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Athens Hotels - Featured Specials
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BEST WESTERN ESPERIA PALACEHoused in a modern neoclassical-style property, the Best Western Esperia Palace Hotel opens to public areas characterised by antique-style furnishings, classical statues and rich fabrics. |
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ACHILLEAS HOTELHotel Features. A family-run property with an urban, contemporary style, the Achilleas Hotel has a front desk is open 24 hours, and a room service is offered. A complimentary continental buffet breakfast is served in the hotel breakfast room. |
About Athens
Athens has a history going back more than 4,000 years. In fact it was behind the stone wall of Athens that philosophers and writers, artists and politicians gave birth to civilisation. Athens was home to Plato, Aristotle, Socrates and Pericles. The early Greeks might be long gone, but many of the monuments of this ‘golden’ age remain.
Every visitor to modern Athens still gets a glimpse of this ancient civilisation. There are so many historical sites and museums to explore and so much history to discover that a short visit to the Greek capital is never enough.
BookAthensHotels.gr is a great place to start planning your trip to Athens with advice on things to do, getting around, where to shop, useful information and which hotels to stay in.
Historical Attractions
The Acropolis
Most people who visit Athens have the Acropolis on their itinerary. It is one of the most famous archaeological landmarks in the world and is included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list (1987). Hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to this monument each year to see the ruins, which are now the most significant monument to ancient Greece.
For centuries the Acropolis was a symbol of Greece’s civilisation. Many monuments to gods and goddesses were erected on the site, because it was considered a sacred place by many generations of Greeks. Some of the ruins and treasures uncovered on the site suggest that it was a place of worship as far back as the Archaic period (650-480BC).
Most famous of the monuments are the Parthenon, the Erechtheion and the Temple of Athena Nike. A new, state-of-the-art Acropolis Museum has been built and will be officially opened in June 2009.
The Plaka
The Plaka is one of the most popular districts in Athens. It was originally a village constructed by migrants from the Cycladic island of Anafi during Greece’s struggle for independence (1821-1829). Many of those migrants were stonemasons and their influence can still be seen today in many popular buildings thoughout the city of Athens. The Plaka is built on the slopes of the Acropolis and was constructed in the Anafi island style. It was then only a small village for the migrants, but today the Plaka, with its white-washed houses lining narrow streets, is one of the most cosmopolitan neighbourhoods in Athens with many hotels and cafes. It is a convenient place to stay as it close to many of the city's most famous sites.
If you decide to add the Plaka to your itinerary, don’t miss the small church dedicated to St George.
Museum Mile
The ‘Museum Mile’ is a great way to learn about Athens’ long history. ‘Museum Mile’ starts at Syntagma Square. The square is a worthwhile stop for tourists as it is the main square of Athens. It was completed in 1840 by the Ottomans who ruled Athens at the time.
Many of Athens’ great museums are along Vassilissis Sophias Avenue, or ‘museum mile’. It’s along this avenue you will find the Benaki Museum, Museum of Cycladic Art, Byzantine Museum and the War Museum.
Modern Athens
The hosting of the 2004 Olympics has resulted in the 'modernization' of Athens. There has been a complete overhaul of the city’s infrastructure. Athens has a new airport, a new Metro system, new and improved roads. It has become a sophisticated, cosmopolitan city with new and refurbished hotels, galleries, museums and restaurants. The air pollution of past decades has been successfully addressed. Many of the city streets have been turned into pedestrian areas.
Athens could be a museum with its rich history and spectacular monuments. It is now a modern, vibrant, people-friendly city where the new co-exists beautifully with the old.
Psirri
Psirri is the heart of Athens’ nightlife, and it beats from dusk til dawn. The neighbourhood is in the old part of Athens, but the numerous bars, nightclubs and restaurants makes Psirri the centre of Athens’ nightlife. Psirri draws big crowds during the night and it can be difficult to move from one bar to another, but ask anyone and they wouldn’t have it any other way. The crowds are what makes Psirri such an interesting place to visit and stop for a drink or two.
Kolonaki and Kifissia
If you are looking for a quieter night of fine dining then you can’t go past the neighbourhoods of Kolonaki and Kifissia. Both neighbourhoods have up-market restaurants and boutique hotels.
Kolonaki spouts wealth. During the day you can visit upmarket boutiques and art galleries. It is an area frequented by Greece’s rich and famous, and you will often see a celebrity taking a coffee break at one of the many cafes in the area. You will find all the major upmarket brands in the shops of Kolonaki. At night you can experience Greek fine dining at its best in one of the many excellent restaurants in this area.
Some of the best restaurants with views of Athens are on Lykabettus Hill in the Kolonaki neighbourhood. From the top of Lykabettus Hill you can see for miles - beyond Athens and out to the Saronic Gulf islands. Try to visit Lykabettus Hill at night for a magic view of the city.
Kifissia is a green suburb and nowhere is greener than its centre, the Square of Kifissia. The square has a magnificent botanical garden. The suburb has numerous restaurants and hotels that take advantages of the beautiful surroundings. The restaurants in this neighbourhood are very stylish and offer a great selection of food and wine.
Thisio Square and Glyfada
Some of the other places with a wide choice of restaurants are Thisio Square and Glyfada. Thisio Square is full of outdoor cafes with views to the Acropolis. The public gardens bordering the square are well worth a visit. These gardens are the oldest in Athens that are still open to the public. They were first opened in 1862.
Getting To and Around Athens
Most tourists to the region fly into the city via the modern Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos (AIA). The airport was constructed in 2001, in time for the 2004 Olympic Games. The airport provides an excellent transit environment for travellers and has received numerous awards for its design and service.
Once on the ground, travellers will find it easy to get around Athens. Considering the boom in the population in the past 20 years and the age of the city, tourists will have little trouble getting in and around the sites of Athens by public transport or by taxi.
The new metro has especially helped to relieve past traffic problems in this ancient city. The metro is considered the crowning jewel in the modernization of Athens.
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