koukaki's café strip on Veikou Street is steps away. The Acropolis Museum is a five-minute walk.
Check prices for Mona Athens on Booking.com
The Foundry Suites
A collection of design apartments in a converted industrial building in Pangrati — Athens's best-kept-secret neighborhood. Each suite has a kitchen, a living area, and the kind of thoughtful design where every piece of furniture, every light fitting, every ceramic object has been chosen with care. There's a shared rooftop terrace and a private garden. The experience is closer to staying in a beautifully curated apartment than a hotel, which is exactly the point.
Pangrati is the neighborhood that Athenians don't want tourists to discover — food-obsessed, café-lined, and blissfully free of souvenir shops. The Panathenaic Stadium (where the first modern Olympics were held in 1896) is a five-minute walk. The Acropolis is twenty minutes on foot. If you're staying more than two nights or traveling as a family, the space and kitchen access transform the economics of an Athens trip.
Price range: €180–380/night
Best for: Families, longer stays, design lovers, anyone wanting space and independence in a local neighborhood
Good to know: The kitchen is a real advantage — Pangrati's local markets and food shops are exceptional. The suites feel like a design apartment, not a hotel, which means less hand-holding but more authenticity.
Check prices for The Foundry Suites on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Monument Hotel
Thissio doesn't get enough credit as a hotel neighborhood, and Monument Hotel is part of the reason it should. This boutique property blends contemporary design with the area's archaeological character — appropriate, given that the Ancient Agora and the Temple of Hephaestus are a three-minute walk away. Rooms are modern and well-sized for Athens, and the common areas have the kind of considered details that architectural magazines notice.
The real appeal is the setting. Thissio wraps around the western side of the Acropolis, connected to Plaka by the pedestrianized archaeological promenade — one of the finest urban walks in Europe. The evening walk from Monument Hotel to the Acropolis Museum takes fifteen minutes and passes through some of the most scenic parts of the city. You'll want to do it every day.
Price range: €160–320/night
Best for: Architecture lovers, couples wanting a quiet and romantic base, walkers who explore on foot
Good to know: The Apostolou Pavlou promenade is steps away — sunset here, with the Temple of Hephaestus in the foreground and the Acropolis above, is one of the best free experiences in Athens.
Check prices for Monument Hotel on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Mid-Range Hotels with Character
Herodion Hotel
The best hotel in the Makriyanni area — sitting directly across from the Acropolis Museum on a quiet, pedestrianized street. The rooftop restaurant and bar have unobstructed Acropolis views that are spectacular at sunset. Rooms are well-appointed and comfortable — not cutting-edge design, but consistently good. The staff are warm and knowledgeable, the kind who remember your coffee order by day two. Breakfast is excellent.
Herodion represents what a well-run mid-range hotel should be: reliable quality, genuine warmth, a location that puts you in the middle of everything, and a rooftop view that competes with hotels charging twice as much. It's the hotel I'd recommend to my parents.
Price range: €150–300/night
Best for: Couples, families, first-time visitors wanting quality without luxury prices
Good to know: The rooftop is open to non-guests, so arrive early for sunset seats. The Acropolis Museum is literally a two-minute walk — plan to visit on multiple mornings if your schedule allows.
Check prices for Herodion Hotel on Booking.com
A for Athens
One of the most famous rooftop bars in Athens happens to be attached to a hotel, and the hotel is a good one. A for Athens sits directly on Monastiraki Square, with rooms facing either the Acropolis or the Ancient Agora. The design is modern minimalist — clean lines, natural materials, smart tech. But the real draw is that rooftop. Watching the Parthenon light up at night while holding a cocktail you didn't have to leave your building for is the kind of convenience that justifies the price.
The Monastiraki location puts you at the center of Athens's most energetic neighborhood — flea market, street food, buzzy restaurants, bars that stay open until the small hours. This is not the hotel for quiet evenings. It's the hotel for people who want Athens at its most alive.
Price range: €150–300/night
Best for: Solo travelers, younger couples, nightlife lovers, anyone wanting to be in the thick of things
Good to know: The rooftop bar is extremely popular with non-guests, so it gets crowded. The square is loud — bring earplugs or request a courtyard room. The Monastiraki metro station is steps away for island ferry connections via Piraeus.
Check prices for A for Athens on Booking.com
St. George Lycabettus
A Kolonaki institution that has been hosting visitors for decades. A recent renovation brought it firmly into the modern era, but the hotel retains the warm, personal quality that chain properties never quite replicate. The rooftop pool has one of the best views in Athens — directly across to the Acropolis with the city spread below — and the hillside setting gives it a sense of elevation and escape that downtown hotels can't match.
Rooms are comfortable and well-appointed. The service has the kind of Greek warmth that makes you feel like a guest rather than a room number. Kolonaki's designer boutiques, galleries, and polished cafés are right outside the door. The Lycabettus funicular is nearby, and the summit view is unmissable.
Price range: €180–380/night
Best for: Returning visitors, couples who appreciate a quieter and more refined neighborhood, anyone who values rooftop pool views
Good to know: The hilltop location means uphill walking — a real consideration in Athens's summer heat. Taxis and the metro (Evangelismos station) are close.
Check prices for St. George Lycabettus on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Attalos Hotel
A solid, honest mid-range option with one of the best rooftop terraces in the Monastiraki area. Attalos sits on Athinas Street at the edge of Monastiraki, with direct Acropolis views from the rooftop and a location that's central to everything. Rooms are clean and functional — no design awards, but perfectly adequate. The breakfast buffet is included and good. This is the hotel for travelers who'd rather spend their money on experiences than on thread count.
The value proposition is strong. A rooftop Acropolis view, a central location, included breakfast, and prices that leave room in the budget for the restaurants and experiences that make Athens exceptional. Not every hotel needs to be a design statement. Sometimes the best hotel is the one that does its job honestly and lets the city do the rest.
Price range: €90–180/night
Best for: Budget-conscious travelers wanting a central location, families, anyone who values substance over style
Good to know: Athinas Street is a main road — request a room facing away from the street if noise bothers you. The Ancient Agora entrance is a three-minute walk. The rooftop terrace at sunset is the highlight.
Check prices for Attalos Hotel on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Ergon House
One of the most original hotel concepts in Athens — and possibly in Greece. Ergon House sits above the Ergon Agora in Pangrati, a curated food market and restaurant showcasing the best Greek producers: olive oils, cheeses, honey, wines, charcuterie. Staying here means you literally live above one of the best food destinations in the city. Rooms are modern and stylish, the breakfast is outstanding (sourced from the market below), and the entire concept reflects the food-forward spirit of the neighborhood.
For travelers who organize their trips around eating — and in a city with Athens's food scene, that should be everyone — Ergon House is the most conceptually coherent hotel in the city. You learn about Greek products at breakfast, shop for them in the market during the day, and eat them in the restaurant at night.
Price range: €130–280/night
Best for: Foodies, returning visitors, anyone wanting to understand Greek food culture from the inside
Good to know: Even if you don't stay, visit the Agora for a meal or to buy products to take home. The Panathenaic Stadium is a five-minute walk. The Acropolis is twenty minutes on foot — far enough to feel local, close enough to not need a taxi.
Check prices for Ergon House on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Budget Hotels Worth Booking
Athens is one of the few European capitals where a budget hotel can genuinely surprise you. The competition among mid- and lower-range properties has pushed quality upward, and several of the most charming stays in the city cost under €100 a night.
Hotel Phaedra
A genuinely affordable option in Plaka — the most expensive neighborhood in Athens — that has been quietly delivering value for years. Phaedra sits on a quiet square near the Church of the Holy Apostles, with clean, simple rooms and, from the upper floors, views of the Acropolis that hotels charging three times as much would envy. Don't expect luxury. The rooms are basic, the furniture is functional, and the bathrooms are compact. But the location is unbeatable, and the price is honest.
Price range: €80–150/night
Best for: Budget travelers who refuse to compromise on location, solo visitors, anyone who'd rather spend on food than rooms
Good to know: Upper-floor rooms with Acropolis views are the ones you want — ask specifically. Air conditioning is essential in summer; confirm it works when you arrive.
Check prices for Hotel Phaedra on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Marble House
One of Athens's best budget stays and a genuine rarity: a hotel with soul at a pension's price. Marble House is a small family-run pension on a quiet Koukaki side street, operated by the same family for years. Rooms are simple — tiled floors, basic furniture, some with small balconies — but everything is clean and well-maintained. The communal garden, where guests gather in the evenings, creates the kind of social atmosphere that hostels aspire to but hotels rarely achieve.
The staff genuinely care. They remember your name. They give restaurant recommendations that turn out to be exactly right. They embody the Greek concept of filoxenia — love of the stranger — in a way that makes you return year after year. Many guests do.
Price range: €50–100/night
Best for: Budget travelers, solo visitors, long-stay guests, anyone who values warmth over amenities
Good to know: No elevator — stairs only. Book the rooms with balconies if available. The Akropoli metro station is a five-minute walk, connecting directly to Piraeus for island ferries.
Check prices for Marble House on Booking.com
Phidias Hotel
A three-star hotel with a four-star location and a five-star view. Phidias sits directly on Apostolou Pavlou in Thissio — the pedestrianized promenade that wraps around the western side of the Acropolis — with rooms overlooking the Ancient Agora and, from the rooftop terrace, the Parthenon. Coffee with this view in the morning; wine with the sunset in the evening. The rooms are small and simple — standard for a three-star in a historic building — but the view from the rooftop is comparable to hotels charging four times as much.
Price range: €80–160/night
Best for: Budget-conscious travelers wanting Acropolis views, couples, anyone who values location and view over room size
Good to know: Rooms are compact — manage expectations. The pedestrianized boulevard location means no traffic noise. The walk to the Acropolis Museum takes fifteen minutes along one of the most beautiful paths in Athens.
Check prices for Phidias Hotel on Booking.com, or compare options on Agoda.
Practical Tips for Athens Hotels
When to book. April–June and September–October are peak tourist season — book 2–3 months ahead for the best properties. July and August are quieter (Athenians flee to the islands) and hotels often drop prices, but the heat is extreme. Winter (November–March) brings the lowest prices and a different, more atmospheric Athens.
Neighborhoods matter. Plaka is historic and touristy. Koukaki is local and residential. Monastiraki is buzzy and loud. Syntagma is central and corporate. Thissio is romantic and quiet. Kolonaki is polished and upscale. Pangrati is foodie heaven. For the full area breakdown, read our where to stay in Athens guide.
The Acropolis-view premium. Hotels charge 20–50% more for rooms with direct Acropolis views, and it's worth paying. The difference between a city-view room and an Acropolis-view room at the same hotel is often the difference between a good stay and a memorable one. Request the highest floor available.
Getting from the airport. Metro Line 3 runs directly from Athens International Airport to Syntagma (€9, ~40 minutes). A taxi costs a flat €40 by day (€55 at night). Both are straightforward. Some hotels offer airport transfers — ask when booking.
How long to stay. Two nights minimum, three ideally. Athens rewards time — not just for the Acropolis, but for the neighborhoods, the food, and the energy of a city that has been continuously inhabited for over three thousand years. Most visitors who planned one night wish they'd booked two. Plan your full Greece itinerary with at least two Athens nights.
Day trips. Cape Sounion (Temple of Poseidon at sunset), Delphi (Oracle, full day), Nafplio (Venetian port town, gorgeous), and the Saronic Islands — Hydra and Aegina are both doable as day trips from Piraeus.
Book an Acropolis & mythology small group tour on GetYourGuide.
Written by
Athens-born engineer · Coordinates a 5-expert Greek team · 50+ years combined field experience
I write every article on this site drawing on real, first-hand expertise — mine and that of four colleagues who live and work across Greece daily: a Peloponnese tour operator, a transfer specialist across Athens, Mykonos & Santorini, a Cretan hotel owner, and a Northern Greece hotel supplier. Nothing here comes from a single visit or desk research.
Informed by 5 Greek experts
Every destination we cover has been visited and vetted by at least one team member — not for a review, but as part of their daily work in Greek tourism.