The Westin Athens Astir Palace Beach Resort

Very beautiful hotel, there is a feeling that you are on a Greek island even though the hotel is about a 40 minute drive from Athens. The pools are beautiful, the sunbeds are comfortable and the service is efficient. We stayed at the hotel at the height of the season and there was a feeling that the hotel was not full. The restaurants are good, not all of them are excellent or worth the price they charge. The alcohol is relatively inexpensive. We took a room in the Mastica building, which is the newer and more central building. The room is beautiful, not very big and the bathroom is not very big either. There are no extra treatse The hotel doesn't offer anything extra, everything at an extra cost, other than a rich and excellent breakfast. In the room , no beach bag, flip flops or anything else, the slippers in the room are the simplest and most basic. This comment, since it is not clear why the place is so expensive, excessively compared to other places in the world that offer the same. The price doesn't justify coming here.

Hard to say for certain, but this might be the best hotel I’ve ever stayed in. The garden bungalow (a spacious one) was fantastic, and the pool and beach areas are breathtaking. Service was classic Four Seasons — as good as it gets — and the dining was wonderful throughout. It’s expensive, both to stay and to eat, and that’s fine up to a point… but €48 for a Vesper? You do get what you pay for, so it balances out in the end. Nobu was perfection, and breakfast is hilariously good — the bakery and patisserie spread alone is worth the trip. Hard to fault.

For the last part of my birthday trip, I booked a two-night stay at this hotel. Upon check-in, my friend and I were immediately taken aback. Our first impression of the Arion building was that it looked more like an office building than a luxury resort. The lobby decor appeared dated and did not align with the modern images shown online. We also noticed that there were noticeably more people of color in this building, though we didn't think much of it at first. Before even entering our room, we were greeted by a strong curry odor throughout the hallway, which felt very off-putting for a property at this price point. Unfortunately, things only went downhill from there. The room itself smelled strongly of mildew. The patio door looked as though it had been damaged or previously forced open. The outdoor furniture was covered with stiff towels that appeared to be concealing stains or wear on the original fabric. The shower was heavily stained and did not look, feel, or smell clean. At that point, my friend and I began taking photos and videos because this was not the experience we had paid for. There was no way we could comfortably stay in that room, so after documenting everything, we decided to explore the property ourselves to better understand where we went wrong with booking this hotel. During that process, we discovered that the Nafsika building was significantly more modern, better maintained, and free of any unusual odors. We also noticed that we rarely encountered people of color in that building. I don't typically make observations like this, but the contrast was hard to ignore. It genuinely felt as though guests of color were being placed in the older, less desirable building. We returned to the front desk and requested a room change. Initially, the staff member seemed dismissive of our concerns, but after reviewing the photos and videos we had taken, she quickly arranged accommodations for us in the Nafsika building. We also dined at 3 restaurants on the property. While the food was just ok, the service fell far short of what I would consider luxury hospitality. Our servers forgot about us multiple times, and it was difficult not to notice that nearby tables appeared to receive significantly more attention. On a positive note, the beach club was the highlight of our stay. It was the one area of the resort where the service was swift and the atmosphere matched what was advertised online, and we had a wonderful time relaxing by the beach. It truly delivered the luxury experience we had been expecting from the rest of the property. Having previously came from the amazing Amanzoe, which delivered an exceptional experience in every regard, this hotel was disappointing. The cleanliness, aesthetics, and overall level of service simply did not meet the standards I expect from a Four Seasons at this price point. Ultimately, I would be unlikely to stay here again. For the cost, the experience did not justify the price.