The Margi — Hotel in Municipality of Vari - Voula - Vouliagmeni

The Margi is our favorite place to stay in Athens when we want to be away from the crowded central parts of Athens. We booked a Superior room which was then upgraded to one facing the pool area. Although our room was located on the first level, we had privacy and a nice balcony with a view of the pool area. The room we stayed in is somewhat small, with no tub and a shower stall that inevitably sent water everywhere outside the stall. This meant we had to use towels to dry the bathroom floor after each shower. Unfortunately, we were only provided two large towels and two face towels for the day, so we were always short towels with which to dry ourselves. Notwithstanding, the hotel staff is superb and the service is truly five star service with very few exceptions. The only negative experience we had at the hotel was during the regular lunch dinning service at the restaurant (which has indoor and outdoor seating by the pool area). Our one and only waiter was somewhat disappointing as we sat for at least 5 minutes before he acknowledged our presence and brought us a menu. And I suppose we would have been waiting much more time had we not gotten up from our seats and asked for the lunch menu. The lunch offerings were not very impressive nor creative. The linguini bolognese I ordered was average in flavor and our waiter did not ask me if I wanted grated cheese for the pasta. My wife ordered the octopus appetizer dish which was also average compared to other ocotopus dishes we have enjoyed throughout Greece. The Greek salad we ordered was nothing to rave about and certainly nothing similar to the many Greek salads that we enjoyed elsewhere in Greece. The restaurant has an acceptable wine list which features some well known brands so the wine list did not disappoint. Overall, the lunch service at the restaurant could have been better and did not meet our expectations given the hotel’s luxurious surroundings. On our second day there, we had drinks in the evening by the pool area. The drinks were excellent and our waiter was very attentive to all of our needs. Overall, I would highly recommend this boutique hotel for those looking for a romantic setting and luxurious setting close to the beach and away from the traffic and noise of...

Our check-in experience was quite smooth. Staff was polite (well, relatively speaking), room was spacious, valet parking and luggage delivery very quick and efficient, good selection in breakfast buffet (although we had to find our way to get hot coffee!), good wifi connection. This property is quite old and needs renovation. In our suite, doors were rotten, furnitures worn off, balcony door dysfunctional, room lighting controls old tech, bathtub drain clogged.

DO NOT LOOSE SIGHT OF YOUR CREDIT CARD!

Be aware that the reception attempts to take a double sided copy of your credit card at check in without informing you. They have a copier installed under the countertop, so if you lean in and watch closely what they are doing with your card, you will notice that they are photocopying it. The establishment may not dare to use this information wrongfully, however who could guarantee that a receptionist will not get ahold of this information and disappear? A copy of a credit card is almost as good as a credit card itself and the person having your card details could use it for online shopping unless you have set up additional authentication steps with your provider. If you notice that they are copying your credit card, immediately ask them to stop and tear/discard the copies yourself. For extra peace of mind, you could also white-out the 3 digit CVC number on the back of your card after memorizing it or saving it to a safe location.

A word for non-smokers

Greek people LOVE to smoke! According to a recent study, Greece has the highest tobacco consumption in EU (with approx. 40% of its population smoking). Supposedly a law was passed in 2010 prohibiting smoking in public areas but apparently nobody gives a rat's ass and the law is not even enforced anywhere with the exception of airports. Just be aware that wherever you visit, chances are it will be smoke-filled. The odor in our hotel room was so heavy that we had to keep on spraying air fresheners and kept windows open at all times. When I asked the reception whether it was allowed to smoke in rooms, the answer I got was "our rooms are non smoking but we can provide you with an ashtray". Look like Greeks are passing laws just for...

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