Review: Four Seasons Athens Astir Palace

We did 3 nights here two years. A better way of summing it up is that I never, ever, been aware which better channelled the glamour of the 1950's 'jet set' era. The whole place - including the guests - look like they have walked out of a Slim Arons photograph.

If you regret the loss of 'glamour' from the travel experience, you will find it alive and well here.

Sadly you won't be able to fly on an airline which still has a cigar lounge and which carves the meat for your meal at your seat, but still ....

"aware" = "anywhere"

I can’t believe you reviewed this historic property without mentioning its iconic history and the notable guests including Frank Sinatra, Brigitte Bardot, John Wayne, Heads of State and royalty.

You don’t mention it was a dual Westin and Luxury Collection property before FS performed a major renovation.

Worst of all you somehow manage to not mention the FS is in Vouliagmeni or refer to the area at all or it’s distance from Athens.

@ Mike -- I appreciate you letting me know of those things. I've updated the post to reflect some of those points, thanks!

@ Raffles -- Accurately summed up!

“the pizza I had was among the best I’ve had outside of Italy.“

You really need to visit New Haven

It’s a stretch calling this Athens, akin to describing The Hamptons as NYC. It looks nice enough but for that price you could have had a twice the time at The Grande Bretagne or King George, righ on Syntagma Square, on the direct subway to the airport in less than 15 minutes ( and both far more interesting historically and culturally, as well as being in the real Athens.)
To each his own....

Not a fair or good comparison at all. First of all, this is a resort whereas the others you mention are city hotels. Calling this the "Hamptons to New York" is ludicrous. The Hamptons are a 2-3 hour car or train ride and no one is heading into the city for a few hours of touring from there. While Athens traffic can be brutal, this is a very easy drive from the FS. I've done it in as little as 25 minutes very early in the morning, and the longest it's ever taken me is ~45 minutes, so it absolutely falls under an Athens property. The other hotels you listed are fantastic as well, but this is an apples to oranges comparison.

Completely agree with your assessment - stayed here pre-pandemic for a long weekend, and loved it. It is absolutely a place for local Athenians to see and be seen, as well.

Think the rooms in Nafsika are a little nicer than Arion, and it's easier to access most of the hotel amenities. As for history, I believe some of the bungalows were host to the likes of Aristotle Onassis and Maria Callas back in the day, if we're talking about the glamour of the "jet set" era!

Only thing to note is that while the hotel is open year-round, I think they may close off certain parts in lower seasons, particularly those famous bungalows.

This was the hotel for one of the mega-do's. It was a lovely hotel even back then.

We had a one night stay here when it was a Starwood property not long before it closed for an extended period of time. The extensive and gorgeous remodel clearly appears to do justice to what is just a fabulous location. This spot pulls at my heartstrings, and although the price has climbed considerably since our stay a few years ago, we may just splash out when we are (hopefully), visiting Greece in September!

Wow, stunning. Always recommend people stay in Athens for 3 days. This is another reason why.

I stayed at this hotel when it was the Westin Astir Palace! Amazing property back then. Should’ve been a St Regis.

My only complaint is the amount of sea urchins by the rocks next to the hotel. I was badly injured and had to be rushed to the medical tent. There were no signes or advisories. I just jumped in and they were millions of them attached to the rock ledge.

Hopefully they fixed this issue during the remodel.

Ben - I couldn't resist: https://www.ft.com/content/626dcf3c-818e-11e5-8095-ed1a37d1e096

"‘Chicest’ is not a proper word — please don’t use it"

LOL

I think other sources allow for its use. However, it did throw me for a loop as I naturally pronounced it in my head with a soft 'c', as in 'cheesest'. I would have used 'the most chic' myself, or even 'le plus chic' to keep its roots intact.

That place looks amazing, and it should for 700 euros/night. It's a little out of my budget, but would like to go back to Greece someday. I'll stick to the points hotels. Last time in Greece for me was with a backpack in 1988. I don't think I paid more than $10/night for hostel or pension lodging back then.

Perhaps The Hamptons wasn’t the best comparison, but the general point remains valid: lovely though it looks, this place is out in the sticks; it’s a resort rather than a city property. It might make sense for someone contemplating a short break in Athens, combining a resort experience with relative close proximity to things in the city.
It makes no sense at all, in my view, to combine this place with a stay in one of the resorts in the islands ( unless one is totally resort-oriented).
This would make a lovely weekend or 3/4 day break, on the other hand, for those not minding the commute ( or wanting to stay on the property).
Personally, I’d choose the GB or KG every time, but I don’t have a resort focus ( and can think of little worse than those ludicrously overpriced, ‘could-be-anywhere’ Mykonos/island resorts)

I am sorry, but having a surcharge for sparkling wine at an included breakfast is extremely tacky. Either offer it or don't, but to offer and charge extra for it is not something I have ever seen before.

The important question was not addressed ...... was access to the pool side loungers/chaise difficult? Did you encounter the early morning 'oh, I was swimming here at 5 am and left for just a moment' crowd?

I stayed there recently with my family twice in conjunction with an island tour. It was one of th best four seasons I stayed in and an excellent resort with great restaurants including a Matsuhisa and a Beef bar. They even pulled of invisible maid service ( where you do not ever see the cleaning crew in your room or in corridors ) which I have not experience outside Asia before. The Rooms where sound proofed with fat pipe a/c so no fan noice. Unlimited towels, sunscreen and water.

Only complaints I have is the 4 day minimum stay in July August.

and @carrie no you do not have to go up at sunrise and put items on "sunchairs" to "reserve" them, there was no need. There is plenty of space since the bay is just as nice as the pool and you do not have to get your feet sandy to dive into the water.

Who cares whether Frank Sinatra and his cahoots stayed there, this is not Vegas and most people I know dislike these pretentious notions just for publicity.

Frank Pepe's all day!

It's a Four Seasons ..... stuff like that doesn't happen at a Four Seasons.

Yep, same here! I loved Greece and was lucky enough to have so many Greek friends here in Australia that I was able to stay all over Greece by sleeping on a sofa belonging to someone's Aunt, Uncle, cousin or Grandmother. Back then, splashing out for me was spending 300 Greek drachmas on a hotel in Athens that had a fan to keep the room cool!

I stayed in September of 2019, loved the hotel, amenities, service, etc…you could spent the whole week there and not get board. Plus great restaurants, night clubs await within 10-15 minutes in glyfada and voulliagmeni.