By
yvette thomson
on
10th October 2025
Yvette Thomson discovers a luxurious haven in Athens where Greek traditions are reimagined, and stylish interiors reign supreme.
Athens has always been a city of contrasts. Ancient marble temples stand beside neon lit bars, history collides with modernity, and every street seems to hum with possibility. I thought I knew it well until I checked into NEW Hotel. What I found was not a hotel in the traditional sense, but a living canvas, a place where art and hospitality merge so seamlessly that you stop being just a guest and start becoming part of the story. By the time I left, Athens felt different to me, sharper, more vibrant, more alive. That is the effect of NEW Hotel: it changes how you see the city itself.
Overview: Athens Reimagined
Tucked between Syntagma Square, the Acropolis and the stylish enclave of Kolonaki, NEW Hotel sits at the very core of Athens. The building once housed the Olympic Palace Hotel, a mid-century landmark, before visionary art collector Dakis Joannou and design duo Fernando and Humberto Campana breathed startling new life into it. Now part of the Donkey Hotels group, NEW is both a homage to Greek heritage and a defiant leap into the future. It feels less like a renovation and more like a resurrection, Athens distilled, then reframed.
The Aesthetic: Every Wall Tells a Story
Walking through NEW Hotel is like wandering an installation at a cutting-edge gallery, only here you can sleep inside it. Recycled timber fragments wrap the walls in sculptural waves, postcards from Athens’ past form an almost cinematic collage, and shadow puppets appear mid movement, their stories woven into the corridors. Each floor embraces a theme: the Evil Eye, Karagiozis folklore, the layering of Greek history across the decades. Even the furniture is one of a kind, designed to be touched, lived with, used.
Yet despite its audacity, the hotel never feels intimidating. There is warmth to its edges, a playfulness to its details. I did not just admire it, I felt part of it.
Dining: Greek Flavours with a View That Stops You in Your Tracks
Dinner at the Art Lounge on the seventh floor was one of those experiences I know I will replay in memory for years to come. The Acropolis rose in the distance, glowing in the twilight, while Executive Chef Babis Kountouris presented dishes that felt both rooted and radical. Greek ingredients were given the respect of tradition, then elevated with modern technique, seafood so fresh it seemed to vibrate with the Aegean, meze that reinvented themselves without losing authenticity, brunches that redefined indulgence.
On the ground floor, the Lobby Bar offered a more casual rhythm. I began each day here with proper Greek yoghurt, local honey, and coffee strong enough to fuel a morning of exploration. It is simple, but perfectly judged, the kind of detail that makes a hotel memorable.
The Rooms: Intimate Installations
I stayed in a Studio, one of the larger categories at 30 square metres, and it felt like a private gallery that happened to double as a bedroom. Floor to ceiling windows flooded the space with Athenian light, bouncing across bespoke wooden structures and artful installations. The balance between form and function was near perfect: a bed that swallowed me in comfort, eco conscious details, a bathroom that was sleek yet unpretentious. Some rooms come with balconies, but even without one, the views across the city rooftops felt cinematic.
What struck me most was how considered it all was. Every design choice carried meaning, every texture told a story. It was as though nothing here had been placed by accident.
Beyond the Room: Where Culture Becomes Experience
The hotel’s wellness space, NEW Sense, gave me exactly the reset I needed after climbing the Acropolis – a massage in the treatment room, complete with jacuzzi, left me blissfully restored. There is also a 24-hour gym, though I found exploring Athens on foot was workout enough.
Where NEW really stands apart is its cultural heartbeat. At the Art Lounge, Maria Papadimitriou’s installation The Insanity of Failure as Nourishment of Desire turned dinner into something surreal. Think fragmented bodies, mythical figures, feminine metamorphosis, and a cave like setting where failure is not an ending but a spark for desire. Dining there felt like stepping inside a living artwork, with every glass of wine and every plate of food charged with its own story.
Getting There with AEGEAN
Reaching Athens could not be simpler. AEGEAN, Greece’s flagship carrier and winner of Skytrax’s Best Regional Airline in Europe for 13 consecutive years, connects the UK to Athens with ease. With frequent direct flights from Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Edinburgh, the journey becomes part of the pleasure rather than a chore. I flew out of London and found the service polished and genuinely warm, the kind of hospitality that feels distinctly Greek before you even touch down.
On the return leg, I discovered AEGEAN’s Athens Extra Schengen Lounge, a 1,200 square metre sanctuary that feels more like a boutique hotel lobby than an airport lounge. Curved marble walls, terrazzo floors and sleek wooden accents create an atmosphere of understated luxury, while panoramic runway views keep the excitement of travel alive. I settled into a quiet corner with a chilled drink and a slice of bougatsa still warm from the oven, watching the planes taxi as the sun dipped over the horizon. It was the calmest, most elegant farewell to Greece I could have imagined.
Final Thoughts: A Hotel That Redefines Athens
By the time I left NEW Hotel, I realised I had not simply stayed in Athens. I had lived it differently. This hotel is a lens, a curator, a collaborator in your journey. It makes the city feel sharper, more dynamic, more creative. I have stayed in many design hotels that looked beautiful but felt cold. NEW is the opposite. It is alive, it has soul, and it will stay with me long after the trip itself.
Key Details:
Hotel: NEW Hotel, 16 Filellinon Street, Athens, Greece
Rates: From €280 per night for two people on a bed and breakfast basis
Rooms: 79 rooms and suites, ranging from Standards to the 70 square metre Penthouse Suite
Dining: Art Lounge rooftop restaurant and cocktail bar, plus Lobby Bar for breakfast and light bites
Wellness: NEW Sense spa with jacuzzi and treatment room, 24-hour gym
Best For: Design lovers, cultural travellers, and anyone who wants Athens seen through a creative lens
Getting There: Direct flights to Athens with AEGEAN from Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Edinburgh. AEGEAN is Skytrax’s Best Regional Airline in Europe for 13 consecutive years. Lounge access in Athens is highly recommended for a stylish pre- flight retreat.
donkeyhotels.gr/newhotel
en.aegeanair.com
