Golden Coast Hotel and Bungalows, Marathon - the Catskills of Greece

We haven't spoken much of our accommodations since the first trip as now we stay in Airbnbs, but this little "gem" deserves a sendup.

Disclaimer:  I have never been to the Catskills, but I've seen Dirty Dancing a few times, and I have never been to summer camp, but there are a lot of movies, serious and comedic, which can give me a frame of reference.

We had deliberately not made an Airbnb reservation for one night. It seemed a nuisance, and we knew from experience that it wouldn't be hard to find a hotel.  So, when we finished our sightseeing for the day, and arrived in Marathon, Google/Trip Advisor had this place listed first, and we didn't argue.

It turns out this place is an "all inclusive" resort--drinks, food, activities, with some exceptions.  The main hotel feels like it was built in the 70s, and still retains that "charm" of a bedspread, an actual blanket on the bed, and springy floors where the laminate is peeling and the boards are bowing.  The mattress was both too soft and too hard at the same.  The springs had obviously died in 1978, but the board that they must have installed between the mattress and the box spring still worked from the waist down.  All that was missing from our room was a pink toilet.  There is an large activity center in the lower floor, which also can function as a disco.  The meals are cafeteria style, and if you know what you are doing, you can get something decent.  The most common language spoken was French. 

I'm sure sometime in the last 30 years, the Xenotel group acquired this property, and made some nominal renovations, but why change a thing that is working?  It was abundantly clear that many families had been coming here for years if not generations.  Parents could drink all day and their children could entertain themselves playing Uno or "crazy golf" or swimming in the pool.  No one comes to see the sights of Greece.  This is merely a vacation in a contained environment, and we were interlopers.  As an illustration of this point, one particularly surly, sunburnt 16-year old sat in absolute silence, her arms crossed at dinner while her grandmother ate--for 15 minutes, and then abruptly left.  There was that vibe of "well, you liked coming here when you were 9.  I don't understand why you are so ungrateful/angry/unhappy now."  It was like a time portal.

We don't regret staying here for the night--it was entertaining and enlightening in its own way.  I've never felt more like an ethno-anthropologist or sociologist.  Perhaps I have a new calling?