Private pool hotels in Athens: city or Riviera?
For a private pool in Athens, the choice is between two very different bases: a junior suite with its own plunge pool on Kaplanon Street, a few minutes from Kolonaki, or a bungalow or suite with its own pool at the Four Seasons Astir Palace on the Vouliagmeni peninsula, about 30 minutes by car south of the centre. The first suits couples who want the Acropolis and the museums on foot; the second suits travellers who want the sea as much as the sights. Private pools are rare in central Athens: where they exist, they usually come with one or two top suites, and most are plunge pools for cooling off rather than for swimming lengths. Both hotels on this page score highly with guests: 9.4 from 824 reviews for the Four Seasons, 8.9 from 1,118 for CITYLUXE.
Athens is a city you walk in the morning and again after dark. The Acropolis, the Ancient Agora and the Acropolis Museum lie within a short walk of each other, Kolonaki and Psiri fill up for late dinners, and the Saronic coast runs south from Faliro to Glyfada and Vouliagmeni. That double nature, ancient city and seaside, is why a private pool here can mean two different holidays.
Where to stay
Which private pool fits your Athens trip?
In Athens, a private pool is less about status than about heat. From June to September the city stays hot well into the evening, and the coast is a long tram and bus ride from the monuments. A pool of your own lets you split the day the Athenian way: sightseeing early, a swim when the stone streets are at their hottest, dinner late. The two hotels on this page answer two different trips, one in the centre and one on the coast; two other Riviera resorts, in Glyfada and Voula, also have rooms with private pools.
CITYLUXE Suites & Rooms stands at 6 Kaplanon Street, on the slope between the University of Athens and Kolonaki, the neighbourhood of galleries, cafés and the funicular up Lycabettus Hill. The room to book is the Junior Suite with Private Plunge Pool, listed at around 65 square metres for two guests. Read the room names carefully: the CITYLUXE Suite has an indoor hot tub, not a pool, and the standard rooms have neither. This is a city plunge pool, made for cooling off between the Acropolis Museum and a late dinner, not for swimming lengths. Guests rate the hotel 8.9 across 1,118 reviews.
On the Vouliagmeni peninsula, the Four Seasons Astir Palace puts private pools in three kinds of rooms: bungalow suites, Nafsika suites and Arion suites. The bungalow suites in the pine-covered grounds come with their own pool, some of them facing the sea. In the Nafsika building, several suites have a plunge pool on the terrace, and in the Arion building the presidential penthouse has a rooftop plunge pool while the two-bedroom Royal Suite has one in its private garden. The resort also has its own beach, so the private pool is one swimming option among three, alongside the sea and the shared pools. Guests score it 9.4 across 824 reviews.
The real decision is distance. From the Four Seasons, the historic centre is about 30 minutes by car in light traffic, and the airport roughly the same. Public transport works but is slow: the coastal tram ends at Asklipiio Voulas, and the last stretch to Vouliagmeni is by bus or taxi, which makes an hour or more from Syntagma. From Kaplanon Street, by contrast, Syntagma, Plaka and the Acropolis are walkable, and Panepistimio station on metro line 2 is close by. If the Acropolis is the point of the trip, stay central; if the swim is the point, go south to the coast.
An unheated outdoor pool is cold in April, May, October and November, so for those months ask whether your private pool is heated before you book the room. In July and August the opposite happens: a small plunge pool in full sun warms up quickly, and a terrace facing south gets little shade at midday, so an evening swim is often the best one. For a pool you will use every day, late May, June and September work best, and on the Riviera the sea at Vouliagmeni is then pleasant for swimming as well.
A traveler's takeI would book a Four Seasons bungalow suite for a stay of four nights or more that mixes sea and sightseeing: the private pool, the resort beach and Lake Vouliagmeni a short drive away make the long ride into town worth it, as long as you go into the centre once or twice rather than every day. For a first visit of two or three nights centred on the Acropolis, the museums and Plaka, I would take the CITYLUXE plunge-pool suite instead and walk everywhere. Neither suits travellers who want to swim real lengths in their own pool, and with young children a plunge pool on a terrace needs constant supervision.
Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel Athens
Beachfront luxury with private pools and a first-rate spa on the Athenian Riviera
Why guests love itA five-star beachfront resort on the Athenian Riviera, set among pine trees with its own private beach. Several restaurants and bars, a full spa, a fitness centre and five tennis courts mean there is little reason to leave. Rooms and suites are elegant, and some come with private pools, which suits families who want their own water away from the crowd. It rates 9.4 from more than 820 reviews.
CITYLUXE Suites & Rooms
Cycladic-style suites with private pools in central Athens
Why guests love itCITYLUXE Suites & Rooms brings a Cycladic look to central Athens, and some of its units have a private pool, a rare treat for children in the middle of the city. Rooms are air-conditioned with private bathrooms, tea and coffee makers and balconies with city views. The University of Athens and Omonia Square are within easy reach, so a city break on foot is simple. With an 8.9 score from more than 1,100 reviews, I would pick it for families wanting a central base with a pool.
Local tips
- 1Book the exact room category: at both hotels the private pool belongs to named suites or bungalows, and the standard rooms have no pool of their own.
- 2At CITYLUXE, the CITYLUXE Suite has an indoor hot tub, not a pool; to swim outdoors, choose the Junior Suite with Private Plunge Pool.
- 3Travelling in April, May, October or November, ask whether your private pool is heated: an unheated outdoor pool is too cold for most swimmers then.
- 4From the Four Seasons, the drive to the centre takes about 30 minutes in light traffic; on weekday mornings leave earlier and plan one long sightseeing day rather than several short trips.
- 5Without a car on the Riviera, take the coastal tram to its Asklipiio Voulas terminus, then a bus or taxi to Vouliagmeni, and count an hour or more from Syntagma.
- 6During a Four Seasons stay, swim once in Lake Vouliagmeni too: the spring-fed lake a short drive from the resort is a classic Athenian swim, nothing like a hotel pool.
- 7Two other Riviera resorts in this Athens guide, One&Only Aesthesis in Glyfada and 91 Athens Riviera in Voula, also have rooms with private pools and are worth comparing when the Four Seasons is full.