Kerameikos Archaeological Site and Museum

This site was closed for many years (beginning in 1999) but has opened again. The Museum was completely renovated and reinstalled, and the lighting and information is excellent.  The Museum in particular makes a good introduction to Greek pottery, including pieces from a wide range in time periods.  The site has a variety of important areas, including the gates of the ancient city (Dipylon Gate), the Street of the Tombs, the Themistoklean Walls, and more.  If you visited the Kerameikos before it closed, you must come back and see the incredible improvements to the Museum.  I couldn't believe it was the same place!

The National Historical Museum is located in the beautiful neoclassical building that used to house the Parliament, at Kolokotroni Square, right in the center of Athens (Syntagma area).  The collections of the Museum are excellent, including pieces referencing many aspects of Greek history from the Early Modern period.  There are many costumes, flags, weapons, war posters, and pieces of furniture on display, as well as of course the room where the Greek Parliament met until moving to their present building in Syntagma Square.  Although it took me six trips to Greece to make it to this museum, it was a highlight of my trip, and I wish I had been earlier.  I will certainly be back, and I recommend it highly to anyone who is interested in the modern (post-Ottoman) history of Greece.

I have now stayed in seven different rooms at the Attalos Hotel:  singles, doubles, and triples.  In all of these rooms the facilities were fine -- no complaints except for a bit of sewer smell in two of the bathrooms (that did not leak into the room when the door was closed).  The best things about this hotel are the Roof Bar (excellent panoramic view of the city; Mt. Lykavitos and the Acropolis lit up at night are lovely) but be aware that the Roof Bar is not a restaurant; the location (three blocks from Monastiraki Square and the Monastiraki Metro station [use Athinas St. exit] and near the Central Market); and the price:  for a single without breakfast, I paid 45 Euros with an online reservation.  For Athens, this is a very good price.  A double was 54 Euros for the room.

This is a very popular hotel because it is repeatedly recommended on all the travel sites, like Lonely Planet, Fodor's, Frommer's, etc., and in the guidebooks, which makes it harder to get a reservation in the summer months.  In the winter (I was there in December and January), most of the rooms were empty.  Therefore, if you are interested in staying here between May and October, reserve your room in advance.

I did not eat the breakfast here because I felt it was overpriced.  I went two blocks to the Grigoris on the corner and got a bougatsa or spanikopita or something with coffee for about a quarter of the breakfast price.

The balcony on one of my rooms was quite large.  If you want a nice big balcony, or a quiet room for that matter, request a room at the back, not facing Athinas St.  I plan to stay here again when I next need a budget hotel in the center of the city.

Click on the "Attalos Hotel" link at the top of this review for directions and contact info for the hotel.