Wow!!

Stayed at the Stratos Vassilikos from May 31-June 6 of this year. I know that in Europe, hotel rooms are generally smaller, and that many hotels in Athens seem to be older, so adjusted my expectations accordingly. Likewise, I'm always skeptical of the photos on a hotel's web site.

That said, there was no need to adjust expectations. The Stratos Vassilikos had spacious, modern rooms, (it's a relatively new hotel, I believe it opened right before the Olympics). The rooms were clean, decorated in calming neutral colors, with all sorts of thoughtful little amenities. Like bathrobes, slippers, a minifridge (OK, it was the minibar, but I was able to stick my sodas in there without any problem), and even toothbrushes in the bathroom in case you left yours at home! It's listed as a three star, but it's clearly a four star, with first class service.

I was going to add my own photos of the hotel to the site, but looking at what the hotel has posted, they're almost exactly the same as mine.

And what can I say about the people working there, except thank you. The first night there, I managed to blow a fuse after I plugged in an electrical device and used the adapter, but forget to add on the converter (I can't believe I did this, I know better!). It was after midnight and suddenly, I was sitting in a pitch dark bedroom. I went to the front desk and they fixed the fusebox within a few minutes, without any fuss at all (and it wasn't the fusebox in my room where the problem was, but down in the hotel's utility area...oy).

While there, I had to send and receive several faxes as well and they took care of this with a smile. Being a tourist, sometimes they were a bit puzzled at my questions (how DOES the phone system work in Greece...it's so obvious to them, I think it caught them off guard), but always did their utmost to help, calling for information if they didn't know the answer to my question.

The hotel's lobby area is lovely, very peaceful, as is the restaurant where they offer the free breakfast (it has a baby grand piano and a little waterfall). And the breakfast...it's an amazing spread of fresh fruits, juices, pastries, meats, olives, salads, cookies, cereals, toast...pretty much everything and anything you could want.

I could go on, but I'll try to summarize:

Pros:

-Spacious, well-appointed, modern rooms.

-Wonderful staff.

-Good for business travelers.

-Beautiful lobby.

-Good value. It's not cheap, but I think it's very reasonable for what you get. For $30 USD extra a night, I got a junior suite and ended up, including taxes and fees, paying about $195 a night. I peeked into the regular rooms and they're just as nice as the suites, just slightly smaller (but still spacious).

Cons:

-The hotel is NOT in the tourist areas. If you want to step out the door and immediately be in the Plaka or Syntagma, you will be disappointed. That said, the nearest Metro (Megaro Moussikis) was about a 10 minute walk away and it was only two stops to Syntagma. Also, I had trouble finding the hotel when I first got there. After that first time though, I had a relatively easy time.

-The view. There's not much of one. My suite had a huge, massive balcony as big as some people's hotel rooms and it overlooked mostly apartment buildings. I loved it nonetheless, but if you're looking for that beautiful view of the Acropolis, again, search elsewhere.

-No pool.

That said, it's a lovely, well-run hotel and I look forward to returning!!

Very happy with this hotel

We stayed in this hotel based on comments in Trip Advisor. We were not disappointed. The hotel was beautiful, the staff was extrememly helpful, the breakfast was lovely. It was an easy walk to the Metro and also an upscale shopping area. We would stay there again.

Beautiful and chic!

The Stratos Vassilikos is a wonderful and welcoming hotel in the heart of Athens. From this hotel it is easy to access museums and the metro system. The location of this hotel is perfect since it is 10 minutes from the city centre. Taxis are plentiful and the Hotel reception can always call one for you, if required. The rooms are cool in every sense of the word: the colors, textures and decor. Very sophisticated!!! The beds are comfortable. The bathroom is impeccable and fully equipped with shampoo, sewing kit, even toothpaste and manicure kit! All you can ask from a hotel you have it here! We loved our choice! We would definitely recommend this hotel to our friends and family! Great for holiday or business travellers.

Internet access is available and we used it to get our family's phone numbers (since we forgot our phone and adress book at home!) The staff is perfectly bilingual, trilingual even and very helpful.

Good hotel choice for experienced city dwellers

This hotel is an excellent choice for anyone comfortable and familiar with a large city and using public transportation. Although on the outskirts of fast paced, bustling and lively Central Athens, this hotels offers a quiet alternative to the life of the busy city. The 10 minute walk to the metro stop is easy, and in less than 10 minutes one can find themselves in the central areas of the city close to attractions and activities.

The hotel is spacious, clean and the staff friendly and hospitable. All needs were met and as guests we felt very comfortable and well taken care of.

The rooms were very clean, well maintained and large as compared to other large European city hotels. The bathrooms were very luxurious, large and kept well stocked with fluffy bathrobes, slippers and toiletrees.

The breakfast in the morning is a great start to your day including champagane if you care to mix yourself a mimosa.

There is a small room on the mezzanine level that provides internet access which can be purchased for 6 Euros at the main desks. All staff members were incredibly helpful when I encountered easily fixable problems connecting to the internet server there.

I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone interested in a peaceful, quiet and restful stay in Athens.

Nice Hotel

This was a beautiful Hotel with first class service. The AC was great (this was inportant to my friend) My only complaint (which isn't the hotels fault) is that is is away from the major tourist areas. It was about a 10 minute walk to the closest metro station which isn't that bad, but I was visiting in August and it got quite warm in the afternoons. I also noticed there weren't any restaurants or bars in the area that were open at night to go to. If you didn't feel like getting a cab or walking to the metro you were stuck. After a long day of sightseeing, it would have been nice to be closer to just be able to take a short walk to anything but it seem to be more of a residential area.

Outstanding

This hotel was simply wonderful. It was elegant, comfortable, clean, and the staff was friendly and helpful. It's not as close to the Megaro Moussikis Metro stop as it sounded, but it's not that long of a walk either. And, besides, it's worth a walk to the subway to stay at this place. Two of us stayed there for 170 Euros and it was worth every cent. What else can I say-- stay here when you go to Athens.

An excellent hotel at a reasonable price

The Hotel: very beautiful from the outside in; from the spring colours of the lobby and dining area, to the hardwood floors of the hallways, it is a lovely, modern, well-kept hotel. We were very impressed, and actually chose to return for another night when we had an unexpected stop-over in Athens on the way to Paris.

The Rooms: again, beautiful rooms, well appointed and very clean; also comes with a bar fridge and suit press; but the best is the bathroom: floor to ceiling marble with chrome and white porcelaine accents, large, pristinely clean and complete with big, soft terry bathrobes and slippers.

The Staff: friendly, helpful, knowledgable and everyone I dealt with had a good command of English, which was much appreciated. In particular, Manos at the front desk was a true gent who went out of his way to be helpful.

The Food: we only had the breakfast which is included in the price of the room, but it was very good quality food, lots of variety...there is even champagne. The dining area is very nice, complete with a baby-grand piano and water fountain.

The Area: it's not exactly beautiful, but Athens as a whole is not the nicest looking city. With that in mind, I would say that it was quite a decent neighbourhood. There were several decent restaurants in the area (in the direction of the Acropolis), and travel agencies. I walked around in the evening and felt completely at ease. It seemed very safe.

Getting Around: some might be put off by the fact that this hotel is not in the Plaka, or right by Syntagma Square. Don't be, the location of this hotel is really very good. There is a metro station very close by that will get you where you want to go. Athens' metro system is excellent, cheap and easy to use. From the hotel walk up a couple of blocks to Sofias road. Take a left and walk 5 minutes (or less) to the Megaro Moussikis metro station. You will be at the Plaka or the Acropolis in 10 minutes.

Overall: My wife and I spent a total of 3 nights here. If I were to return to Athens, this is where I would stay. I did much research of hotels in Athens, and I am convinced that this hotel, considering its high quality, is the best deal around.

A Perfect Hotel in Athens

I recently stayed at the Stratos Vassilikos when I was in Athens for the Olympics. It was perfect. The Stratos Vassilikos is a beautiful, new (opened Sept. 2003) small-to-medium sized hotel in central Athens. It is thoroughly modern and gorgeous, from the cool marble and modern desks used by the staff for check in, to the beautiful gray-stained wooden floors in the hallways to the new fitness center in the basement. The rooms are modern and comfortable. Mine had twin beds that could be pushed together European-style to create a "King." The rooms have new black lacquered desks and (most surprising) high-speed internet access. The bathroom was new and beautiful. And, most important, the air conditioning was state of the art -- making it cool enough (in Athens, in August) for any traveller, even an American like me.

The staff was outstanding in both their attitude and helpfulness. Mr. Manos at the front desk was one of the best hotel service people I've ever encountered. Finding a good hotel someplace like Athens is obviously hit or miss. With the limited selection during the Olympics, and no reviews of the Stratos Vassilikos then online, as you can imagine, I was concerned about what the hotel would be like. It turns out to be a sure thing. I will stay there again when next I visit Athens.