Esther Suites, Nilie Hospitality MGMT

The woman working here was nice, but that doesn’t help when the job isn’t getting done. We booked a “deluxe room” for one night, with check-in listed as 15:00. Before 15:00 on arrival day, someone called three times to confirm the booking and ask when we’d arrive, even though it had already been confirmed several times by email, booking.com, and a call days earlier. We arrived at 15:00, but the room wasn’t ready. After waiting 40 minutes, we went up and found the toilet leaking. The receptionist looked for another room and gave us one that was much smaller, while saying it was the same as the deluxe. We were tired and let it go. She also said she’d send the building entrance code on WhatsApp, but only mumbled it, so we were expected to remember it. We never got the WiFi password, and the second room hadn’t been fully cleaned. There’s now no one at reception, and nobody answers the phone. If we hadn’t found another guest and asked him for the entrance code, we would have been stuck in our room all day.

There was some street noise at night, which comes with staying in such a busy area and being close to the nightlife. The apartment was spotless when we arrived and clearly had been given careful attention. Its central location made it easy to get to nearby cafes, shops, historical sites, and the metro.

A good-value room right in the town centre, newly refurbished and modern throughout. The beds were comfortable and the AC worked well. We found some hairs on the sofa bed, so didn’t use it. I can see why people mention the lovely receptionist. She was very sweet, though it’s a shame she has to sit at that desk all day without a view of the world.

The location is excellent, right in the centre with lots of places for food and drinks. But parking was a nightmare unless you tried outside business hours, and the service from the building’s management was terrible. We had to stop in Thessaloniki for two nights and thought we’d give it a try because the reviews were good. We called at short notice and there was availability, but had to go to the people managing the property to get the room key. If I remember right, they close around 20:00. We also had to pay there by credit card because they said IRIS payments weren’t accepted. So if we hadn’t arrived by eight or didn’t have a credit card, would we have been unable to book or stay? That’s a strange policy. Looking back, I wish we hadn’t gone. My wife went to their office, paid, got the number for the lock, and was sent on her way. When we reached the room, we found no key card for the electricity. We called again and were told to look for a spare at the empty reception downstairs. I hesitate to call it a hotel. There are no hotel amenities at all. It’s a renovated block of apartments rented out as individual Airbnbs, with a shared entrance, so be prepared. The view was terrible, or nonexistent, even from the top floor. Street-facing rooms would be better off keeping their curtains shut. The place was sort of clean, but there were hairs on the pillow and bedding. There was no toilet paper, and everything was closed when we noticed after 21:00, so we had to call the manager again. She offered to come by at 22:30 after finishing her chores, but we politely declined as long as they made it right the next day, as promised. The toilet door gave no privacy at all. It was tinted glass with huge gaps at the hinges, so forget a romantic getaway. There were just two espresso shots, and they weren’t restocked the next day. Neither was the toilet paper. When we called the manager a third time, she frustratingly said, “but Miss something told me that there was, so you probably didn't look that well” 😂. At least the shops were open, so we bought a roll ourselves. There was no cleaning service either, hence the missing toilet paper. Honestly, I doubt there is a cleaning service. We found this on Google Maps listed as a hotel, but you’re booking an Airbnb. If you want a central place and don’t mind a tiny room with the curtains closed all the time, this could work. You can open them and see your neighbours across the street. The soundproofing is nonexistent. And as a final touch, the fire alarm went off at night. Someone came to switch it off after about 20 minutes. Not the fire department, just someone. We certainly didn’t have fun.