Greece’s most underrated (and luxurious) coastline is on the rise

I’ve visited Athens countless times over the years — most recently in January, when I had the Acropolis almost to myself — but usually as a city break or a jumping-off point for islands such as Tinos, Hydra or Cephalonia. I was missing out on something right under my nose — an easy beach break where the temperature hovers in the early-to-mid twenties throughout autumn. Unlike the islands, most of which pull the shutters down in October until May, the riviera’s beach bolt holes are open year-round, and they’re a doddle to get to via a tram that leaves Syntagma Square in central Athens for the coast.

There are 28 cabanas in 91 Athens Riviera, each with private decks

There’s been plenty of development here in the past few years, with giant, expensive resorts opening their doors, such as the historic Four Seasons Astir Palace (in 2019) and a One&Only (in 2023). But in the upwardly mobile beach town Glyfada, known for its glossy marina, nightclubs and countless pavement cafés, two new smaller openings want to capture a different sort of visitor: the hipster. Enter 91 Athens Riviera, a flashy glamping resort from the Greek hospitality brand Domes, and the Ace Hotel & Swim Club, a slice of pure Americana on the coast.

Open since June, 91 Athens Riviera is a unique concept in this part of the world: 28 swish “cabanas”, all with private decks, surrounded by swaying pampas grass. These butter-coloured space pods in the shadow of the scrubby green Attica mountains feel sort of like what Fyre Festival might’ve been if it had gone ahead properly, with the groomed clientele to prove it. Some are for couples; some are family-sized with two bedrooms and a private plunge pool. Needing no encouragement to go glamping, my husband, four-year-old son and I are checking into the latter.

The cabanas can feel like a squeeze for families

91 Athens Riviera is a more boutique proposition than other hotels along this coast. You’re a two-minute waft from your cabana to the beach, covered with orange sunloungers and umbrellas; it’s a minute to the low-slung terracotta Soma Spa, all natural stone and rattan. The freshwater oval-shaped pool deserves to be busier than it is on a scorching day in October. A day passes easily with a long lunch in the chi-chi town of Glyfada,lingering over salads, chicken souvlakis and freddo cappuccinos at Mezze (dishes from £8; mezzeglyfada.gr), while the afternoon is spent messing around in our heated plunge pool, dragonflies dancing overhead in the clear autumn air.

We have an early dinner on site at Barbarossa, an outpost of the vibey seafood taverna in Paros, where tables come with pre-stocked ice buckets and waiters have Veuve Clicquot stitched into their white linen shirts. It’s known for its “napkin-waving” parties, I note nervously, which needs no explanation, as well as its seafood and sushi; the lobster orzo pasta with California rolls sounds like a strange combination but it’s heavenly (mains from £27). Eating at a child-friendly 6.30pm means we can marvel silently at the pink-purple sunset, a yacht illuminated in the water; and the Grecian light, clear as a bell. The plane circling overhead is the only reminder that Athens is just the other side of the green hills.

91 Athens Riviera has an oval-shaped freshwater pool

I’m a committed holiday neophile, and my review of this place is that it’s a cool, fun spot that is already popular with le tout Athens, if the swish black Audis and Range Rovers in the valet parking are anything to go by. But.

The downsides are that the 91 road — which the hotel takes its name from, right behind the cabanas — roars day and night, and however chic these luxury cabanas are with their blonde wood and woven rugs, they’re not soundproof, although earplugs and a Marshall speaker to drown it out are provided. Inside, they’re … cosy. We’re a family of three in a cabana designed for four, and spend most of our time flattened against walls to let the others pass.

If 91 Athens Riviera shares its DNA with a hazy Californian desert camp, the Ace Hotel & Swim Club, which opened in September five minutes up the coast, is pure Palm Springs: a brutalist bleached-white square with terrazzo-tiled floors, travertine walls, and geometric rugs and bedspreads. As we check in, a well-dressed Athenian is tapping away at a Macbook on a big lobby table, cortado from (excellent) in-house baristas Good Chemistry in hand. While the rooms are ergonomic, to say the least — the single teabag provided, camomile, is sold in the minibar for £2.50, half the price of the condom — the real pull is the fabulous retro swim club.

DJs play each weekend at The Ace Hotel & Swim Club

Guests can slope down there in the mustard-check flannel robes (which sound horrible, but are the comfiest things ever — available to buy for £200 each) and lounge on striped racing-green daybeds under white parasol discs. Live DJs man the decks at the weekend, the same set-up as at the original Ace Swim Club in Palm Springs; swimmers drink iced rosé and order burgers from the in-house, designery French-American restaurant, Sebastian, which I expect will soon be a hotspot in Glyfada.

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The best thing about the Athens Riviera is that there’s not much of it, and the activities don’t get more amped-up than a half-arsed swim out to one of the uninhabited offshore islets. One lunchtime, we leave the twinkly Ace pool and make for Lake Vouliagmeni, a flooded cavern fed by warm seawater turned a blissed-out beach club on the Vouliagmeni peninsula (entry £14; lakevouliagmeni.gr). Day-trippers are coiled on the deck, ordering Greek salads and grilled meats from the bougainvillea-draped restaurant, occasionally stretching to dip their feet into the water and giggle. We’re intrigued, so all three of us do exactly that, and are soon surrounded by hundreds of tiny silvery garra rufa fish that lunch on my scratchy feet like it’s their last meal. If this isn’t how the ancient Greeks did it — well, they were missing out.

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Cathy Adams was a guest of 91 Athens Riviera, which has room-only doubles from £377 (domesresorts.com); Ace Hotel & Swim Club, which has room-only doubles from £174 (acehotel.com); and easyJet, which has Gatwick-Athens returns from £42pp (easyjet.com)

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Publish date : 2024-10-22 23:01:00

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