Hotel Grande Bretagne, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Athens
A landmark hotel crowning central Syntagma Square, Hotel Grande Bretagne, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Athens, has been a centerpiece of the capital city since debuting in 1874. Since then, the hotel has hosted royalty, heads of state and stars like Sophia Loren and Sean Connery, plus artists on tour like Jay-Z and David Bowie. In the early 2000s, the 320-room Hotel Grande Bretagne underwent an $88 million restoration, adding 21st-century touches and standout features like the rooftop pool and GB Roof Garden Restaurant & Bar, which shows off sweeping views of the Acropolis.
Rooms also overlook the Acropolis and Syntagma Square from floor-to-ceiling windows or the balcony of the city’s only Royal Suite (which spans an impressive 4,300 square feet), where you have access to a wine cellar with more than 300 international and local labels. One of the main selling factors of the living museum (tours of the hotel and its antiques and artwork are held weekly) is that it offers all of the amenities of an urban resort (restaurants, bars and a spa) and is just steps from cobblestoned Plaka’s traditional tavernas and archeological sites and highlights, like the sprawling Sunday Monastiraki flea market.
- Rooms feel like they’ve been plucked from one of Europe’s finest palaces, with gold-accented furnishings (many of which are restored, museum-quality antiques), original artwork, decadent drapes and bathrooms outfitted entirely in marble — soaking tub included.
- The Athens hotel offers two pools — one on the rooftop and the other indoors at the spa — but the two-bedroom Penthouse Suite sports its own terrace with a private pool, sun loungers and an alfresco dining area for up to 10 guests.
- Take a seat on one of the barstools facing the 18th-century tapestry of Alexander the Great at the aptly named Alexander’s Bar, where you can sip rare 1937 or 1940 single malt whisky from The Macallan or the elusive LOUIS XIII, Black Pearl cognac. You can also pair your spirit with a coveted Cuban cigar at colonial-style Alexander’s Lounge.
- It doesn’t matter if you come to GB Roof Garden Restaurant & Bar for breakfast, lunch or dinner — the Mediterranean rooftop eatery’s panoramas of the Acropolis, Lycabettus Hill and the Parliament steal the spotlight.
- Hotel Grande Bretagne boasts a central location — it’s a short stroll to shops, museums and the business district.
- The opulent Winter Garden, framed by four columns, has maintained its history of daily high tea with freshly baked English scones paired with seasonal jams and clotted cream, plus a selection of more than 1,500 types of tea. Kids can even join the ritual with treats like cupcakes, marshmallows and macarons.
- The concierges are bilingual, certified destination experts and part of the lauded, international concierge society Les Clefs d’Or.
- If you’re staying on the sixth or seventh Butler floor or in a guest suite, you’ll have access to a private concierge and 24-hour butler services, arranging everything from city tours via helicopter to access to exclusive art collections.
Bar
Indoor pool
Outdoor pool
Restaurants
Spa
