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An Athenian City break
91 Athens Riviera: five star glamping by the sea
For those who want beach days and the city in the same trip.
Grilled octopus, a glass of Assyrtiko and a sandy beach a few steps away. My favourite combination.
After two days of walking in the centre, we headed down the coast to 91 Athens Riviera. The transfer took 35 minutes, and it felt like arriving in a different trip. We had lunch together at the lake restaurant, 91 Society, then the boys played on the beach and swam in the sea, which was still warm in October. It was also my first chance to sit in the sun and read my copy, and indeed my feature, in Surrey Magazine.
It is five star glamping with private pools, far more fun than a standard resort and the kind of glamping I'm very much up for. The glamping pods are arranged around a lake, and the restaurant sits right beside the water. Even so, each one feels incredibly private, with olive trees all around and between them. At night the lake is lit by fairy lights, and it is easy to find your way back to your room afterwards, which matters when children are tired. It is magical.
The beach club exudes cool, and is the sister to Barbarossa, the famed restaurant on Paros. The beach itself is sandy and the sea slopes gently, so you can walk a long way out and still be in your depth. That is what made it so easy for the boys to enjoy, and it is a real advantage with young children.
It is also a serious place for tennis. There are ten courts, two clay, six synthetic and two for children, with instructors on hand, and the whole place has the feel of a cool health club. If anyone in your family plays, or wants to learn, this is the place to do it.
I then went through the property with the manager, and learned how they keep the canvas tents cool in summer: every one is fully air conditioned. It is the first thing I’d ask about any glamping property in a Greek July, and it is the detail that makes 91 Athens Riviera work for families in the hotter months. Seeing it first as a guest and then as an adviser is what makes me confident about who it suits.
Good to know
Rooms are on a B&B basis, and the two main onsite restaurants are excellent, so it is worth planning an evening there.
There is a kids club at weekends.
Bring proper tennis shoes for the clay courts. They are essential.
Instructors are available for children and adults.
It is part of the same Domes brand as Domes Miramare that featured in the Autumn 2026 edit of Surrey Magazine.
Who 91 Athens Riviera suits: families who want beach days and the city in one trip, tennis players of any age, and couples who want a more relaxed, playful kind of luxury.
THE DOLLI: the hotel with the Parthenon view
For families and travellers who want Athens to feel as extraordinary as it looks.
Dinner on the roof, a pool at our feet and the Parthenon glowing above the rooftops.
We spent the morning at the Acropolis and its museum, then went to THE DOLLI for a meeting with the manager and a site visit late in the afternoon. We couldn't resist staying on for dinner in the rooftop restaurant by the pool, watching the sun go down behind the Acropolis where I had one of the best glasses of Assyrtiko I’d had in a long time. After a morning immersed in its history, seeing it lit up at night gave me an entirely different perspective.
THE DOLLI feels rooted in Athens. The location is exceptional, in the heart of Plaka, and the neo eclectic architecture is distinctive. There is no reception desk. You are greeted and shown to a seat, as though you have arrived in someone’s lounge, and the service has the same feel as that welcome: a kind neighbour, warm and attentive without ever being fussy. The atmosphere is that of a home, with an impressive art collection. My favourite piece was a metal chair shaped like a chicken, set against a traditional wood and leather bureau. It is the kind of contrast that tells you this is a hotel with a quirky, cool streak.
It works for families too. The boys were happy with a drink in the welcome lounge while the manager showed me several room categories, a number of them with spectacular views. Their highest category room, the Acropolis Grand apartment, is the jewel in the crown.
This is why I visit the hotels I recommend. Meeting the manager and seeing the rooms in person tells me what it is really like to be there, which is something a website or an AI summary can’t.
Who THE DOLLI suits: families and first time visitors who want to be in the middle of Athens, and couples who want the city at their door.
One&Only Aesthesis: Athens at its most private
For couples and multigenerational families who want all out luxury.
The One&Only Aesthesis sits on the same stretch of coast as 91 Athens Riviera, a 10 minute walk from Glyfada, the Riviera’s seaside town, with its marina, shops, cafes and restaurants. It took us 35 minutes from the centre of Athens, so it combines easily with a city stay.
In true One&Only tradition, when you arrive at the hotel, a gong is rung by the concierge to show their appreciation and welcome you to the property.
The resort spans 21 hectares and has a spacious and organic feel. You are surrounded by the sound of the sea and the scent of olive groves. Almost all of the villas and suites have their own private pool, and there are four restaurants on site. Ettore Botrini’s cooking, which gives Greek dishes an Italian twist, is the one people talk about. The sunset bar and restaurant is where I would want to be at the end of the day.
The hotel was rebuilt in 2023 and the site has a history of its own. The original hotel here hosted Jackie O and former presidents, and the resort was rebuilt on the same ground. More recently, remains of an ancient city have begun to be uncovered across the grounds and the excavation is underway.
The beaches
Mystiko is the adults only beach, with its own bar and food truck. Manko is the beach club, the place to see and be seen. Those staying in a villa have access to their own private beach too. You can also set sail from the resort on a yacht to reach coves and islands along the coast, which I can arrange.
The villas for families
There are 14 villas, starting from two bedrooms upwards are designed for several generations travelling together. Each has a heated private pool, and villas can be joined so a larger family can take more than one. Beyond the villas there are beachfront bungalows, garden suites and private pool villas along the water’s edge. Everything here is built around being outside and close to nature.
Good to know
The outstanding spa is Greece’s first and only Guerlain Spa, and offers a spacious and incredibly well equipped gym and outdoor studio.
Mystiko and its bar are adults only, so the villas are the place for families.
The pools in the family villas are heated, which extends the season beyond summer.
The hotel has one of the largest and best kids clubs I have seen in any hotel, anywhere in the world.
Who One&Only Aesthesis suits: couples who want privacy, a spa and good food, and multigenerational families who want a villa with its own pool and room to spread out.
Athens as the Start of a Greek Holiday
I have always liked the idea of Athens as the beginning of a Greek holiday.
There is something rather wonderful about arriving in a city where thousands of years of history sit alongside excellent restaurants, rooftop bars and the sort of streets where you can happily lose half an hour simply wandering. Then, when you have had your fill of the city, you can head towards the coast or on to an island and relax and unwind.
I recently spent a few days there with my family, then stayed on for site visits and meetings with hotel managers. Seeing a place as a family and as an adviser are two different things, and it is the combination that changes what I recommend.
Why Athens works better with a second base
Athens has two very different sides. The historic centre is wonderful, but after a couple of days of walking, the coast is a welcome change of pace. The Athens Riviera is around 35 minutes from the centre, close enough to add without losing a day, and far enough to feel like a different trip. Ancient history in the morning, the sea in the afternoon. How you split your nights between the two, and which hotels you choose for each, is where most people go wrong.
Three Athens hotels I recommend
Before we travelled, I chose three hotels I specifically wanted to see for myself. Clients had been asking about them, and I had heard a lot about each one. What I wanted was the detail you only get from being there, the feel of a place, which no listing captures. They could not be more different from each other.
The DOLLI is for the first time visitor who wants to be in the middle of the city. It is relaxed for adults and children alike.
91 Athens Riviera is the one I would send families to. It is five star glamping with private pools, which is far more fun than a standard resort, and it works for the beach and the city in one trip.
One&Only Aesthesis is for all out luxury, part of the One&Only brand. I saw it without my family, so I can tell you what it is like for adults.
Which one suits you depends on who is travelling, how old the children are, when you go and what you want from the trip. Room type, dates and what is included make a real difference at all three, and I can talk you through each.
What a booking site will not tell you
Some of the things that make or break an Athens trip are not on a hotel’s listing:
How much to plan in a day, and which sight should never share a day with another
How long the airport transfer really takes, and what that means for where you sleep on the last night
Which hotels are relaxed with children and which are not
Which months suit your family, and why the shoulder season matters so much
How to link Athens to the coast and islands without wasting a day
I plan all of this for my clients, having experienced it first hand from both sides.
Planning Athens and the Greek islands
Athens rewards more time than most people give it. Three or four nights, with a base in the city and a few days on the coast before heading on to the islands, is a very well paced start to a Greek holiday.
The three hotels in this post suit three different trips. THE DOLLI is the city stay, with the Parthenon lit up over dinner. 91 Athens Riviera is the family beach stay, with tennis courts, a lake and olive trees. One&Only Aesthesis is the private one, for couples and for several generations travelling together who want privacy, luxury and something very special indeed.
Which one is right comes down to who is travelling, when you go and how you want the days to feel.
