Where to stay in Athens, Greece?

[+ Archer]

With all of the well-traveled people on this site, I was hoping someone could tell me the best place to stay and places to visit. I have the opportunity to go to Athens next month for one week. I have traveled all over the Americas, but never to Europe. I will be traveling alone and would like to do touristy things . Where would be the best place to stay if I choose to not rent a car? Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

[LouieD]

Grande Bretange on Syngtagma Square, is the grande dame of Athens hotels. Excellent hotel, great location. King George, next door is also good.

[+ nycman]

Where to Stay in Athens?

 

Santorini....grin

 

Seriously, Athens is a dump and every single Greek you meet there will rip you off.

 

Of course, that's a slight exaggeration.....but only slight.

 

Whenever friends ask for recommendations about Athens I say, "get off the plane,

get in a taxi, visit the Acropolis, then go straight to the cruise terminal and take the

next boat out of Athens and head straight to the Greek Islands".

 

It doesn't really matter which one. They are all incredible. Santorini is the most

stunning, but packed with honeymooners. Mykonos has the best nightlife and gay

scene, but they are all pretty incredible. I've been to around 20 different Greek Islands

and I've loved them all!

 

Athens?....not so much.

[+ TylerandAce]

If you're going to be in Athens for that long, I recommend renting an apartment. AirBNB works great there. I recommend Syntagma or Acropolis neighborhoods. Kolonaki is also very authentic and local but still near all the top tourist stuff. One note that can trip folks up....Athens (in fact most of Greece) is basically a cash-based society. Very few restaurants or places of interest take credit/debit. Make sure you have plenty of access to cash.

[mike carey]

@TylerandAce can you use ATMs to get your euros (either from your own card or a multicurrency card) or do you need to change money at the airport or a bank (in the US or Greece)?

[+ TylerandAce]

I use ATMs when I'm in Greece. The fee is cheaper than the exchange rate. Also, you might want to ensure your limit is sufficient for withdrawals you need each day. Using so much cash, it's easy to hit your daily withdrawal limit if it isn't high enough.

[mike carey]

Thanks.

[+ TylerandAce]

Any time!!

[Madmen622]

Try the Fresh hotel in Athens. As others stated - you only need a short time in Athens - like 2 days z . Then hit the islands