There are places that carry with them not only architectural history, but also an entire cultural baggage. One&Only Aesthesis Born from an attempt to bring back to the present the spirit of Astria Glyfada, the iconic resort that once marked the glory days of the Athenian Riviera. Located in Glyfada, south of Athens and overlooking the Saronic Gulf, the hotel includes 127 accommodation units and spreads over 210 dunams of beach, gardens and a 60 dunam forest reserve. The project was developed by Grivalia Hospitality and Nausika S.A. and operated by One&Only Resorts. Rather than offering a new hotel that is detached from the place, it builds a contemporary layer on top of an existing past – between low-rise architecture, an open beach and a design language that connects nostalgia, natural materiality and modernist elegance.

Ofri Paz | STANNEL

The architectural project was jointly led by AUDO, A6Architects and K-Studio, in collaboration with ASPA KST, as part of a broad planning team that was required to deal with an extraordinary complexity: revitalizing a historic coastal complex, preserving the footprint and modernist heritage of Astria Glyfada, and adapting it to a contemporary hospitality standard. Alongside the architecture, Muza Lab’s interior design continues the same concept through a soft and detailed material language, which translates the Athenian Riviera into warm, elegant and contemporary spaces.

The hotel’s story begins long before its reopening as a contemporary resort. Asteria Glyfada was born in the middle of the last century as part of a concept that sought to shape Greece as a modern, open and cosmopolitan tourist destination. The original beach facilities, cabins and bungalows were designed by architects Emmanuel Vourekas, Antonis Georgiadis and Konstantinos Dekavallas, and over the years have become one of the symbols associated with the golden age of the Athenian Riviera – a period of long holidays, clean lines, sun, sea and effortless elegance.

The new project does not erase these layers, but uses them as a starting point. The design process relies on the footprint of the existing site, on the preservation and upgrading of parts of the architectural heritage, and on the use of local and natural materials such as stone, wood and Greek marble. This creates a subtle tension between past and present: architecture that looks very contemporary, but does not detach itself from the place from which it grew.

The hotel’s main building continues the modernist language of an iconic beach resort, with low masses, curved lines, wide openings and a bright white envelope. At the entrance, high ceilings, oval openings, fluted walls and a soft movement of passages and railings create an almost cinematic feel – not a formal lobby, but a gradual transition from the city to the holiday space. Natural light glides over the stone surfaces, refracting through the shadows and leading the gaze out to sea.

The landscape here does not serve as a backdrop for the hotel, but as the planning framework around which the site is built. The Greenways Hellas office, which is responsible for the landscape design, created a Mediterranean continuum of pine trees, olive trees, lavender, hibiscus, and local vegetation around it, within which the bungalows, suites, residential units, and villas are integrated. Instead of one dominant hotel structure, the architectural stance seeks to reduce the built presence and allow nature to take the lead: flat roofs, wooden beams, pergolas, stone walls, and private courtyards create a system of intermediate spaces – neither completely inside nor completely outside.

In the bungalows, this connection is especially noticeable. The rooms open onto decks, courtyards and private pools, and some continue to the water’s edge. Rough stone walls, wooden ceilings, high windows and deep shadows give the spaces the feeling of a private beach house rather than a hotel room. Fire also appears as a design and experiential element, through seating areas with outdoor fireplaces, which bring an intimate moment of evening, material and warmth to the beach scene.

Muza Lab’s interior design extends this language inward, through a soft, natural and richly detailed material palette. The concept draws on the elements of nature – water, fire, earth, air, wood, stone, metal and light – and translates into spaces through textures, handcrafts and geometric patterns. Carved wood, antique-look mirrors, woven textiles, braided leather, delicate light fixtures and touches of deep blue create a language that is reminiscent of Greece without becoming cliché. This is not a white and sterile resort aesthetic, but a material world that holds together cleanliness, warmth and depth.

In the rooms and suites, the view of the sea is an integral part of the design. The beds, sitting areas, bathrooms and balconies are oriented towards the large openings, so that the view does not remain a mere decoration but becomes an active layer in the living experience. In the bathrooms, a combination of marble, grooved facades, curved lines and dark taps creates a refined and slightly retro feel, while the public spaces emphasize the social and cosmopolitan side of the Riviera.

The lighting, designed by Eleftheria Deko Lighting Studio, also fits into this concept and does not function as an ostentatious element, but as a subtle layer that emphasizes material, movement and atmosphere. During the day, the openings, pergolas and shading regulate and soften the light; in the evening, low, warm lighting gives the hotel a more intimate feel – between the pool lines, private courtyards, seating areas and passages that open to the sea.

The hotel’s hospitality concept ranges between a secluded resort and urban proximity. On the one hand, it is a place that offers an almost private experience – beach, pools, gardens, spa, restaurants and sea activities. On the other hand, it is a short drive from the center of Athens and the Acropolis, and within walking distance of the Glyfada neighborhood. This connection between city, sea and nature is also translated into design: spaces that allow for retreat and silence, alongside open, culinary and social areas that bring the glamour of the Athenian coast back to the hotel.

At the Guerlain Spa, which extends over approximately 2,500 square meters of indoor and outdoor space, the concept of hospitality continues through a language of light, water and vegetation. The spa is not separated from the hotel but is integrated into it as a space for slowing down – with treatment rooms, a sauna, a hammam, an outdoor pool and a garden feel that surrounds the buildings. The restaurants and bars also function as part of the architecture: spaces open to the sea, open kitchens, indoor and outdoor seating areas and pools that serve not only as a facility, but as a visual center of the experience of the place.

Architecture & Masterplanning | AUDO, A6Architects, K-Studio, ASPA KST
Interior Design | Muza Lab
Photography | Rupert Peace, courtesy of One&Only Aesthesis

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