Andronis Luxury Suites sets the quintessential Santorini scene: from your private pool, you can gaze out at the stark-white Cycladic buildings spilling down volcanic cliffs that drop into the sapphire sea.
Cliffside hotels across the island have made the plunge-pool panorama a Santorini signature, but the Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star escape pioneered this and more. Andronis Luxury Suites, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, was the first hotel on the island to feature infinity pools or a water element in every room. It introduced cave rooms. And it was the first to bring fine dining to Santorini.
Now its company, the family-owned ANDRONIS, founded by celebrity hairstylist Miltiadis Andronis, is spreading its innovative ethos to new destinations. It recently opened its inaugural property outside Santorini, on the Greek island of Paros, and will make its international debut in Tuscany in summer 2027.
“Our goal has always been to create places with soul, places where guests feel genuinely welcomed and emotionally connected to the destination,” managing director George Filippidis says. “Luxury, for us, is not about excess; it is about creating meaningful moments that guests remember long after they leave.”
The Flagship Hotel
That’s evident throughout the brand’s Santorini properties, including Forbes Travel Guide Recommended Andronis Arcadia (a family-friendly option with the island’s largest pool and popular restaurants like Beefbar and Pacman), Andronis Boutique Hotel (an adults-only getaway) and Andronis Concept (a wellness-focused hotel). But the flagship Andronis Luxury Suites does it best. Carved into the cliffside, each of the 39 suites and villas comes with a heated infinity or cave pool, or a hot tub facing the Aegean and the caldera.
Inside, the accommodations are havens. In our high-ceilinged, white-on-white suite, the spacious living room had wood-lined walls, a dining table and a white geometric sofa under a contemporary wire chandelier. The plush bed was angled toward the sea. And the bathroom had a rain shower and Acqua di Parma toiletries. The star, of course, was the deck, which had a pair of loungers, a table for two and a pool embedded with a small hot tub.
It’s tempting to plant yourself on your deck for the trip, but elsewhere on the property offers equally iconic views. Each time you climb the seemingly endless staircases at the luxury hotel, you will want to pause every couple of steps to snap a photo. Even the lobby warrants one, with an archway framed by purple bougainvillea peering out onto the sea.
In the morning, head to Miltos’ Greek Table for a light yogurt bowl with coconut, mango, cashews and dark chocolate, with the water gleaming below. At night, don’t miss Lycabettus Restaurant, which sits on a slender promontory overlooking the caldera rim. The intimate, open-air restaurant could coast on its dramatic setting, but it backs the Instagram-fodder backdrop with fine-dining substance. Choose the degustation menu to savor fresh, premium ingredients in dishes like lobster with lemon cream and carrot purée with bergamot, or free-range chicken glazed with vin jaune sauce and black truffles with a nutty morel. Ask the sommelier for Greek wine recommendations to discover finds like Nerantzi’s Asprouda of Serres, a dry white made from a rare grape.
For exploring the island, Andronis Luxury Suites arranges standout experiences, whether you want to do an assyrtiko wine tasting at Sigalas winery in Baxedes (don’t skip the excellent food) or get creative and sculpt your own bowl at Earth & Water studio in Fira with fifth-generation potter Andreas Makaris.
“Twenty years ago, many travelers associated the Greek islands primarily with beautiful scenery and relaxation,” Filippidis says. “Today, guests seek something much deeper. They want authentic connections with local culture, wellness, gastronomy, sustainability and experiences that feel personal rather than standardized.”
The Newest Offering
The newest addition to the five-boutique-hotel collection is Andronis Minois, which opened in 2024. The 44 suites repeat the all-white Greek aesthetic but fold in other Mediterranean and Moroccan touches, such as terra cotta tiles above the bed, dark teal light shades hanging above the nightstands and Moorish-style tiles adorning a bathroom wall. Select suites come with an expansive pool, but even if you don’t stay in one of those, the palm-dotted main pool can more than compensate. And the beach is a three-minute walk away.
Paros is a rising star in Greek tourism — home to the quiet, charming traditional village of Lefkes and the buzzing nightlife along the harbor in Naousa — and Andronis Minois curates its own slate of activities. Dine at Olvo Restaurant and sit on the terrace to watch the sun set over the Aegean while sipping a fruity Mang-o-Ivo, a clarified cocktail with Cazadores blanco tequila, mango and a chili-Tajín rim. Then move onto dinner: a Greek dakos salad (which uses the classic ingredients along with xynomizithra, a Paros cheese, and a layer of crumbled carob rusk, made of double-baked bread); followed by a shrimp tagliolini so bright with lime, it pleasantly jolted our jet-lagged selves awake; and ending with the Pistachio Textures, housemade pistachio ice cream topped with pistachio cream and crunchy angel hair-like strands of kataifi.
You can learn how to make the dakos salad, along with Greek-style lamb chops, tyrokafteri (a spicy cheese blend) and other local dishes in an open-air cooking class. Or opt for some pampering with an ESPA service at Aura Spa, which has two treatment rooms, one for couples.
Taking on Tuscany
The brand’s next frontier is Andronis Villa del Monte, a 14th-century estate about 45 minutes outside of Florence. The hotel will have 56 suites and villas with interiors that skew contemporary while preserving the property’s historic features ranging from gardens with cypress and olive trees to a mural with Latin writings from Napoleon.
Italy felt like a natural evolution. “Tuscany shares many of the values that define ANDRONIS: a strong sense of place, rich culinary traditions, breathtaking landscapes, craftsmanship and an appreciation for slow, meaningful living,” Filippidis says. “Our intention is not to re-create Greece in Italy. Instead, we will translate our philosophy of hospitality into a new cultural context.”
