Athens

Athens wears its history differently from almost any other European capital. Ancient ruins rise between apartment blocks, Byzantine churches hide along busy streets and the city’s distinctive 20th-century polykatoikia buildings form a dense urban landscape beneath the Acropolis. Yet Athens is far from a city trapped in its past. Neighbourhoods such as Monastiraki, Psyrri and Koukaki are filled with galleries, independent shops and creative spaces, while a new generation of Greek architects and designers is bringing fresh energy to forgotten buildings across the city.

Food and drink are essential to understanding modern Athens. Traditional tavernas, neighbourhood bakeries and bustling food markets coexist with ambitious contemporary Greek restaurants, natural wine bars, specialty coffee shops and an increasingly confident cocktail culture. Greek ingredients remain at the heart of it all—exceptional olive oil, vegetables, seafood, cheeses and herbs—but younger chefs are approaching them with fewer rules and a distinctly modern Athenian attitude. Rooftop bars add another ritual: watching the Acropolis slowly illuminate as the city moves into the night.

Athens’ most interesting hotels reflect this creative reinvention. Modernist buildings, former offices and historic townhouses are being transformed into highly individual places to stay, often combining contemporary Greek design, art and lively restaurants or bars. At DNA Hotels, we curate the places that capture Athens as it is now—layered, imperfect and energetic, where architecture, food, culture and 2,500 years of history somehow belong to the same city.