In Athens, the obvious hotel choice was the Hotel Grande Bretagne. It had the history, the location within walking distance of everything a tourist would want to see, and the most fabulous views in the city. The hotel was also beautifully maintained and very clean for a grande dame.
Grand Suite
DavidO booked us a Deluxe Suite and we were upgraded to a Grand Suite on arrival. We had 60 square meters of space with a small entry hall, and a separate living room and bedroom. The suite’s most striking feature was it’s very large terrace and if we sat in just the right place, we had views toward Lycabettus hill. The bedding was plush and comfortable. And the pretty marble bathroom had all the luxury features with two undermount sinks, deep tub and separate corner shower, but the layout was a little cramped when shared by three people.
Service
Every point of contact at the Hotel Grande Bretagne was wonderful; the butler, the restaurant staff, housekeeping, the front desk, the spa, etc. Room service was fast and executed perfectly. We had fantastic concierges that helped us navigate Athens with our little boy and when many of the attractions were closed for an unexpected holiday, they helped us put together an alternate fun itinerary. The spa made a temporary repair of one of my manicured nails while the concierge called around to find a nail salon that could perform a more permanent fix. Also, our son was treated to special bath products, colored pencils with a drawing pad and a children’s menu.
Food
The food was good but was a little short on Greek options for lunch and dinner. As a result, our favorite lunch was in the Plaka district. The hotel’s breakfast buffet with it’s sampling of Greek pastries and locally produced yogurts was wonderful, but the food could never compete with the view. The top floor restaurant served breakfast and dinner, and the best views of the Parthenon, Syntagma Square and the old Olympic Stadium were from the outside terrace. But even the inside seating had wonderful Parthenon views from almost every table thanks to the floor to ceiling windows.
Activities
Because we brainwashed our son with children’s books about Greece before our trip, he had his own hit list of things he wanted to see. We took him to the Parthenon, the National Garden, and the Changing of the Guard (Evzones). We also took him to the old Olympic Stadium, an impressive all white marble structure, where he was allowed to run wildly on the track. During down time, our son loved swimming in the hotel’s pretty rooftop pool and the pool in the spa.
One day, we hired a babysitter and took a private walking tour of ancient Athens. We saw the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora, the Temple of Zeus, Hadrian’s Arch, and some newly unearthed artifacts at the Syntagma Metro Station. We would have loved to see the Acropolis Museum but ran short on time.
Opportunities for Improvement
As much as we loved the Hotel Grand Bretagne, not everything was perfect. Our bathroom had scratchy towels. And we didn’t love the tour guide the hotel picked out for us. Maybe we just expected more from the birthplace of drama, but our guide was a little dry. We could have used more historical stories of murder, s@x and intrigue.
Grand Suite
Grand Suite Bathroom
Grand Suite Terrace
Plaka
Olympic Stadium
Evzone
