Modernist Hotel in Athens Precruise?

[MarEll1]

Looking for feedback on the Modernist Hotel - it is in the “embassy” district. It appeals to us as it is a quieter area but still about 20 minutes walk to the Plaka. Our TA is really pushing us to stay in Plaka. We will be there 4 nights. Have never been to Athens so any firsthand experience is welcome!

[princeton123211]

4 hours ago, MarEll1 said:

It appeals to us as it is a quieter area but still about 20 minutes walk to the Plaka. Our TA is really pushing us to stay in Plaka. We will be there 4 nights.

With 4 nights you have plenty of time so in that sense I wouldn't worry too much. We found 2 nights to be plenty but stayed much more centrally right off Syntagma Square. Even being more central we spent the majority of the last day by the pool as we covered everything we wanted to see very quickly. 

 

Personally I would cut your time down by a night or two and use the savings to up the budget to somewhere more central. 

[MarEll1]

3 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

With 4 nights you have plenty of time so in that sense I wouldn't worry too much. We found 2 nights to be plenty but stayed much more centrally right off Syntagma Square. Even being more central we spent the majority of the last day by the pool as we covered everything we wanted to see very quickly. 

 

Personally I would cut your time down by a night or two and use the savings to up the budget to somewhere more central. 

We really don’t have a choice about the timing as flights are already booked. May I ask where you stayed? The hotels our TA recommended have mixed reviews about noise and size of rooms etc.

[zdcatc12]

A few weeks ago, we stayed at the Moxy Athens City Center. It is a Marriott property if you are a Bonvoy member. A 20 minute walk to the Acropolis and right across the street from the Omonia Metro station. Plenty of stores and restaurants around. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again. There is also a top floor restaurant with a view of the Acropolis.

[carlmm]

Just looking at the location of the hotel, there are pros and cons.

Con: Quite a long walk to the plaka and other evening and night life areas (might be a pro for you)

Pro: There is a metro station close by, so are many bus lines, and the hotel is very close to a number of most interesting museums including the nationalgalery and the byzantine museum. 

Having four nights you hopefully will not be satisfied with the acropolis only but ready to enjoy the many sights of the Greek capital. A week would be better and not even enough time.

[MarEll1]

On 4/27/2024 at 2:06 AM, carlmm said:

Just looking at the location of the hotel, there are pros and cons.

Con: Quite a long walk to the plaka and other evening and night life areas (might be a pro for you)

Pro: There is a metro station close by, so are many bus lines, and the hotel is very close to a number of most interesting museums including the nationalgalery and the byzantine museum. 

Having four nights you hopefully will not be satisfied with the acropolis only but ready to enjoy the many sights of the Greek capital. A week would be better and not even enough time.

@carlmmMy thoughts are that since we have 4 nights, we won’t be as rushed as those that spend only a night or 2 pre cruise. Therefore maybe not as necessary to stay in Plaka, where availability is low and prices are high in September.

[princeton123211]

On 4/26/2024 at 5:43 PM, MarEll1 said:

May I ask where you stayed? The hotels our TA recommended have mixed reviews about noise and size of rooms etc.

It was the Hotel Grande Bretagne which is part of Marriott's Luxury Collection. It can be pricey but in my experience is the nicest overall hotel in town and the location is excellent. The rooftop pool is a great amenity and the restaurant overlooking the Acropolis is wonderful. 

 

There is a sister hotel, also part of Marriott's Luxury Collection, next door called the King George which can be slightly less expensive than the GB. I usually use a combination of Marriott Bonvoy points and cash to bring the stay to a reasonable overall cost. 

[MarEll1]

@princeton123211The Grand Bretagne is $1500/night when we’re there! I can’t justify that unfortunately. I think the King George isn’t much less but I’ll take a look.

[princeton123211]

1 hour ago, MarEll1 said:

The Grand Bretagne is $1500/night when we’re there! I can’t justify that unfortunately. I think the King George isn’t much less but I’ll take a look.

When are your dates?

 

Also do you have Marriott Bonvoy points or have a credit card you can transfer points to Bonvoy? When rates are this high the redemptions can be very valuable. For example last summer we booked The Gritti Palace in Venice over nights when an entry level room was $3100 a night for 100,000 Bonvoy points which is a lot of points but based on the dollar amount redeeming them for they were more valuable than usual. 
 

I just took a look and even in high season the GB redeems for about 84,000 points a night. If you have a way of getting those for all or part of the stay it can make it more than worth the trouble.

[MarEll1]

12 hours ago, princeton123211 said:

When are your dates?

 

Also do you have Marriott Bonvoy points or have a credit card you can transfer points to Bonvoy? When rates are this high the redemptions can be very valuable. For example last summer we booked The Gritti Palace in Venice over nights when an entry level room was $3100 a night for 100,000 Bonvoy points which is a lot of points but based on the dollar amount redeeming them for they were more valuable than usual. 
 

I just took a look and even in high season the GB redeems for about 84,000 points a night. If you have a way of getting those for all or part of the stay it can make it more than worth the trouble.

We have some Bonvoy points but unfortunately most of our points are Hilton Honors. Not our choice but Hilton was corporate preferred hotel. I’m not sure if we can maybe transfer Chase points. I’ll take a look!