The Cultured Traveller - Fourth Anniversary Edition, September-November 2018 Issue 23

whether sipping a cocktail in Alexander’s Bar, taking breakfast on the roof mesmerised by the fabled Acropolis, or staying in one the hotel’s 320 plush rooms.

Yes, Grande Bretagne is a deluxe five-star property, and part of Marriott’s Luxury Collection of one hundred or so individual hotels which celebrate their local culture and setting. Yes, it sits in a killer location, in the heart of the city which gave the world its first democracy, on Athens’ oldest and most socially important square. And yes, the marble-lined lobby is the embodiment of an iconic hotel: grand, historic, imposing and elegant, But what makes Grande Bretagne unforgettable is the charm and obvious pride of its people.

A hotel can have all the marble and butlers in the world, but if rude or disinterested people are running the