Any advice on where to stay for 5 nights in Athens - our first time there? I'm thinking we'd like to stay in Plaka or somewhere within walking distance to all of the ancient sites. We'd like a little larger room if possible, good breakfast, and just generally nice accommodations. Budget is up to 300 euros/night (plus or minus) so at that price, expectations are a little high. We'll be there in May and the room prices are higher that time of year. I prefer smaller hotels/inns but large can work too. Thank you for any suggestions.

I'm about to do something I rarely do -- disagree with HappyTrvlr. When I was in Athens (June 2017), the area around Syntagma Square seemed uncomfortably deserted in the evening. I didn't like how it felt at all. The parts of Plaka I walked through in the evening seemed surprisingly quiet, despite the many cafes and restaurants -- but I'm sure that varies. I stayed at the Acropolis View, which I honestly can not recommend, but I did like that neighborhood a lot and found it very convenient for the things I wanted to see.

I am not sure wht HppyTravler is referring to ... I have stayed for at least 15 tikmes in Athens in my 13 trips, and mainly in the general Plaka area, in budget hotels, and have had a great experience, on the whole, I do plan ahaed, and check reviews from several source. Here is a useful large map http://www.orangesmile.com/destinati...ns-map-big.jpg I advise everyone to look at (click to enlarge -- then use side slide-bars to place Acropolis in center of screnn and move around).

You'll see Syntagman (Syndagma) square on upper right corner... it has upscale hotels but In my humble opinion, too much traffice, day & night. I have enjoyed much more the area BELOW the acropolis... The crosshatched promenade there is a wide no-cars walkway... delightful in May ... as the sun gets low, Greek families come out for their pre-dinner stroll (volta) with baby carriages and kiddies on trikes, there are ice cream carts and men with baloons, it's almost like a travel poster. On another travel forum I ecommended hotel Herodion which on this map is about where that red boxed "40" is shown. If you want a really small boutique hotel (hard to book), look up AVA Hotel, whcih is on Lissikratous Lane (near #79)... in may not list on the online booking agencies like booking.com, you my have to contact direct. Another place (newish) in that area getting RAVE reviews is AthensWas Hotel... it's on the first stretch of that promenade, about at Makri Street.

A useful search tool I often reocmmend is this "filter" version of booking.com which I've converted to a "tiny url" - http://tinyurl.com/heq6edp it focusses ONLY on hotels and apts that are within 1 mile of acropolis. You put in your desired dates, and up pops a list. At the top right of the screen is a box "map view" -- if you click on that, it shows the area, with all the places on their list for your dates, shown as blue baloons -- if you click on one, it shows the price for your 5-day stay ... a very fast way to locate both desirable locations, and hotels & apts in your budget range. Looking this far ahead, it may not have all he ones that will eventually be available, but6 certainly all the ones I've mentioned.

I'm sorry you had a horrid experience in the Plaka, HappyTrvlr. kja, I've read and referred back to your wonderful trip report which has been so helpful in planning our trip. I saw that you didn't particularly care for Acropolis View Hotel but I'm taking note that you liked the area. And travelerjan, thank you for the hotel suggestions. Those look like what we're looking for. I'll check out your map and tiny url. Thanks for everyone's input!

@ mhgr: I'm glad you found my trip report helpful! Thanks for letting me know.

We've stayed at InnAthens for three straight years. Loved it

I booked AD hotel for early June. If I'm correctly understanding maps, it's in the area Travelerjan recommends, above. I have not stayed there before.

https://adhotel.gr

If you want to stay within walking distance to all ancient sites in Athens then there is an Attalos Hotel that is located within walking distance from the Acropolis and historic sites. There are also bars and cheap restaurants around this hotel. You can get excellent and inexpensive food in the evening. Overall it has a good ambiance and a Greek breakfast buffet is available at affordable prices. Apart from this, Areos Hotel, Hotel metropolis, and Royal Olympic are recommended.

Thank you OverIt, CaliNurse and Albertbrown for your additional hotel suggestions. I've been checking them out online and they all look promising. Another one in the Makriyianni area that caught my eye is The Athens Gate Hotel, especially if we can get a room on one of the upper floors in the back that oversees the Acropolis. Does anybody have any advice or experience with that one?

We also stayed at AD Athens Suites in September and loved it! If you happen to be in Athens on a Friday night, I high recommend dinner at the Acropolis Museum restaurant. It's the only night the museum is open for dinner.

We liked the Hotel Grande Bretagne. Amazing breakfast buffet with a direct view of the Acropolis.
It's above your budget, but maybe you have Marriott points? We reserved it through CostcoTravel.com, and got a discount.

https://www.marriott.com/hotels/trav...0aAiy1EALw_wcB

DEpends on what your budget is, Mhgr, and your ambience preferences. You did mention liking small hotels more... and Athens Gate is definitely Big, and somewhat bustling. Its entrance fronts on THE busiest avnue in all of Athens that i know about (Amalilas Avenue, becomes Syngrou) - 3 (4?) lanes of traffic Each way, and nonstop 24/7. So busy it takes 2 stoplights for a pedestrian to cross it, quivering nervoulsly on concrete strip midway. As for room locations etc -- there's a rooftop for the view, but you must order dinner or pricey cocktails to enjoy it, according to people I've talked with who stayed there. To avoid that traffic, and get a view, of course, the back rooms, high up, would be best. However, I got one report from a couple that got top-floor back room... and in the wee hours were kept awake by noise of high heels and moving chairs thru their ceiling.

Did you check out Herodion? Its sister hotel, Phillipos, is just a block away, also has good views from high floors. Also take a look at Airotel Parthenon, on Makri, again, just off that no-cars promenade. Just a few blocks south of it (but thankfully, a block west of that noisy busy Syngrou) is Hotel Hera ... called 4 star (tho stars mean little in greece) but has rooftop with great Parthenon view & high floor rooms ditto.

With a 300 euros/night budget you should be able to get something quite fancy . . . but do you really need to?

You didn't mention now many people are in your party which will make a difference in cost.

There are numerous accommodations for far less money that you will find quite nice and in good areas like Monistiraki, Syntagma and Plaka all near everything one goes to Athens for.

As mentioned the Attalos is quite good, nothing fancy but clean, safe and centrally located. Great breakfast (extra) and one of the best roof-top bars/gardens in all of Athens with outstanding views of the Acropolis and entire city and you'll save money for more important things . . . Greek Food!

Obviously your taste, needs and convenience play a part but if you look around you'll find many other accommodations for less than 300 euros/night.

Athens Gate was okay, but I wouldn’t return. As travelerjan notes, it’s big and fronts a very busy street. We were there in 2011, in a small double room, and had a side street view. From what I remember, the breakfast on the roof was very good and we enjoyed the view from there.

But what really irked me, at least back then, was that the free WiFi was very limited and we had to pay after a time limit. I haven’t checked to see if this has changed, but I had no intention of returning to check to see if there policy has changed. It is a good location, though.

We've been once and stayed in the Electra Palace in the Platka area, steps from the wonderful pedestrian streets and alleys, restaurants, shopping, and many wonderful sites. Their rooftop pool, bar, and restaurant overlooking the Acropolis is amazing! They do get higher end tour groups passing through there, but that was not bothersome to us, as the location was outstanding.

Two years ago we stayed at the Athens Gate which we and our friends loved. We paid for the larger 'executive rooms' which I recall only allowed us to request/demand rooms on the quiet back side of hotel on upper floors with lovely terraces overlooking the Acropolis. Breakfast on top floor both inside and outside was delightful, and service was excellent.

We just arrived back from Greece. We stayed at the Electra Palace and loved it. Our room had views of the Acropolis, the breakfast area (which is also the dinning room at night) has wonderful view of the Acropolis....in the Plaka, which we enjoyed. I would definitely stay again and highly recommend it!

Thank all of you for your reviews and tips. Now I have to do some homework and make some reservations!