Magna Grecia Boutique Hotel
Address:
Phone:
210/324-0314NileGuide Expert tip:
Splurge for one of the six rooms with a view on the square. It's worth it.Description:
One of Athens' most charming little hotels is housed in a neoclassical mansion, built in 1898 by one of the city's defining architects of the 19th century, Ernst Ziller. The ten rooms, all decorated with unique pieces of furniture and original artwork, all have wooden floors, high ceilings with moulding, and long windows. Six of the rooms are overlooking the Cathedral Square on Mitropolios Street with views of the Acropolis. A rooftop terrace provides a romantic place for coffees or cocktails and is also the spaced designated for a light breakfast in the morning.
All of the mattresses are provided by an ecological company called Cocomat; the fillings of the mattress are entirely natural, replacing metal springs with things like natural rubber, and polyfoam with seaweed, horsehair, goose down, even cactus. Sounds strange but they've won awards for being undeniably delicious for sleeping! This goes for a lot in Greece, where the beds can be on par with a wooden board.
It's so well located, walking distance from two major metro stations (Monastiraki and Syntagma) that you'll never need to bother with a taxi. Again, the word is romantic, as the hotel has preserved the old world character most Athenian hotels have abandoned in favor of a modern, minimalist style. The only word of caution we can give you is that the bells of the gorgeous cathedral across the way chime the hour of each hour, perhaps knocking you out of a sweet dream at the hour of midnight. In spite of double paned glass, the street noise in general can be a nuisance.
The atmosphere and good pricing should encourage you to invest in a nice set of ear plugs rather than trying to find something comparable, because the Magna Grecia is one-of-a-kind.
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