Athens

Norsk utgave (Norwegian edition)

The largest temple on the Acropolis

But calling Athens beautiful would be a bit of an exageration even though there’s a lot to see. Athens now has a reputation of being €pe’s most polluted city which at times, unfortunately, happens to be true. In addition it can get, and mostly is, extremely hot. This is why most people going Island Strolling make their stay in Athens as short as possible. Though we have tried to avoid Athens as well it does deserve a bit more attention.

First and foremost the buildings from the antiquity are extremely well-preserved. The most well-known is the Acropolis, but just below and around it you’ll see a lot of other beautiful buildings. There is also the National Archeological Museum. Here you can enjoy many of the best relics from ancient Greece. There are no other museums with this diversity.

Athens seen from the Acropolis. In front, the Plaka area with red tiled roofs. This photo was taken on the clearest day we’ve ever experienced in Athens.

The Plaka is right at the foot of the Acropolis and is probably mostly known for it’s markets and it’s good night-life. It is originally the "old" Athens. People have lived here for more than 3000 years. Many of the old buildings have been demolished and replaced by hotels and other businesses. However, a great deal of the old buildings still exist. This, combined with the huge amount of small and often cheap hotels in this area, means Plaka is overrun with tourists. Nevertheless Plaka is a must, especially at night because of the amount of tavernas, restaurants, night clubs and other offers.

At the private part of the fleamarket the most incredible things are for sale

In the more modern part of Athens the two big "squares" are good starting points. The biggest and most crowded is the Sýntagma right in front of the Parliament. Here you can see the Greek version of the Guards. The guards are dressed in traditional Greek uniforms which are very strange but also interesting – especially the shoes. Well worth checking out. The rest of the surrounding area of the square is crammed with big hotels (very expensive), exclusive restaurants and big office buildings; all glass and concrete! But the square itself is full of chairs and tables belonging to various restaurants – also rather expensive.

The other square, Omónia, is 10-15 minutes walking distance away. This square, described in a guide book as more "colourful", is first and foremost a traffic centre point. It’s here you can find the metro. Also here the express bus to the airport has it’s first of two stops in the centre of Athens (the other one is Sýntagma). It also has connections for the two big main bus stations at the outskirts of Athens. Another advantage is the hotels here are a lot cheaper than those at the Sýntagma. We have stayed at hotels here several times. I understand very well what is meant by "colourful". The square and it’s surroundings are supposed to be rather rough. I’ve actually read that women are advised not to go out on their own at night. I don’t really know what to say about it. Though it does look a bit rough and rundown we have never had any problems at all. It’s mainly at the metro station and the surrounding area that you can see the drug addicts. But as mentioned we have never had any problems not even late at night. Usually you also see lots of police in the area. If you come further away from the station and down to the hotel area close by (3-8 minutes walking distance) you’ll find it quiet and peaceful. A reasonable place to stay in Athens.

In Athens you can find more than 3000 different overnight accomodations from the cheapest rooms to the most exclusive hotels. Most of them are found in the areas of Pláka, Sýntagma and Omónia. A room with air-condition is a "must" in Athens. I think that you’ll try a room without air-condition only once in this city. After that you’ll be willing to pay the extra euros. Our favourite areas are Pláka and Omónia. It should be possible to find something within everyone’s budget even though accomodation in Athens is more expensive than on the islands.

Fortunately we have found a hotel (after having tried several over the years) that meets our requirements and at the same time is affordable. It’s a Best Western hotel called Hotel Zinon and it’s close to the Omónia Square (7 minutes walking distance).

Hotel Zinon
3, Keramikou and Zinonos Street
GR-10437, Athens Greece
Phone: +30 1 52 31 548
Fax: +30 1 52 45 581
URL: http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do;jsessionid
=6AA33D097BF328E22B4690E19E0F2B0E?propertyCode=77521

In the summer 1997 we found this hotel cheap and very reasonable (24€ for a room with 3 beds, no breakfast). It has air-condition that can be controlled from the rooms and Inge (our son) appreciates the colour TV. The rooms are rather small but of an O.K. standard. The bathrooms are some of the best we have ever seen in Athens. We have stayed here several times since 1997 but every time the price has gone up. In the summer 1999 they actually charged 3 times the price of 1997. So we started looking for another hotel. The summer of 2006 Zinons prices is: Single 75Euro, Dobble 95 Euro and Tripple 120 Euro. We found one even closer to the Omónia Square. Not only closer to the square but of an even better standard than the Zinon. The hotel is Hotel Parnon.

Hotel Parnon
20, 3^rd Septemvriou st. & 21 Halkokondili st.
GR-10432, Omónia, Athens Greece
Phone: +30 1 52 30 013, +30 1 52 30 014, +30 1 52 30 131
Fax: + 30 1 52 24 315
Email: parnonhotel@yahoo.gr
URL: http://www.parnon-hotel.gr/

Canon EOS 30d,  27/12-07 17:39,  EF 24-105 IS,  24mm f4.0 1/8 sec,  ISO 640

Hotel Parnon dec. 2007

As mentioned it is very close to the Omónia Square. The summer 2009 is Parnons prices like this: Single 50 Euro, Dobble 60 Euro and Tripple 70 Euro. The same as it has been since summer 2004. Not the cheapest of hotels, but one of the best we have ever come across in Athens. The rooms were newly redecorated and for Greece of a very high standard. The beds are without doubt the best we have seen in the whole of Greece. The air-condition can be controlled from the rooms (which is necessary in Athens) and colour TV (which Inge demands from a hotel in Athens). Since 2007 the hotel has free Wifi acess in the lobby and breakfast area. Very recommendable.

I could try and explain the way to the hotel from Omónia Square. Most people should be able to locate the McDonald’s here. Use that as a starting point. From the main entrance on the square go 5 metres to your left, take a turn to your right. Walk round the roundabout to the first exit which is 3^rd Septemvriou street. Don’t cross it but take a right turn and follow this to the 3^rd side street. Don’t cross it as the hotel is on the corner to your right. By the way it’s a mere 100 metres to the closest Internet-café from the hotel which I appreciated a lot.

There are NO airportbus here at Omonia anymore, it's goes from Syntagma, use the Metro to Syntagma.