Hermes Hotel

Rooms

A tiny lift transports you to the guest bedrooms, which stretch up to the 6th floor. None are huge and some are extremely small, but all are cheerful, comfortable and clean, with chunky modern furniture, shiny hardwood floors and marble bathrooms. Some even have balconies looking down on narrow Apollonos street or up to the Acropolis. (The higher the floor, the better the view.)

Beds are dressed in crisp white with pomegranate spreads and wood headboards. Full-length mirrors and mini-fridges to store your own drinks and food are nice touches. You can set the air-con via remote control. If the weather is hot, ask for 2 key cards and leave one in the wall slot to keep the electricity on so you'll return to a cool room. On our last revisit, we discovered another benefit of the air con: it generates 'white noise', which made our room surprisingly peaceful at night, despite its central location.

Bathrooms are sleekly all-marble, most with showers and tubs. The hand-held showers and the half-screens may result in wet floors. Some rooms interconnect; the triple rooms are ideal for families. Non-smoking rooms are available on request.

Features include:

• Hairdryer
• Safe box
• WiFi

Eating

A breakfast buffet runs from 7am in a small dining room on the mezzanine. Fill up on breads, cheeses, cold meats, eggs, cakes, yoghurt and honey; not much fruit, but very decent coffee. (Hermes will arrange breakfast for guests with early flights.)

Complimentary coffee, tea and cookies are available in the lobby throughout the day and you can store snacks and beverages in the mini fridge in your room.

From this central location, you are steps from authentic Greek tavernas in the Plaka area. Platanos (4, Diogenous St.) has a nice patio and Thanassis in Monastiraki Square is known for its souvlaki. Geros tou Moria (27, Mnisikleous St.) features traditional Greek music. Dionyssos (43 Rovertou Galli St.) is pricier, but has a bigger menu and great view.

Features include:

• Bar
• Breakfast
• Restaurants nearby
• Room service

Activities

• Visit the world-famous Acropolis citadel (a 15-minute walk away), with its Parthenon, ancient fortifications, beautiful Caryatid statues and museum
  
• Explore the ancient theatres, ancient agora (marketplace and Byzantine chapels; stoas, Roman temples and monumental arches
  
• Wander through the pedestrian Plaka district (a 5-minute walk away) where you'll find flea markets, souvenirs, leather goods, pottery, tavernas, cafés
  
• Or buy herbs, honey, sweetmeats, nuts and wines from the food stores along Athinas street
  
• Spend a morning at the National Archaeological Museum, Greece’s most important collection of ancient statues, pottery and fragments
  
• Catch an evening concert at the Roman outdoor theatre of Herod Atticus (during Athens' Summer Festival) or at the excellent Megaron Concert Hall (all year)
  
• Walk up Filopappos Hill for excellent views over Athens and across to the Acropolis; or take the funicular train up Mount Lykavittos
  
• Take a taxi to Kaisariani or Daphne monasteries (both about 30 minutes away), on the slopes of Hymettus or Aigaleo respectively

Activities on site or nearby include:

• Hiking
• Historical sites
• Museums / galleries
• Shopping / markets
• Swimming
• Traditional cultures

Kids

Children of all ages are welcome, and there is a small playroom with some toys and a Wendy house. Baby cots can be provided for an extra cost.

Family friendly accommodation:

There's a dedicated Family room (2 adults and 2 children) made up of interconnecting rooms. You can also book a Triple room with 1 double and 1 single (some of these are rather cramped for anything longer than 1 night).

Cots Available

For more family-friendly places, see our Kids Collection

Location

Hermes Hotel is a 5-minute walk from the buzzing, part-pedestrianised, super-central Plaka area of Athens.

By Air
There are various flights to Athens Eleftherios Venizelos airport (20km away) from London and other European capitals, plus major North American and Asian hubs. Click on the links below for a list of airlines.

From the Airport
Intervening hills mean it's a 30km journey by road from the airport to the hotel and a taxi can take anything from 20 minutes at night to 60 minutes during rush hour. You can also take the metro or buses X93 and X95 to Syntagma Square, which is a 5-minute walk away from Hermes Hotel. For the Plaka Hotel, Monastiraki metro station is closer (a 5-minute walk).

Getting Around
The hotel's central location means you can walk to many of Athens' main sights. The metro is clean and efficient with regular trains, and there's also a tram network around the city.

Detailed directions to the hotel will be sent to you when you book through i-escape.com.

More on getting to Greece and getting around