Travel / Weekend breaks
Athens winter break
My husband and I stayed first in Cape Sunio, an hour south of Athens for a relaxing break at the Grecotel, Cape Sounio
by Jess Morris
They made a mistake with our booking, so we ended up in another Grecotel called Pallas Athena, in the centre of Athens. We had five days in each. Pallas Athena is an art hotel so it had some interesting graffiti rooms with different pictures drawn on the walls, and in some of the corridors. There was also a big stuffed zebra in the dining room. It was in a good location, close to the main attractions and the food was very nice and a good choice of breakfast.
We chose Cape Sounio, as we wanted a relaxing break and we thought the weather would be nice, but because of the time of year we were close enough to Athens to do sight seeing if there was rubbish weather. The first few days were hot and sunny, but then it turned autumnal, which was perfect for walking around all the ruins, as it wasn’t so hot.
Five days was a bit too long to spend in Athens. I think three days would be enough. We spent a day seeing the Parthenon and Acropolis and the Acropolis Museum. It was really interesting to learn about the “seat of civilisation”. There are many ruins and we saw them all, because we were there so long.
Highlights included the Hammam Spa. For €40 (approximately), we had time in the Turkish baths and then an all over body scrub, massage and hair wash. After, you’re given hot towels, a green tea and Turkish Delight in the relaxation room. It was fantastic.
We also enjoyed a taster menu and wine at a two Michelin star restaurant called Funky Gourmet. It was really hard to find, as there are no signs outside it, so it just looks like someone’s house. The food was incredible. The most mind blowing was a Greek salad that came as a white sorbet, but when you ate it you could taste onions and cucumber and tomatoes and cheese. Yummiest was sea urchin eggs with bread that looked like a natural sponge and a chocolate soup. It was the best dining experience we’ve ever had.
Athens is a friendly city, easy to navigate. There’s a lot of graffiti around which makes it look more threatening than it is. I would definitely go back just to go to the Hammam and Funky Gourmet again.
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