ATHENAEUM INTERCONTINENTAL

Five us of us stayed in two rooms for two nights before heading to Crete. The staff was very helpful with transportation arrangements and dining recommendations. The rooms were incredibly spacious and clean. We appreciated the amenities. We were very happy with our stay. The only drawback was the distance from the metro.

WISH ZERO or NEGATIVE STARS WAS AN OPTION. STAY AWAY! AVOID! AVOID! AVOID! IF, IF, IF, you are slightly considering staying here, DO NOT PURCHASE A NON-REFUNDABLE RESERVATION. They stick to their guns on that and do not provide any exceptions, even for medical reasons. The hotel is located in a sketchy area with LOTS of graffiti around. We did not feel safe. The hotel was the worst we stayed at during our trip. It is old and ugly inside and outside. Not sure how it is rated as a 5-star hotel. Pictures are from less than a block away from the hotel on our Uber ride out. Terrible

We stayed for a total of 5 nights in IC Athens. It was not our first stay with them. The hotel is going through renovation, so half of the building is sealed and being worked on. We had no noise or any other disturbance whastever. Well managed! They upgraded us to a one bedroom suite which was huge as was its balcony with a great view on Acropolis. The bathroom was also huge. Exec lounge on the 08th floor is nice and there is always something to munch on and afternoon tea at 5pm with cold and hot options. Very nice as well. We had breakfast included as a perk for Diamond IHG member and it was really great. Very extensive choice of foods including classics, but also local Greek and Asian items. They even had guacamole! All of great quality and service was also great. I highly recommend it. All in all, it was a great stay and we will definitely be coming back.

One of the best service levels that I ever experienced in an InterContinental, was here for only 2 nights but wished we stayed for longer, especially the club lounge staff. Every interaction was top level. We will definitely be back! Quick tip, take the double decker bus down to the beach area and stop at one of the restaurants or visit Glyfada!

The location of the hotel is not the best, but it is walkable to the Plaka district in around 25-30mins (or you can take the tram or metro). If driving, there's a large underground car park which is €21 per day. Due to our Diamond Elite status, we were upgraded to one of their huge suites on the 9th floor. The big plus point was the stunning uninterrupted view of the Acropolis from the large terrace. On the downside, the welcome 'gift' consisted of a large bottle of water and two glasses together with a personalised note. Whilst we understand that hotels have to control their costs, something a little more 'welcoming' for their top tier guests would have a greater positive impact. There were also no USB sockets anywhere to be found. In fact, the hotel throughout did feel quite dated albeit well maintained. Maybe this will change as one side of the hotel was undergoing renovations when we stayed. There's a nice outdoor pool which unfortunately was closed for the winter season. The gym is a reasonable size with a good range of machines. The large lobby bar - although not particularly cosy - had a nice ambience with great staff. There's also a nice bar/restaurant on the 10th floor with great views. Breakfast was a buffet arrangement which was good but not outstanding. It also included an egg station and a coffee station serving excellent specialty coffee. All things considered, we enjoyed our stay here and especially the views from our suite.