Erra - Zephyr - Athens Center, 90m²,3 BD,1.5 BATH

A charming, laid-back neighborhood restaurant with good food. It made for a nice Athens experience, and I’d go back next time I’m in town.

If you want a peaceful night’s sleep, I strongly advise against staying here. The property operates as a long-stay/Airbnb hotel, but on April 7th, 2025 it opened a DJ’d rooftop bar. Loud music continues well past midnight despite Athens’ quiet hours starting at 11 PM, and the bass carries into rooms in neighboring buildings. I understand that Mr Kostas is permitted to operate the bar from 6PM to 1AM, but he is required to observe quiet hours from 11PM. The reviewer says this rule is broken five nights a week, Wednesday through Sunday, and that the noise violates the terms of the operating permit. Conversations with the owner, Mr. Kostas, went nowhere. Multiple residents have called police and filed complaints. Until the Roosters Egg resolves the noise problem or properly separates the bar from the lodging, I can’t recommend staying here. For anyone new to Athens, the review says you can call #112 to report noise and ask police to visit the bar and take a decibel reading. The Rooster Bar is at 40 Sporadon/6th floor and is accessible only by front-door buzzer, since the building is meant to be a residential short-term rental. It’s a real blight on the Kypseli neighborhood. Every other establishment honors the 11PM quiet hour, and the owner should be ashamed of trading the neighborhood’s peace and quality for a few extra dollars.

We booked our room more than a month ahead, but after strikes brought an influx of last-minute travelers, the check-in plan fell apart. We were due to arrive after 20:00, when reception closes, so the hotel messaged us our room number and said the front door would be open and the key would be in the room door. That didn’t feel safe to me. Anyone could walk in and take a room, especially since you can see into the hotel from the street. When we got there, someone was already in our room. We weren’t going to make her leave and risk ending up with a dirty room, and she never showed proof that she’d booked it, though we took her at her word. We found one other room with a key in it and decided to use it. About an hour later, a second woman knocked and showed me a message from Reception saying we were in her room. We didn’t want to leave another guest out just because our own plans had been disrupted by another traveler and poor planning at the front desk. We gave her the room and went straight to the airport without anywhere to sleep. I could understand reception closing at 20:00 in a small village, but this is a capital city. For a hotel that describes itself as “tech-forward,” it couldn’t manage the basic task of assigning rooms correctly. I’m thoroughly disappointed that I emailed the hotel twice and got no reply. We received no refund, and didn’t stay there at all.

The bar and garden served really good food and drinks, and the place is close to the plaza and restaurants. From the moment we arrived, everyone was welcoming and the service was amazing. The cleaning lady was so kind, and Peter was attentive too. They both helped without hesitation. It depends on what you’re looking for, but this was where I felt most comfortable in Athens. 10/10, I recommend it.