Lady’s Guide to the Best Rooftop Bars in Europe

The only thing better than cocktails at a rooftop bar is cocktails at three rooftop bars. Right now I’m sipping a lemon and lavender number on the terrace at the Savage Garden bar in London, but tomorrow night I’ll be doing it in Barcelona and the next night in Athens. It’s my very own European bar hop, with three of the best rooftop bars in Europe in three days.

Best Rooftop Bars in Europe

I’m here with Hilton Worldwide, the sponsor of my bar hop. Hilton has a surprising number of hotels with amazing rooftop bars—Rome, Venice, Dubai, and Bournemouth to name a few more.

They’ve invited me to experience three of them in one weekend to see the variety of what their properties in some of the most exciting European cities have to offer.

I love a cocktail, so I’m on board and excited to sip my way through some of the best rooftop bars in Europe.

1. Rooftop Bar in London

But back to my lemon and lavender cocktail. The Savage Garden bar is on the roof of the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel London – Tower of London.

As the location suggests, it has great views of Tower Bridge, the Gherkin, and other London landmarks.

It’s also buzzing on a Thursday night. The outdoor tables are packed, and everyone’s here to unwind after work with a cocktail and a view. This is one of the best rooftop bars in Europe for good reason.

My friend and I enjoy a couple cocktails and a gorgeous display of nibbles—a few of the dishes could use a bit more spice, but they’re so pretty I can’t complain.

After sunset, we head down to our room, which has a view of the Shard and a nod to the London Eye on the wall. Settling into bed, we drift off dreaming of Barcelona and wake up ready to fly to Catalunya.

2. Rooftop Bar in Barcelona

As soon as our plane touches down, the Spanish sun kisses us hello and whisks us off to the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona.

Our room has views of the sailboats, and from the other side of the hotel we can spot the Sagrada Familia and Tibidabo in the distance.

We take the metro into the city for the afternoon, then return in the evening for poolside spa treatments on the terrace.

My massage is blissful despite the loud music the DJ is playing outside, and I drift back out to the lounge chairs in a heavenly haze.

Afterwards it’s cocktail o’clock at the Purobeach Barcelona bar. It’s one of the city’s best places for a drink and a pool party—they do legendary ones here, and they’re the reason this is one of the best rooftop bars in Europe.

We sip sangria as the sun sets beyond the balcony, then have dinner at one of the outdoor tables.

The food here is inspired by 3 M’s—Melbourne, Miami, and Marrakech—and we enjoy everything from octopus to sea bass as the evening goes on.

At the end of the night, we head to bed with Athens on our minds and awake with it on our boarding passes.

3. Rooftop Bar in Athens

Our plane lands in Greece in the afternoon, and we’re ready to experience the third of the best rooftop bars in Europe.

There’s a mix-up with the hotel car, but we hop in a taxi to the Hilton Athens and settle into our room—this one with a view of the Acropolis.

We explore the city (but you knew that from my last blog post), then head back to the hotel for the main event—Galaxy Restaurant & Bar.

The Galaxy bar at the Hilton Athens is one of the best rooftop bars in Europe. As soon as we arrive on the top floor of the hotel, I can see why.

The bar not only has a long outdoor terrace, but also sweeping views of Athens and the Acropolis. Inside, international DJs and stylish bartenders entertain guests in a sleek space above the city.

I settle in for an aged Negroni as plates of everything from thick yucca frites to carne asada tacos fills the table.

And that’s to say nothing of the sushi. Greek-American Executive Sous Chef Nikos Marinos comes out to tell me that it’s one of his culinary passions.

As the evening progresses, the bar fills with a glamorous crowd and one of Galaxy bar’s famous full moon parties gets underway.

DJ Alexandros Christopoulos sets the dancing in motion, and by the time I’m sipping an Agean Pride—it’s made with Greece’s fresh-tasting Mastika liqueur—the bar is heaving.

The party goes until 5am, but I’m exhausted after three days of traveling and cocktail consuming, so I slip away before it ends.

Best Rooftop Bars in Europe

And soon my European bar hop ends, too. I travel back to London the following day, hardly believing I’ve covered so much ground and had so many different cocktails in just three days.

But the experience has given me a great overview of the best rooftop bars in Europe and what they have to offer. I hope you get a chance to experience the same someday.

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