Stayed: February 2023, 1-night stay at the Sofitel Athens Airport, Superior Room with Twin Beds, paid by airline due to flight cancellation average rates: off-season January/February 195-250€ per night; June/July: 360-450€ night
Room Types
The Sofitel Athens Airport offers several room types within different categories and beds. The lowest standard category is a Superior Room. Other rooms offered include: a Queen Luxury Room with airport runway views, a Club Luxury Room with access to the Club Lounge, a Junior Suite, a Club Sofitel Suite with lounge access, and the Prestige Suite. If you decide to book a Club Room, it gives you complimentary access to the Club Lounge within the hotel. It is located on a separate floor. I did not use the lounge, so I cannot review or comment further on this.
Loyalty Program and Use of Points
Since the Sofitel Athens Airports belongs to Accor you can use your points from the All Program. It allows you to collect points for your stay and use your points to reduce the rate. 2000 points would give you 40 euros off your rate. It is also possible to use more points if required to reduce the price. If you are a Gold, Platinum, or Diamond Member you are eligible for an upgrade to the next room category if available. Platinum and Diamond members enjoy access to the lounge. Accor often offers promotions during the year, so it is easily possible to collect double or triple points, or sometimes even more for your booking.
Location
The Sofitel Athens Airport is located only a short walk away from the airport. You will exit the airport and walk across the street, and you can already see the hotel. It is very convenient if you arrive very late in Athens, or have to leave on a very early flight out of the city. If you would like to travel into the city, the bus stop (airport bus) and metro are nearby.
Check-In/Out and staff
The check-in process at the hotel was quick and efficient. However, the staff was not very friendly and welcoming and did not explain anything about the hotel facilities that are offered or how to access the Wi-Fi. The staff member just gave me my keys and a printed copy of the room service menu. The F&B staff at the restaurant was good in the afternoon and evening and the service was quick and efficient. In the morning at the breakfast, the staff members were not particularly friendly and interested in the guests. You must consider that this is a five-star service hotel, that charges a premium price. At check-out, I had a similar experience. The check-out procedure was quick and efficient, however, the staff member was not interested in asking me about my stay, if there was anything that could be improved, and so on. This could be improved, and I see much more potential for the hotel.
Room and Wi-Fi
I stayed in a Standard Superior Room with 2 twin beds. The room has a size of 28 m²and is spacious enough for two people. The bed and pillows are very soft, and you will also find additional pillows and a blanket in the room. Overall, the room offers enough storage space. You can easily store your suitcase on the luggage rack, there are also two hangers near the entry door, where you can hang your clothes. The room provides coat hangers, a bathrobe, and slippers. Additional items include a sewing kit, a shoe brush, and a shoehorn.
Within the room, you can adjust the lighting to your preferences. A benefit is that you can fully close the window shade, so there is no light coming in from outside. This is a great benefit if you arrive after a long flight and need to sleep in the afternoon or during the daytime. The room itself is very soundproof and you cannot hear much noise from outside the airport or from other rooms. The carpet within the room and the hallway does help to reduce any possible noise from other rooms and guests. Within the room, there is a large desk, where you find the coffee/tea station on the left side, and a workspace with a comfortable chair and plugs on the right side. Underneath the TV there is a Minibar fridge located. I found that the work desk is spacious enough to get some work done and provides enough light from the top. I tried to connect to free Wi-Fi and the connection was very poor and slow (around 7 MB/s). It was fast enough to read some emails and read some websites. However, if you rely on the connection for work or video calls it is not suitable. There is a possibility to buy Premium Wi-Fi which is faster. For a five-star hotel, charging this high rate, there should be a faster Wi-Fi connection available free of charge.
Bathroom and Amenities
The room offers are bathroom with a walk-in shower and a bathtub. The toilet is located separately in a small area of the room next to the bathroom. The walk-in shower was spacious, and the water pressure was good, although it took some time to regulate the ideal temperature. There is also a bathtub, however, there are no additional amenities offered for a bath. The amenities provided are from Olive Era, which uses natural ingredients and organic virgin olive oil. I found the quality very good. Body lotion, body wash, hair conditioner, and hair wash are provided together with two soap bars. However, for a hotel of this category and price, there were no shaving kits or dental kits provided within the room. I previously stayed in lower-quality hotels that provided that within the room. For a five-star hotel, this is rather poor.
Food and Beverage
The hotel offers a restaurant with breakfast, lunch, and dinner service, as well as room service. My accommodation was arranged through the airline, so I only had the opportunity to try a set menu and breakfast. Overall, I found the food quality average and the prices are very high. In the evening they offer a set buffet menu (for 25-30€) which includes some salad, hot meat dishes, and a dessert choice. Below I attached the room service menu, which gives you an indication of some options and prices.
The breakfast buffet in the morning was rather disappointing for a five-star hotel. I believe the price for the breakfast buffet is between 30-35 € if not included in the rate. They offer some bread, bread rolls, pastries, cheese, honey, jam, cold cuts, fruits, eggs, and a station where you can order eggs to your liking. Additionally, there are other hot items, yogurt, cereals, or muesli. Coffee or hot drinks you can order from staff members when you sit down. If you don’t have a rate that includes breakfast, I would consider whether to spend this high amount of money on the buffet that offers average quality. You might find better options at Athens Airport, or through Lounge Access depending on your status.
Rating 7/10
Considering that I did not pay myself for my stay due to a flight cancellation, I tried to write this review from a customer perspective that would pay around 210€ or 350€ depending on the season and time of the year. The convenience of walking to the airport is the main benefit if you have a very early morning flight or late arrival. If you have the possibility and it’s possible with your schedule, I would recommend looking for alternatives nearby, that are very close by within 10 minutes’ drive and might provide a shuttle. The food and beverage quality was average during lunch/dinner and breakfast service for the premium prices that the hotel charges. Unfortunately, the staff during check-in and check-out were not very friendly. Before booking I would highly recommend that you compare all your options and if you decide to stay at the Sofitel Athens Airport, please check if the pool is open as there are ongoing renovations and you cannot use all facilities.
