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Athens Hotel - Metaxourgeio (Karaiskakis Square) vs Plaka area?

We are a family of four (two teenage girls). We will be in Athens for two nights in June 2017. We want to stay using reward points at the newly refurbished Hotel Wyndham Grand Athens in the Metaxourgeio area near Karaiskakis Square. We have read the Metaxourgeio area is not as safe, especially at night, when compared to other more touristy areas. Please advise if there is much to see and to walk to around Karaiskakis Square? We understand we’ll be doing a lot of walking in the city. Do we need to take the metro or a taxi to a better area before we start walking? How concerned should we be at night? Is it wise to walk back to our hotel from the Metaxourgeio metro station at night (it looks pretty close)? Perhaps we should pay for a hotel in the Plaka neighborhood, or near Syntagma Square, or near Monastiraki?

In general, four person rooms are more difficult to find in Europe. Any suggestions for hotels <$175 per night that offer family (quad) rooms is appreciated. Obviously we’d prefer to use reward points instead of paying for two nights, but only if the hotel is in a better location for our family.

Posted by
3262 posts

We enjoyed our 4 night stay the Hermes Hotel in Athens and I see that they have a Family Room. It's just a couple of blocks from Syntagma Square.

Posted by
1441 posts

Personally if I have to take the metro to get near the Plaka/Acropolis I won't consider that area. Central Athens requires lots of walking so we like be near the action.

Hotel Attalos has several family rooms as well. It is close to the Monestraki Metro station and has a rooftop bar with Acropolis view.
See the last two pictures on the first page of this album
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157632121475515

Posted by
1419 posts

Bret

There really isn't that much in Metaxourgeio to interest a tourist. About the only upside from that point of view is that you are nearer the Archaeological Museum if that's on your itinerary.

Having said that it isn't really that far from tourist sites either. I would reckon to walk from Karaiskakis Square to Monastiraki in around twenty minutes.

The safety issue is a tricky one. Nobody can guarantee your safety in any big city. Metaxorgiou is certainly grottier than around Plaka: you'll see more people sleeping rough and who generally look out of it. I'm not convinced that makes it any less safe. Criminals tend to go where the cash is, so Plaka and Kolonaki are magnets for pick pockets. Also, in June, at the time you are likely to be getting back to the hotel, the streets will be full of people.

I'd have no hesitation in staying in Metaxorgeio myself but I suspect if I had teenage daughters (and could afford it) I'd pay to be more central just for the peace of mind. Ultimately it's a judgement call. if you opt for paying I'd echo the suggestion of the Attalos. It's where we always stay if we are only in Athens for a night or two.

Have a good trip.

Alan

Posted by
971 posts

I stayed at a hotel Stanley on Karaiskakis Square this summer. The hotel was nice, but I did find the area as well as the walk from there to Monastirakiou Square rather seedy .
Mind you I am 30 years old and was travelling with my girlfriend and we met up with a group of friends for a football match, so we were not exactly helpless, but we all felt that the neighbourhood was a bit seedy. Of course nothing happened to us, so it is just a feeling,
but since you are travelling with teenage daughters and considering the fact that there is nothing to see in the area, I would suggest staying somewhere else.

Posted by
17 posts

Thanks everyone for your opinions and hotel recommendations. It looks like Hermes Hotel & Attalos are good alternatives if we decide to go that route.

Alan – Thanks for your insights. In regards to my query, you “nailed it”.

Brief background: I recently read how Omonia Square was not the best area for families and should be avoided at night. This caused me to look further into Karaiskakis Square where the Wyndam is located. It appears Omonia is far worse than Karaiskakis. Thanks Morten from what I learned, “seedy” sounds like a good description. Although safety is always a concern, potentially exposing our girls to less desirable surroundings is not the way we want to end our two week trip.

Essentially we will only be in Athens for a day and a half. We land on Wednesday @ noon and fly home on Friday @ 12:30pm (which means breakfast and head to the airport). Based on the room pictures and rooftop pool/restaurant the Wyndam looks to be the nicest hotel of our entire trip (and it is going to feel brand new with the renovation). That said, we need to decide how important is it to be centrally located? It is a tough call – nice hotel in not so nice location. Do we just take a taxi or metro to/from the hotel and just accept that we won’t walk around the immediate area? Is it worth paying to be near the action?

The Wyndam is free, the Attalos is $342 & the Hermes is over $500 for the two nights. Heck, by staying at the Wyndam we could have limo service back n forth to the tourist sights and still come out ahead.

For now, I think we are still leaning toward the Wyndam. Yes, I wish it was in a better area, but it doesn’t look too far away and we’ll just taxi home each night. This is our first time to Greece and I did not want to make a major “hotel location” mistake trying to save a few bucks. Please speak up if you disagree or have any additional comments. Thanks!

Posted by
10 posts

Karaiskaki square is safe. Small dark alleys away from there maybe not. There is though a direct metro line and you can be in minute to the centre. Metro is cheap. Walking cheaper and most attractions are not less than 20 mins away if you like walking. Following the main street will be no safety problem for you at night. Plaka etc is overprised and I am pretty sure you can enjoy yourself and your rewards points.