Hotel Athina

First impressions were that this is a very traditional ,small Greek hotel. This was true but any downsides (small room and basic bathroom) were immediately changed with the service delivered by the owner Makis and his team . He is a larger than life character totally focused on giving his guests ( and many long time returning friends) the best possible holiday . His ability to remember everyones' names is amazing . His greetings every morning and evening were genuine and everyone had a smile around the hotel. 😃 He will fix anything that you ask for. Room facilities are basic in the 2 bed rooms and recognising we were there for 2 weeks,Makis moved us to a larger studio room just around the corner from the main hotel without us having to ask. There are a range of room sizes and sea views , but not all offered by Jet2. Can be booked directly by contacting Makis . The pool area is located right next door at the 5 * hotel that is also run by Makis's family . Excellent pool area , pool bar with good meals, fresh towels and small beach with sunbeds that were always available. Proof of how much people value their holidays here is evident from the many guests who have returned multiple times - some over 27 years! TIP: Want larger , modern rooms then stay next door at the Ionian Emerald resort - you can still visit Makis's bar in the evening🤣. Sami Town is an easy 15 min walk along the seafront, there is a local bakery and a very good local restaurant ( Kokopa) and Vitosquared an excellent breakfast and snack coffee shop just 5 min walk . We had a great relaxing holiday that had a lot of true ,genuine Greek hospitality !

We stayed in room 205, room was ok but makis the hotel owner was superb nothing to much trouble always happy to help, introduced new holiday makers to everyone and we came away with some new lifelong friends. We can see why people go back each year. Athina hotel has helped us make some new memories that we will cherish forever.

Whilst the hotel staff are very friendly and efficient and the owner Makis is extremely friendly and helpful, the hotel was a bit of a let down. The room we had was a bit dingy and the beds weren’t particularly comfortable, however the pillows certainly were good. The bathroom was very small and badly in need of an update: small shower tray (which had clearly cracked and been poorly repaired) with a shower curtain. The shower head hooked onto the wall but didn’t stay upright so mostly the water ran down the wall. That said, the water was always hot and the water pressure good. We were at the back of the hotel and unfortunately the view wasn’t great. Breakfast was very basic and the same every day: 2 types of cereal and 1 muesli; yoghurt and honey; orange juice (not fresh); sliced ham and sliced cheese; hard boiled eggs; brown or white bread; apples, sometimes bananas and sometimes melon; hot drinks machine. On the plus side, the rooms were cleaned and fresh towels provided every day. The hotel does not have its own pool but we had use of the pool at the hotel next door which was lovely. There were 2 decent restaurants within a 5 and 10 min walk but mostly the restaurants are a good 20/25 min walk into Sami. If you’re looking for a ‘cheap and cheerful’ break where you can make lots of friends, this is a great Side note: I hate to leave such a negative review as Makis had been very helpful, going above and beyond with transport to and from a restaurant during a downpour and giving us a room to use for a late checkout, but it’s my honest review.

Despite our stressful start to our holidays thanks to Loveholidays for not paying for our accommodation, we had a lovely time in hotel Athina. Both Elena and Maki are really lovely. They helped us with an issue created by the travel agency in the middle of the night. As previous reviews said, Maki knows everyone's name and if you have any issues, Maki will fix it!! Bonus, we could use a lovely pool at Ionian Emerald hotel. Beach is great and swimming in that gorgeous sea was the highlight of the holidays. Thank you so much, Maki. Ευχαριστώ πολύ.

5/5 perfect host Very comfortable fantastic bar Makis the owner knows and remembers everybody’s name A fantastic welcome when you arrive and continues every day of your stay Nothing is a problem and you can only laugh or smile Breakfast starts around 7.00 am and Makis appears soon after and asks everyone if they slept well and if they didn’t he assures everyone he will FIX IT It’s like Faulty Towers in reverse a laugh every minute On the plus side you have access to the swimming pool and restaurant next door

Just 2 nights here touring Kefalonia, used as base to spend day on Ithaka. Owner Makis very kind and helpful, though internet not working for my first day on hotel opening for season. Sea view room with balcony very clean, if a bit dated in design. Had to switch off noisy old fridge to sleep; needs replacing with modern quieter one... Location fine; walk to Sami restaurants etc easy 15mins. The village where it is based on bay also has good restaurant on square. Melisani Caves nearby to visit.