Athena Royal Beach Hotel

7 readers found this review helpful

Absolutely fabulous hotel!!! The staff were marvellous from the cleaners to the hotel manager who had a hands on approach and was seen everywhere. We had a sea view room and it was lovely. The food was excellent and the head chef was always in attendance. Breakfasts were to die for and was always freshly cooked. Evening meals......we were spoilt for choice. If you want unashamed luxury in peaceful surroundings without children this is for you. The beach wasn't great but then there are few good natural beaches in paphos. We never went to the beach as we sat/laid in the beautiful gardens. We will def go there again but not in July when it is too hot.

3 readers found this review helpful

we went to paphos in june, we went to sort our wedding out for next year, the athena hotel was a bit dated and in need of a good re ferb, the grounds were lovely, plenty of space. i wouldnt go back to this hotel mainly as there was no entertaiment at all, by the pool or bar or anything. its ok for the older people. we are now getting married in coral bay, and if anyone has any advice for me that would be great.
thanks

5 readers found this review helpful

My husband & I stayed here 7-21 July & we'll be back! We feel it's definitely a good 4*.
We wanted a child-free hol, as our 2 are old enough to look after themselves, & now just come with us at Xmas time. No doubt, in a few years (hopefully quite a few!) we'll be doing the "grandparent thing!" Meanwhile, it's OUR time!
This hotel was recommended as somewhere to go & chill & that's exactly what we did. The age range was from 20's upwards; we're in our 40's. There was no noise / music from the pool or beach bar (bliss!); just a little music when the aqua aerobics was taking place or when the pool music from a few hotels down floated over.
The rest of the noise was just the sounds of the ocean or from people doing watersports (available from the Riu Cypria Maris & a hotel in the other direction).
The grounds / lawns extend down to the little rocky beach. There is a small area of sand, then a tiny stretch to paddle, or one can enter the sea via the jetty. The space between the loungers is ample & we never struggled to find a free one. A delightful young lady (Boglaka) will come & take your drink orders. There are 2 outdoor pools & 1 indoor (no life guard).
There is a nice beach in Coral Bay, about 15mins away. Local buses run every 15mins; some go round to Coral Bay. It's about 80c into Paphos itself & the bus stop is just a few metres outside the hotel, on the left.
We were offered a free upgrade to a sea view, which was very tranquil. The room was a little on the small side, as compared to our hotel in Rhodes last yr, or the one in Sharm, but then we reasoned that we weren't going to be in it much & there was plenty of space for clothes & cases, plus the balcony, so what did it matter?
There are coffee / tea making facilities in the room, an iron & board, hairdryer & 2 large shower gel & soap dispensers.
You'll get 2 beach towels each; just leave them in the bath when they need changing & fresh ones will magically appear on your bed during the day.
We were only B+B & actually never made it down to breakfast, so can't comment on them but the dining rooms looked very nice.
There is a hairdressers on site, gym, a spa (prices range from 25CYP to 45.) There is internet access, table tennis, & 3 pool tables, plus bowls & a tiny putting green; never saw anyone on either of the latter 2.
The shop sells quite a range of goods; have to say the shop staff let the side down a little as they were not over-friendly / smiley. However, the rest of the staff were great.
Receptionists were extremely helpful & helped me faff about with an old mobile handset one eve, swapping sims about to see if mine would take a Cypriot one (it did, so bought a sim from a nearby shop) They even called one of the front desk managers to help! Nothing was too much trouble.
We often ate at the "Olive Tree" cafe, nr the pool at lunch; if it's not on the menu, just ask & they will try to oblige. Strawberries, cream & ice cream is at 3pm, signalled by a ringing bell (you have to pay).
Once in the grounds, we had such a feeling of space, as compared to many hotels. Hubby did walk around part of the Athena Beach next door, but preferred ours. We also looked around quite a lot of the Riu Cypria Maris, inside & out, but ours was much better, we felt. (We have stayed in Riu hotels before).
Looking at the other hotels as we walked along the prom, by the sea, we wouldn't have swapped our deal with any other.
We didn't stay in the hotel in the eves, so can't comment on the entertainment. There were a couple of eve shows by the pool, so we watched from our balcony. They ended in good time so didn't keep us awake. Looking at the eve prog entertainment was things like live music (2 different duos alternated) an Elvis tribute artist (!) bingo, darts, intro to the wines of Cyprus, dominos, folk lore show, dancing show, quiz night, & there was a films room (cinema night).
There is also a small "library", just on some shelves in the reps' area.
The day time animation prog includes things like stretching yoga, facial demo, massage demo, mini golf, boules, backgammon, shuffle board, gym aerobics; we were too busy relaxing or on a trip to join in.
There are plenty of restaurants & bars to suit all tastes, within a short walking distance from the hotel. We favoured the Italian, "Cavallini's", where the waiters are very easy on the eye! The food is beautifully presented & service great. We also liked the Chinese next door to them. "Da Vinci's" Italian is also quite nice, but "Cavallini's" had the edge for us. Someone recommended the "Rib Shack" but we never got around to trying that; it's near "Cavallini's".
There are also the fish & chip pub type places nearby; we noted where they were & avoided them, but each to their own.
We went into Paphos one eve & walked round the harbour. Worth doing but we weren't tempted to eat a full meal in that vicinity; too crowded, noisy & folk were looking harassed, as well as complaining about slow service. We did stretch to a waffle & cappuccino whilst watching the world go by at the cafe next to the wax museum, nr the castle end (sorry, can’t remember the name!) service was good & it wasn't crowded.
We walked around the shops; very touristy, but ok for the odd visit & didn't venture down any side streets or where lots of bars are said to be. We just enjoyed the views of the harbour, sunset & people watching.
We went with Thomson & booked several excursions thru the rep. Will write separate posts on them but they included Nicosia & the Turkish occupied north, Troodos mountains, undersea walking, Cypriot eve, monasteries, medieval castles, amphitheatres & the wine villages of the island. There are so many excursions available, we were spoilt for choice.
One can also fly or cruise to Egypt, cruise to the Holyland & local ops offer trips to Beirut or Lebanon!
There have been comments on the forum recently about how Paphos is losing its charm. We have nothing with which to compare it, as it was our 1st visit, but imagine that folk are referring to the more "touristy" aspects. As said, we noted them, and then avoided them; it is possible to do so.
When we return, we'd like to hire a car & visit more of the "real" Cyprus, as we caught glimpses of this on some of our trips & we will definitely be returning to "our sanctuary" of the Athena Royal Beach.

2 readers found this review helpful

Excellent Honeymoon. I and my husband spent 2 weeks at The Athena Royal (From the 30th sept 07). Beware the weather was very hot, nearly 40 degrees!
The hotel itself is only 20 minutes on the coach away. The check in was quick and a porter takes your luggage to the room. The room was fantastic, we paid more to have a sea view and I would recommend the extra.
Very private - no one could see in to your room, good lay out at the hotel. The room I would say like a travel inn, but with a balcony. In the room is a fridge, safe, iron and board, trouser press, bathroom - with bath and x2 showers. The cleaners are fantastic and the room was always spotless.
The breakfast was definitely worth getting up for and is served up to 10am. You can even sit right by the pool area. The variety is amazing and is very much home from home. I’m late 20's and I would only recommend the hotel to over 50's, very quiet in the day and Elvis themed night entertainment. But saying this it was ideal for our honeymoon as you can relax and let the world go by.
The health spa and massages are expensive, but nice treat.
Pathos itself is really nice, and the trips are so cheap we did not hire a car.
One trip I would recommend is the Wave Dancer fireworks night, excellent night.
Loads of nice restaurants nearby to choose from and the bus service is excellent to get you in to the town - if you don’t fancy the 20 minute walk.
Book now, you will not be disappointed!

2 readers found this review helpful

We have just returned from the Athena Royal having spent two fabulous weeks there, we did not want to come home. The hotel is faultless, it is immaculate, the food is wonderful, (be prepared to put on the pounds!) and best of all it is so relaxing. A place to totally chill as it is adults only, so you can lie by the pool without lilos hitting you and kids screaming round the place, total peace!

The staff are all so helpful and friendly and will go out of their way to assist in any way. The rooms are lovely, well equipped with a fridge, hairdryer, iron, tea coffee making facilities, bathrobes and slippers and a safe which are all free of charge. Pool towels are also provided.
The pool area is lovely with plenty of sun beds anytime of the day so you don’t need to get up at the crack of dawn to put towels out! They have a health spa in the hotel which at a reasonable cost do lovely massages, facials etc. The entertainment most evenings is a singer which is ok, but on a Wednesday they have an Elvis night and this is not to be missed, it is brilliant.
We definitely will be returning, we have stayed in a few hotels in Paphos and this is the by far the best. If anyone complains then they must be the type who are never satisfied with anything! If you have booked you will certainly not be disappointed