Fresh Hotel — Hotel in Athens

The Fresh Hotel is an oasis of quiet and calm in the very center of the hustle-and-bustle that is the magnificent city of Athens. Our five-night stay at this incredible hotel was perfect in every single way!||I must point out that our group of eight was expecting our arrival to be on Wednesday, October 1; however, our cruise line informed us of the planned city-wide transportation strike for that day, and that disembarkation was recommended for Tuesday, September 30th. All five groups (two, two, one, one, and two of us) made contact differently to the Fresh Hotel to obtain an extra night. And while we were all lucky enough to be accommodated, each of us found all means of communication (whether online or by phone) to be easy and effective. We understand it was pure luck that this was possible for all five reservations; however, kudos to how easy this was for us.||Many thanks to each and every single person at this hotel with whom we had contact. So many names and so many positive interactions - trying to remember names! At the front desk, we were always welcomed upon our arrivals and departures each and every time we came and went. Both Vasili and Vasili (behind the desk and the luggage attendant) always interacted with us and had recommendations for us, as did everyone else there. All the rooftap bar people were outstanding as well, and delightfully engaged with me with my repeated questions about the Greek alphabet and language, as well as keeping us fed and refreshed with beverages. The breakfast room servers took great care of us in the morning, always eager to keep our coffee fresh and food choices stocked, as well as maintaining the dining room. Our room attendants were also always smiling while keeping us clean. Thank you to all for your positivity!||Rooms here are very naturally bright with light-colored painted walls and a nearly-white laminate floor. Black-out curtains, however, are nearly 100% effective when you want it dark. We were in room 411, which was spacious and comfortable, and had a bathroom that was spotless, featuring great water pressure and lots of hot water. A standard bed without a frame that was comfortable enough.||The rooftop bar not only has a spectacular view of the Acropolis and the rest of the metro area, but it features both indoor and outdoor seating. Both adult beverages and a full food menu (except breakfast) are offered, and in the multiple times we ate here, the food was always excellent, as were all our different beverages. Great thanks to every single person up there for dealing with the group of eight of us who were always welcomed!||Breakfast room personnel were equally as wonderful. These men and women moved like worker bees, keeping the food stocked, the coffee hot and plentiful, and the room cleaned and ready for the next bleary-eyed group of people in need of caffeine and sustenance. I wish I could remember names, but every single person there was wonderful!||By the way, I am now in complete withdrawals from the fresh Greek yogurt served to us. It is utterly addicting, and is, without a doubt, the best yogurt of any kind I have ever had in my life. Mix your with one of the sweets offered, such as strawberry jam, and you too will be entranced.||Also, special thanks to the front desk for acquiring for us breakfast boxes for our 4 AM pick-up time for our trip to the airport. We were each given a reusable lunch box with a box of orange juice, an apple, a meat-and-cheese sandwich, and a locally-made dried-fruit protein bar. What a thoughtful touch!||A couple of "quirks" to know about: first, all elevators in Athens work, but they are all unique. There are two sets of elevators in this hotel for guests; Lift B in the main lobby, which services both sets of rooms in this split-level building, and Lifts C&D which services all floor from the lower level of the lobby (down quite a few steps from the top lobby) to the 9th floor roof-top bar and patio. Lifts C&D are always going to be busy, and are designed for about four people. Anything more than that and you'll need to breathe in. And while they always worked and did exactly what they are supposed to do, you might have to wait at least one time for your elevator trip. But you will always get to your destination.||As for Lift B, this is the one closest to the top lobby, and as such, it is always the one used for luggage. If you can, plan on using Lifts C&D, as B has extended waiting times.||Also to mention is that the desk chair could benefit from felt pads or other cloth cover on the bottom of its legs, as the scraping noise of this chair could be heard from both the room above and the rooms beside us. Literally, though, this was the ONLY noise we heard from other rooms - it was otherwise silent at every single hour.||A few more hooks around both rooms of our suite would have been nice, but there is no reason for any kind of point deduction for this at all. We would have liked more in the bathroom to dry and re-use our bath towels to save the hotel from having to replace each day, but the only-two hooks here made that impossible.||We are 100% satisfied with our stay, and if we are ever lucky enough to visit the magnificent city of Athens again, we will definitely stay here again, no question. Thank you again to everyone for the...

I’m a Marriott Titanium member who picked Fresh Hotel for a family vacation based on overall positive reviews here.||||I’d like to share my experience.||||1. Security (2 points out of 5): the hotel is situated in a high risk area - a nearby municipal market, dozens of small dirty shops and video salons all make it a bit dangerous, especially at night time. Beggars all around. I’ve seen stray kids, dirty and wild rushing into the hotel lobby.||||I can’t say the management of the hotel addressing this risk properly:||||(a) Contrary to the Marriott standards, elevators aren’t equipped with the access card readers. They his means anyone can come to the guest floor right to the door||||(b) Flimsy room doors are not equipped with eye holes or security chains||||(c) In-room safe is not mounted to the wall or furniture. A burglar can simply put it into his backpack and thank you for putting all your valuables in one place||||2. Check-in experience (3 points out of 5):||||(a) I’ve reserved 2 fully pre-paid rooms. It turned out the hotel charged in advance just for one room. I had to waste 10 mins helping them to pay for the second room as their old payment terminals wouldn’t accept Amex on Apple Pay. I had to fetch my physical Amex card after 3 unsuccessful attempt with Apple Pay||||(b) Long wait for the only elevator which is nearby the reception and large enough to fit a family of 4 with 2 large suitcases||||(c) Weird elevator with squeaky floor: if there is one thing which should instill confidence, this is the firm and safe floor||||(d) Narrow dimly lit hallways||||(c) Small room with overlooking a dirty demolished building. Probably the ugliest view I’ve even seen after visiting over 300 hotels in 60 countries||||3. Overall stay (3 out of 5)||||(a) Poor bathroom - crooked door, no sound insulation, leaking shower door, mold between the sink and mirror, holes in old towels||||(b) broken door of the gym. The underground gym itself is small and depressing||||(c) messy breakfast experience. Not enough large tables for a family of...

I booked this hotel through Mr. and Mrs. Smith, whose curation of hotels usually impresses me. This hotel in their collection, however, did not. Rooms were cramped, mediocre, and did not feel well cleaned. I say this because when we checked in, and first went up to our room, there was a distinct smell of fecal matter in the restroom. I'm sorry, but you don't let your guest into a room that smells of the previous guest who probably had just checked out moments before.

Service was the most appalling aspect. The website we had booked this hotel through entitled us to free welcome drinks at the hotel's rooftop bar (which was admittedly beautiful - with views of the Acropolis). The hotel staff however did not offer this to us at check-in. When I asked them about the free drinks, they denied that these were meant to be offered to "regular" members of this hotel-booking website. When I argued that the language of the text, which I showed them, indicated that free drinks were supposed to be offered to ALL members, the hotel staff kept repeating that I was "only a regular member," and was therefore not entitled to free welcome drinks. They begrudgingly offered a free welcome drinks coupon anyway, and we left the hotel to roam the city. When we came back at nightfall, the staff member who was being argumentative earlier accosted me at the hotel lobby, approaching me with a file that stated that I was not a premium user of the hotel-booking website we had used, as if that proved the point he was trying to make earlier, which is to say he was still missing the point entirely. I was really not intending to press for the drinks if they were unwilling to offer them, but to offer them, and then blindside me at the hotel lobby at the end of my day to prove you're "right" goes against the spirit of every luxury hotel I've ever been to. Will not...