Athens is one of the few European capitals with a licensed short-stay hotel trade: rooms by the hour or the afternoon, a staffed reception, a posted tariff and no interest in your business. Most of the 41 houses below belong to five chains, which is useful to know because a chain’s standard holds across its houses. This is the complete list our companions are sent to, district by district, with the one thing worth knowing about each.
The chains, in a sentence each
Priamos is the largest, mid-priced and identical everywhere. Prive (with Castle De Paris) is the smarter central group. Xcite (Lida, Salem) and Alfa are solid mid-market. Crystal Blue and Ruby Rooms are the two names that come up first when a companion is asked where she would rather go.
Central Athens
- Prive Athens, Metaxourgeio: the upscale central house.
- Castle De Paris, Metaxourgeio: themed rooms, same owners as Prive.
- Bill Hotel, Metaxourgeio: plain, cheap, central.
- Priamos Erato, Gazi: next to the bars, the natural end of a night out.
- Priamos Hotel Pagrati: the quiet east-of-centre option.
- Attiki Evans, Exarchia: budget, lively street.
- Lydia Hotel, Liosion street: the cheapest, on a street to reach by taxi after dark.
- Ruby Rooms Athens, Neos Kosmos: stylish, five minutes down Syngrou.
The southern coast
- Crystal Blue Hotel, Glyfada: the largest rooms on the coast, quiet end of the main road.
- Mirada Hotel, Glyfada: the modern one.
- Kreoli Hotel, Glyfada: the friendly older one.
- Zen Hotel, Alimos: calm, on Poseidonos by the beach.
- Salem Hotel, Argyroupoli: the Xcite group’s coastal house.
- Priamos GLS, Platon, Mary Plaza, Moschato: smart, middle and budget on the tram line.
- Lacoba Hotel, Kallithea: by the tram, between coast and centre.
Kifissia and the north
- Ruby Rooms Kifisia: the best short-stay hotel in Athens.
- Pines Hotel, Kifissia: established, comfortable.
- Chris Hotel, Kifissia: cosy, good value.
- Lida Hotel (Xcite), Nea Erythraia: modern, quiet.
- Hotel Maroussi: by the Olympic stadium.
- Hotel Cybele, Pefki: modest, residential.
- Priamos Cinema and Iviskos, Metamorphosi: themed and budget respectively.
- Bora Bora, Nea Filadelfeia: budget, far north.
- Priamos Boutique, Agios Dimitrios: at the Ilioupoli metro, south-east rather than north.
Piraeus
- Port Tower Piraeus: new, luxury, by the harbour.
- The Alex, Kastella: boutique, views over the marina.
- Piraeus Port Hotel: the practical harbour hotel.
- Carol Hotel, Mikrolimano: charming, good value.
- Scorpios Sea Side and Queen Leriotis: coast road, mid and budget.
- Olympic Hotel, Neo Faliro: by the tram.
- Lux Hotel: central Piraeus, no frills.
The west
- Alfa Skaramagas, Crystal Blue Skaramagas, Prive Skaramagas, Glaros: the Skaramagas cluster, for people already out west.
- Alfa Nikaia: the second Alfa.
- Markos Hotel, Chaidari: on Iera Odos, well rated, far from the centre.
Booking a companion to any of them
Reserve the room for a block of hours, tell the office the hotel and the time, and the companion arrives as your guest. Her rate is the one on her profile; the venue does not change it. How it works covers verification and payment; the roster shows who is available tonight. For the wider question of which Athens hotels welcome a guest, see escort-friendly hotels in Athens.
Common questions
Are short-stay hotels legal in Athens?
Yes. Licensed hotels with an hourly tariff.
Which district should a visitor choose?
Glyfada for the coast, Kifissia for comfort, Metaxourgeio or Gazi for the centre. Skip the west unless you are staying there.
Do I need to book the hotel in advance?
Evenings and weekends, yes, an hour or two ahead. Afternoons rarely.
Does the hotel affect the companion’s rate?
No.