Picolo recommends · Hotel in Athens, Greece
Hotel Grande Bretagne
A marble lobby on Syntagma Square, guards in pleated kilts below the windows and the Acropolis waiting on the roof.
Look out from a front room and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is right there, with the presidential guard marching in slow, deliberate steps. Grande Bretagne has watched over Syntagma Square for generations, and it still carries itself like the address of record.
Up on the roof, dinner comes with the Parthenon lit on its hill. Downstairs there is a spa and a pool, and the lobby works as a public living room where locals dress up a little for coffee.
Picolo’s verdict
Why we chose Hotel Grande Bretagne
We picked it because no other hotel in Athens does old European grandeur this thoroughly. Service, spa, pool and a roof view of the Acropolis all sit under one roof, right on the city's main square.
Its size is the catch. This is a large, formal house, and you will not get the personal touch of a small hotel. If you came for whitewashed simplicity and tavernas, it may feel more Vienna than Greece.
What you get
- Rooftop restaurant facing the Acropolis
- Spa
- Pool
- Formal, full service
- Coffee in the marble lobby
A day at Hotel Grande Bretagne
- Morning
- Watch the guard change outside before the square fills up.
- Midday
- Take the Metro from Syntagma straight to the museums.
- Afternoon
- A slow swim and an hour in the spa while the city bakes.
- Evening
- Dinner on the roof as the Parthenon lights up.
Location
Syntagma, Athens, Greece
Open in MapsQuestions about Hotel Grande Bretagne
Can you see the Acropolis from Hotel Grande Bretagne?
Yes, from the rooftop restaurant. It looks across to the Acropolis, Lycabettus Hill and parliament, and some upper rooms have views too.
Does Hotel Grande Bretagne have a pool?
Yes, the hotel has a pool as well as a spa, which is rare for a hotel this central in Athens and welcome in the summer heat.
Is Hotel Grande Bretagne close to the Metro?
Syntagma station is just across the square, with direct trains to the airport and quick links to Monastiraki and the Acropolis.
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Updated 6 Nov 2026All articles
How Picolo chooses
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