Athens: Venizelos Airport
Flying into Athens is lighter than ever and now so is getting into the city. The Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport is state-of-the-art and very user-friendly. This page will give you information on getting into the city or getting to the Greek islands.
The Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Spata opened on Wednesday March 29th 2001. It is big, modern and beautiful and I think it is one of the best and least complicated airports in the world. The fresh roads leading to it permit you to make the excursion into Athens in about forty minutes to downtown tho’ if there is traffic it may take an hour. Direct flights from the USA arrive early in the morning but if you are connecting or coming from an airport in Europe you will very likely arrive later. It is a five minute walk from the plane to passport control and the sooner you get off the plane and the quicker you walk, the shorter the line will be when you get there. But the lines stir quickly and it takes about five seconds for the official to leaf through your passport and stamp it and from that point you are free to get your luggage and go, unless you love suspending out at airports. If you have someone coming in on a later flight that you have to meet there is a cafe just to the right of the baggage claim exit A into the arrivals terminal. If you are being met by your travel agency or your taxi driver this is where you should see someone holding a sign for you to recognize. To your left are toilets and the place to leave luggage. (If you use Exit B the toilets are to the right). There are also toilets in the baggage claim area if you can’t wait. There is a travel agency that sells ferry tickets, money exchanges, banks and even more stuff upstairs in the departure area if you plan to dangle out for awhile. If you blew out your headphones on the flight or need a buttplug adapter there is a Germanos Electronics shop in the airport.
The entire thing is pretty well organized and unless you happen to arrive at the same time as bunch of other flights you should be through customs and out the door within twenty minutes of your arrival. Taxis, limos and buses are right outside the door. If you are planning to fly to Athens and then fly to an island then I suggest doing it that day if possible and don’t go into Athens until the end of your journey. But your best bet would be to fly to Athens, spend a day or two there and than take the ferry or highspeed boats to get to your island since it will be lighter to get to the port of Pireaus then it will be to get back to the airport. If you arrive late and have a flight to the islands the next morning then the Sofitel Hotel is about as convenient as you can get to the airport and you can stay there and get to the check-in counter without even waking up. It is about one hundred meters from the terminal and there are signs directing you to it. It has a spa, pool, restaurants, bars and the rooms are beautiful and comfy. There is also a Holiday Inn which is a little less convenient but has free shuttles to and from the airport which makes up for it. Both can be booked through any of the travel agencies I recommend on this website. But unless all you want to do is sleep and observe and listen to planes I suggest staying in the city because it is a lot more joy even if it means waking up a half hour earlier to get a taxi to the airport.
If you are stuck in the Athens airport because of a delay or a missed flight or because it is lighter to dangle out in the airport than do anything else you will be blessed to know that the food at the airport concessions is fine and there are slew of choices of things to eat as well as drink. There is a pizza stand, a Japanese restaurant, a salad bar, McDonalds, a pretty nice Greek restaurant and lots of cafes where you can get tiropitas, coffee, and even imported beer and drinks. Like most modern airports it looks a lot like a mall and you can wander around and buy stuff you may or may not need. There is a petite museum upstairs and a few statues and things they discovered when they built the airport. You can also grab a cab and go to the beach or the zoo if you have several hours to kill and you don’t feel like dangling out in an airport. (see below). If you have an early morning flight and want to wander around Athens, showcase up at the airport around midnight and then sleep for a few hours, chances are nobody will care and your ticket gives you a right to be there. If your flight arrives late and you plan to take an early morning ferry to the islands just string up out, take a nap (set your alarm clock for 4am) and catch an early bus to Pireaus. The very first Proastiakos (Suburban Railway) leaves at 6:12 am from the airport and arrives in Pireaus just in time to see the very first ferries of the day sail away. So if you are taking one of the earlier boats take the 5am X96 bus.
If you have followed my advice and booked with a Greek travel agency then you will be met at the airport by their representative who will have all your tickets and hotel vouchers and instructions and will then either bring you to the check in counter for your flight to the islands or drive you back to Athens and make sure you check into your hotel and get lodged in. You will either be driven into Athens in a nice minivan or a luxury Mercedes taxi, and it does not matter if your flight is delayed, they will still wait for you. The tour into Athens is pretty interesting especially after you have been looking out the window staring at clouds or the seat in front of you for ten hours. It’s a nice introduction to the city and there is a lot to see along the way. If your driver takes the Hymettos Ring Road you will get a spectacular view of Athens and you can even ask him to stop so you can take a photo. Once you get into the city itself you will be amazed at your driver’s capability to avoid scraping parked cars on the narrow streets or running over pedestrians. Your very first introduction to driving in Athens may make you never want to attempt it yourself, but there is a method to the madness and effortless to do once you get used to it.
Getting into Athens from Venizelos Airport
The Athens airport authorities have been working overtime on ways to get passengers and their luggage into the city as quickly and efficiently as possible. Most Athenians now agree that they have done a fine job and the airport connections are perhaps among the best in Europe. These are the suggested methods for getting into the city.
The regular taxi queue will commence from Door four of the Arrivals Level and extend up to Door 1. A taxi should cost you a vapid rate of thirty eight Euros to the center during the day and fifty four euros after midnight. If there is a disagreement over the price you lodge it at your hotel in the presence of the concierge. They will tell you if you are being overcharged. It is luck of the draw and when you stand in line, whatever taxi you get when it is your turn, you have to take. Taxis fit four people plus the driver so if you are more you either need a limousine, a mini-bus, or two taxis. If you are going somewhere other than Athens it may require some discussion about the price. If you want to go a very long distance, like to the Peloponessos for example, the driver has to take into consideration that he will have to drive all the way back without a passenger and will want to make it worthwhile. In this case you may be better off arranging a taxi transfer in advance and agreeing on a price before you get in the car.
George the Famous Taxi Driver
When I very first get to Athens, after a ten hour flight I don’t want to have to deal with any more then I have to. For this reason I use pre-arranged taxi transfers rather then go outside and wait on line to hail a taxi. What this means is that for fifty five Euro I am assured that someone will be waiting for me at the airport who will help me with my baggage, speaks English and get me to my hotel. I know that if my plane is delayed he will still be there. I use George the Famous Taxi Driver of Greece and have found him to be very reliable and excellent company. He fills me in on what has happened in Greece since my last visit. If the weather is nice we go to the beach on the way into the city and I commence my holiday with a swim instead of a shower and a hotel room. If you plan to use George you need to contact him in advance by e-mail, phone because if you just display up at the airport and call him he may be busy. From the USA call (01130210) 9637030. From Europe:0030210 9637030. Within Greece dial:210 9637030. But it is easiest to e-mail him at [email protected]
Limousine or Mini-Bus from the Airport
For families or groups of eight or more people another option is Billy’s Bus Tours which can provide transfers from the airport to hotels in Athens, the ferry boat ports, or anywhere else on the mainland. He also does tours to Delphi, Nafplion, Olympia, Meteora, Athens or anywhere else you would like to go. Billy is George the Taxi Driver’s oldest son, born in the USA and educated in Italy as an economist, so he speaks fluent English, Italian and Greek of course. If you are too many for a taxi, which seats four plus the driver, and to few for the minibus bus then there is George’s 2nd son Dennis who drives a luxury limo which can seat as many as seven cosily. Dennis is trained as a physical therapist but joined the family business because he likes meeting fresh people every day and demonstrating them his country, and let’s face it, when you are a physical therapist pretty much everyone you meet is going to be complaining about something. So if you need a limo for transfers or tours or someone to drive you around while you do business in Athens you can visit the website of Dennis’s Limousine Service
Transfers through a Travel Agent
When you book a package through a Greek travel agency it includes hotels, tours, cruises, ferries, flights and transfers. This is the way to go for people who have never been to Greece or those who are jumpy about strikes. Very first of all packages are not tours, they are programs. So if you and your family do a program of Athens-Mykonos-Santorini you are not part of a group. You may be part of a group for say a day-trip or overnight to Delphi or Meteora, but a package is an itinerary that the agency has put together and sells to individuals, couples and groups, and very little can go wrong. Included in the package are transfers to and from the airport, ferries, hotels and the cruise ship if that is part of the package. When you arrive in Athens the very first day or night you are met by a representative of the agency and a driver. The representative gives you all your hotel vouchers, tickets, and any other information you need and gets you checked into your hotel. In the past summer when there was a taxi strike the travel agencies on my website found ways to get their clients from the airport to their hotels. I don’t foresee another taxi strike but it is good to know that if there is one you won’t be stuck at the airport. For this and other reasons I am a big fan of travel agencies in Greece. People who booked through travel agencies had few problems last summer due to strikes and demonstrations. See Athens Travel Agencies
Other Ways to Get into Athens
I am all for public transportation and I think it is good that Athens has such a good system of getting people to and from the airport. It makes me proud in a way. But I am going to be totally fair with you. I have never taken the bus or the metro from the airport into the city, nor would I ever. Why is that? Because I think it is ridiculous after paying thousands of dollars to fly to Greece to go through the inconvenience of lugging my family and my bags to the bus or train, possibly have to stand if it is crowded, and then get off and haul my family and luggage through the streets of Athens to my hotel. And I know Athens. I won’t get lost. Most travelers who come to Athens for the very first time who get off the metro or the bus have no idea where they are or how far they have to go. And then there are the pickpockets you have to observe out for. You have to be a pretty low form of life to work the metro, stealing the wallets and passports of freshly arrived visitors, and in defense of Greece, these are not Greeks who are doing this. They are professionals from Eastern Europe who know a goldmine when they see it. Yes you can take precautions which I mention in my article Defeating the Pickpockets which will make it unlikely for them to steal from you. But who wants to even worry about that kind of stuff when you get to a fresh country? And for what? To save a few euros? The metro costs eight euros. We are a family of four and that makes thirty two Euros. For six more euros I can take a taxi that will take me from the door of the airport to the front desk of my hotel! I would have to be either an idiot or the world’s largest cheapskate to take the metro. The bus is cheaper but it goes to Syntagma Square and I am pretty certain that nobody staying in a hotel on the square took the bus or the metro since they are paying about three hundred euros a night for a room. So because I want to be thorough I am including information on public transport to and from the airport. But if you want my advice either ask your travel agent to provide airport transfers, arrange a pick-up with George, or walk outside the terminal and take a taxi.
Metro, Proastiakos (Suburban Rail) and Tram
The Athens Metro and the Proastiakos (suburban rail) from the airport is right across the street from the terminal in the building that looks like a poorly made flying saucer. There is a walkway leading to it. The ticket costs about eight euro and the train goes to Monastiraki, hitting all the metro stops in inbetween which include Syntagma (where you will have to switch if you are going to Omonia Square or Makriani-Acropolis). The very first train from Airport to Monastiraki is at 06:30, the frequency of routes is every thirty minutes and the last one from Airport to Monastiraki is at 23:30. The very first train from Monastiraki to Airport is at Five:50 am and the last one from Monastiraki to the Airport is at 22:58. Actually the train goes several stops beyond Monastiraki but chances are you need to get off in Syntagma or Monastiraki. Make sure you validate your ticket after you buy it. If you are caught with an un-validated ticket or no ticket at all it is a big fine. If you do get caught just speak English and commence weeping and most likely you won’t have to pay.
By the way, there has been some grumbling that the ticket machines don’t give switch so if you don’t have exact switch go to the ticket booth and deal with a human. Plus they speak English and can assist you.
Athens International Airport is connected via the Proastiakos-Suburban Railway to Larissis Station (Athens Central Railway Station) with stops at Koropi, Kantza, Pallini, Doukissis Plakentias (Connection with Metro Line Trio),Kifissias, Nerantziotisa (Connection with Metro Line 1), Iraklio, Aharnes Railway Junction (S.K.A) and Larissis Station (Connection with Metro Line two and trains to Northern Greece). Trains depart from the Airport every fifteen minutes. The journey time from Athens International Airport to Larissis Station is approximately thirty eight minutes. The very first train from Athens to the Airport is at 06:11 am and the last one is at Nineteen:44. The very first train from the Airport to Athens is at 06:48 and the last one is at 20:14. The Proastiakos runs three times an hour from the airport. At XX:11, XX:26 and XX:44 each hour. The XX:11 and XX:26 trains only go as far as Ano Liosia, a northeast Athens suburb. The XX:44 train goes beyond Ano Liosia and through Corinth and all the way to Kiato in the Peloponnese and is a very scenic rail. The journey time is one hour and twenty minutes to Corinth.
You can take the Proastiakos-Suburban Railway from the airport to the port of Pireaus. Trains leave embarking at 6:12 am at the rate of three an hour and the excursion takes about an hour and a quarter. The train station in Pireaus is right across the street from the ferry boats. The price is six euros per person. The last train is at 23:12 pm tho’ there is infrequently a boat after 10pm. Still if you don’t mind roughing it you could string up out at one of the twenty four hour cafeterias in the port.
Embarking in June two thousand seventeen a direct train connection bings travellers from Athens Airport to Piraeus (and vice versa) in forty five minutes.
At Syntagma Square you can connect with the Coastal Tram , however you will have to leave the metro station and go upstairs to find it on Amalias Avenue. Just walk up the steps and turn right and after the next street you will see the tram station sort of in the middle of the street. The tram can take you through Nea Smyrni, Faliron and along the coast through Kalamaki, Glyfada and terminates in Voula. If you came on the X95 bus to Syntagma Square it stops just below the tram station on Othonos Street which borders the square.
Note on Metro Safety: Pickpockets work the metro and the train to and from the airport and I have even received an e-mail from someone pick-pocketed in the airport while looking at the flight board. Keep your wallet and passport in your front pocket with your arm in it on crowded trains and buses. Ladies carry your handbags zipped if possible and close to your chest. People with backpacks are an effortless target. If you think you are safe with cargo pants with zipped side pockets, leave behind it. These guys are so adept that they can cut through any pocket and you won’t even know until you put your arm in and find everything gone. They also use confusion as a weapon, for example stumbling into a crowded car or bumping into you or three or four of them surrounding you and making you shove your way out of the circle.
If you want to be safe make photo copies of your passport and your driver’s license and leave the originals and all but one credit card in your safe in your hotel room when you plan to use the metro or buses or truly, anytime you go out in Athens because you never know when you may be in a crowd and that is where these guys work. Hold your money and credit card in your forearm in your pocket. If you get pick-pocketed don’t expect much help from the police. You will just end up wasting your time. Go straight to your hotel and cancel your credit cards that were stolen. (That’s why you should only carry one with you). Then send me an e-mail and tell me how they did it so I can warn others. You can also read my article Defeating the Pickpockets which will display you how to not be a victim of thieves while using public transportation.
If you are arriving at the airport and plan to take the metro or the bus into town use a security wallet you like that fits under your clothes. Once you get through passport control put your passport, credit cards and money in this wallet and keep only as much cash as you will need to get to your hotel. If you do this you will be ideally safe on the metro.
About Strikes: Yes they do occur but not as often as you would think if you observe CNN. But it is good to have a back-up plan if you plan to get into Athens on the metro.
Buses to and from the Airport
X95 Syntagma Square – Airport Express has its departure point at the center of Athens (Syntagma Square across the park from the Grande Bretagne) and via Vas. Sofias Avenue, Mesogion Avenue and Attiki Odos terminates at the airport. Every 10-30 minutes, twenty four hours a day. (Observe for pickpockets when you get off the bus here). This bus is convenient if you are staying in or around Syntagma or the Plaka. Anywhere else not so much. You will very likely have to take a taxi if you are staying anywhere else but there is a taxi stand right there.
X96 Pireaus – Airport Express starts from the Northwest Corner of Pireaus main harbor and goes past Karaiskaki Square (which is almost right across from the metro and where the ticket offices are) and via Posidonos Avenue, Varis-Varkizas, and Varis-Koropiou Roads terminates at the airport. Both the Syntagma and the Pireaus buses run for twenty four hours, generally every twenty minutes but every forty minutes after midnight. If you are staying in Voula, Vouliagmeni, Glyfada or Faliron chances are good that this bus will go by your hotel.
X93 connects the Airport (door Five) with the bus terminals at Kiffissou and Lliosson streets. The interval is generally thirty five minutes (65 at night).
X92 goes to Kifissia, or it did until they canceled it. Now you have to take the Proastiakos to Neratziotisa and from there take the metro to Kifissia.
For Express Lines the ticket costs Three.20 Euros and is good for one journey to or from the airport. You can buy tickets from the driver or at the metro stations or at Public Transport Ticket Offices.
Buses to the Ferry Ports of Rafina and Lavrion
A bus route linking the Athens International Airport at Spata to the port of Rafina in eastern Attica is operated by the KTEL intercity bus system and is called “Athens Airport-Rafina Port.” It functions daily from Four:45 a.m. to Ten.20 p.m. with buses leaving every forty minutes and making a stop in the seaside resort of Loutsa. There are also regional buses to Lavrion, Markopoulos, Keretea and Kalyvia. Buses depart from the Arrivals Level (close to Door Trio) of Athens International Airport. Ticket prices for one-way excursion is Ђ3 for all services except for the port of Lavrio (Ђ4).
Arriving buses disembark passengers at the designated area of the departure level of the Main Terminal Building. They are orange.
Just a note about the Rafina buses from the airport – they depart not from near Arrivals Gate three but across that road and about one hundred metres along the outer access road, to the left, the bus stop being right opposite the Sofitel hotel near the foot of an outside staircase. Unluckily the walking route is not signposted. Also worth noting that the ticket booth for the Athens buses does not sell tickets for Rafina – you just pay your three euros on the Rafina bus.
A point for the comeback journey – the bus stop adjacent to the square/plateia in Rafina is only served by the Athens buses. If you want the airport bus you must descend the steps to the port road at the other (seaside) end of the square and the shamefully graffitied and bruised bus stop next to a little newspaper shop is where the airport bus picks you up as it leaves the port.
Renting a Car
If you plan to rent a car and drive north or south and avoid Athens altogether this is now much lighter to do with the fresh Attiki Odos which connects to the Ethniki Odos (National Road) enabling you to avoid the traffic of Athens altogether. Just leave the airport and go after the signs for Elefsina if you are going to the Peloponessos or get off at the Lamia exit if you are going to Thessaloniki or anywhere north. Swift rent-a-car in Athens has excellent rates and will pick you up at the airport. If you determine to stay in Athens for a day or so they will supply the car to your hotel and even drive you out of the traffic to the National Road.
Baggage Storage at Venizelos Airport
The airport does have a luggage storage facility. It is located on the ground floor of the International Arrivals terminal. As soon as you exit the luggage claim area you should turn left and go all the way to the far end of the terminal building. There you will find the “Luggage Storage” facility. They are open twenty four hours every day but unless you plan to go back to the airport everytime you need a switch of clothes you may want to ask your hotel in Athens about storing anything you are not bringing to the islands, or pack lighter. It is also not a bad place to meet someone coming in on a later flight because you can ask anyone and they will tell you where it is. The rates at the airport facility depend on the size of the item. To get an idea a large suitcase will cost you 7.50 euros for six hours, 8.50 euros for twelve hours and thirteen euros for twenty four hours. For longer periods the rates proceed to go down so for a week the price is forty four euros. Smaller items are cheaper. They will also store canoes, kayaks, bicycles, anvils, and other bulky items if there is space at a rate of fifteen euros a day. They won’t take dogs, cats, birds, rhinos, poisonous snakes or any other kinds of snakes. For more information about what is acceptable to leave you can e-mail them and they may react. They will also wrap your bag to protect them from harm and infuriate customs agents and they can ship your bags anywhere in the world. It costs six euro per baggage of any size. This facility is located at the Departures next to Gate Two, Gate Three, Arrivals Gate one and operates 24hours.
Some people leave their luggage in the lockers at Monastiraki Metro Station because it costs about half the price of the airport.
The Matt Barrett Way to Arrive in Athens
Most people who arrive in Athens will get a cab or public transport and go right into the city to get rid of their bags and recuperate from their flight. But that is not what I do. If you are arriving in the morning or early afternoon there is slew of time to go to your hotel but the best way to recuperate is to go to the beach. So what I do is contact George the Famous Taxi Driver and arrange a transfer but tell him we don’t want to go right into Athens. We want to go to the beach. I pack my bathing suit and a beach towel where it is effortless to get to and we head for a nice little beach near the airport. Daskaleio is very close and has a Greek island feel to it, plus there is a nice little fish taverna called Litsa‘s which is a good introduction to Greek food, in particular fresh fish. You will be astonished at how good you feel after a nice swim, a good meal and a glass of ouzo. You can always see the Acropolis later when you are up for it. And take a look at the photo. Wouldn’t you like this to be your very first impression of Greece? You can also have George take you all the way to Sounion to see the Temple of Poseidon, have a swim and lunch and then go to Athens having gotten one significant archaeological site out of the way.
Hotels Near the Airport
The Airport’s Airport Sofitel, is classified as a four starlet international standard and lies within walking distance from the Main Terminal Building. The hotel has three hundred forty six rooms, incorporating en suite bathrooms, radio and television units and refrigerators. Restaurants include a snack and breakfast restaurant and a panoramic restaurant. Additionally, a conference room and meeting rooms with computers, facsimiles and assistance, make the hotel a superb business center in the heart of the Airport. Hotel quests can love a health and fitness center, a covered swimming pool, steam and sauna rooms and hair and beauty treatment. Many people who are just passing through and are looking for a hotel for one night near the airport gasp when they see the prices at the Airport Sofitel. They shouldn’t because you can’t get any more convenient since all you have to do is walk out of the terminal and cross a puny parking lot and you are in the lobby. Sure stringing up out at the airport when you could be wandering around the Plaka may seem kind of boring but with restaurants, satelite TV and a nice big IKEA down the street you can find something to do besides sleep inbetween flights. The Holiday Inn Attika Avenue is a five minute taxi rail or a few minutes on the metro and is in the price range of the Sofitel. They also advertise a free shuttle to and from the airport. If you want to book these hotels for a night without going through a travel agency you can use the above links. If you are working with a Greek travel agency you can book through them as well. The nearest cheap hotel is the Hotel Pantheon on the outskirts of Markopoulo however without a rental car you may find yourself hotel strapped with not much around but highway. You will also need a taxi each way so factor that in to the price and the fact that your airport taxi may not be blessed about having a customer that is not going all the way into Athens.
The Avra Hotel in Rafina is now advertised as the Avra Airport Hotel and it is closer to the airport than Athens, maybe a twenty minute taxi rail on a good day but a taxi won’t be much cheaper than one from central Athens and if you are using a transfer it will cost more. What makes it convenient is that you can stay there overnight and the ferries to many of the Cyclades leave from the port. But don’t be fooled into staying here because they include the word ‘Airport’ in the name of the hotel. They might as well call it the Avra Eiffel Tower Hotel. But if you want to be close to the airport in a place that feels like a Greek island where you can eat seafood and witness the boats, swim and be on the very first boat to Mykonos stay there. There are some nice little seafood restaurants in Rafina too.
The nearest coastal hotel to the airport is the Sea Look Boutique Hotel on the beach at Porto Rafti which is a seaside town east of Athens. It will take you about twenty minutes to get there and it only has eleven rooms so you may want to book it now. Getting in and out of Athens will take you about an hour or so by taxi or bus. The Mare Nostrum Hotel Thalasso is a large four starlet resort hotel that is even closer and overlooks the beach in Vravrona Bay. Otherwise if these are beyond your budget the 2-star Minavra Hotel and Villa Orion Hotel in Voula are across Posidonas Ave from the beach and right on the X96 bus line that goes inbetween the airport and the ferry port of Pireaus as are the two non-smoking Parthenis Hotel and the Plaza Hotel. These hotels are also close to bus stops to Athens and Glyfada as well as the coastal tram. If you want to truly splurge than go to the The Westin Athens Astir Palace Beach Resort and be right on the beach and you may not even feel the need to go to the islands and you will still be within an hour of downtown Athens by bus, tho’ if you can afford to stay here you will very likely not mind the price of a taxi or limo. For those looking for something cheaper and less airport-like there is the Hotel Les Amis in Vari, just twelve kilometers away. But this is not a recommendation, just a fact. For more convenience and convenience stay downtown at the Attalos and splurge on a taxi in the morning which may cost you about ten euros more than a taxi from Vari. Plus if you are leaving for the islands the next day from Pireaus you are better off staying in Athens.
Switching Money in Athens
In case you have not figured it out yet Greece uses Euros. If you were able to switch money in the states, then there is no point in dangling out in the airport when Athens awaits you so budge on out. I usually only switch about $100 in JFK. If you are using a pre-arranged taxi transfer you won’t even need to switch any money until you get into the city. If you didn’t switch money in the states, don’t worry. You can switch it at the airport. If there are two of you, one can switch money while the other gets the luggage. The rates seem pretty much the same whether you are in the airport or downtown. I usually switch $100 for starters and check rates at banks and currency exchange stores when I get to the city. There is even a currency exchange in the baggage carousel area and several once you get through customs. Most people use ATM machines now and those in Athens and the islands have instructions in English and are effortless to use. They accept VISA, Mastercard and AMEX.
When you get to downtown Athens you can switch money at the banks and money switching shops around Syntagma and the Plaka. The rates are usually posted at each location along with commission rates and you can also google euro exchange and get the rates up to the minute. That doesn’t mean those are the rates you will get but you will at least know if you are in the same ballpark.
According to Tom Mazarakis, the Greek guru’s guru.
You will always get a better exchange rate here in Greece over what you will get in the U.S. But, of course, the commission that banks charge usually wipes out that difference, unless you exchange over $Three,000.00 each time you go to the bank. On the other forearm, if you buy Euros traveler’s checks, then the bank will charge you a fee for cashing them. It’s all a “lose-lose” situation. The only way to strike them is to come to Greece with cash US Dollars and exchange them for Euros at “Cambios” that often do not charge any commission. These exchange offices usually post lower exchange rates than most banks, but the fact that they don’t charge a commission more than compensates for the slightly lower exchange rate. Note that not all “Cambios” are “commission free”. The ones at the airport all charge hefty commissions. You will find the “no-commission” exchange offices in the center of Athens and in most major tourist destinations such as Mykonos and Santorini .
American banks charge their customers rather hefty fees for the privilege of using their Visa or Mastercards for the purpose of making cash advances through ATM machines in Greece. This is why you should avoid making many withdrawals of puny cash amounts like you may do at home. It is best if you make a relatively large cash withdrawal of about Euros one thousand in one ATM transaction rather than ten withdrawals of Euros one hundred a pop! You must reminisce that you typically are charged an “International Withdrawal Service Fee” by your bank and then the local Greek bank charges an extra local service fee on top of that.
This peak comes from a reader: When traveling from the US, you can get a visa/atm card from AAA. You “put money down” on it and you use it as a regular credit card. When used at an ATM, you recieve local currency. There is the usual ATM charges, but it much less than attempting to exchange money. Also, it is not tied to your bank account or other credit cards.
As for other methods of money carrying according to Tom Mazarakis on the subject of debit cards “I believe that most North American debit cards will work in Greece. However, you absolutely MUST inform your bank of the fact that you will be traveling to Greece and that you would like to be able to make use of your debit card in Greece. Some debit cards will not work in Greece at all, but in any case, most North American banks have a default setting for all their debit cards that blocks “International Usage”. This is done so as to protect their customers from international fraud. The bank must liquidate this block from your account so that you will be able to use the card.”
The Greek Islands: To Fly or Not to Fly
If you are attempting to determine whether to fly straight through to the islands or take a ferry to the islands the next day this may help you. You will need at least three hours inbetween your arrival in Greece and your island departure. This is not because the airport is large or confusing. It isn’t. Once you walk out of international arrivals it is a five minute walk to domestic departures. But you have to plan for the possibility that your flight may be delayed, in which case you may miss your island flight and then you will need a hotel in Athens for that night and you may be charged a cancellation fee for your hotel on the island. (Using a Greek Travel agency to book hotels and flights will be helpful in this situation because then you just phone them, explain what happened, and they find you a hotel in Athens and hopefully coax the island hotel that it was not your fault that you missed the flight to the island.)
Keep in mind that if you are coming from the USA after a ten hour flight you may not want to string up out at the airport for two hours or more and then take another flight, even if it is just an hour. You may want to go into Athens and spend the very first night there and take a ferry the next day to the island when you feel like a human being again.
Once you are in Athens it is lighter to take a ferry to an island then it is to fly, mainly because you don’t have to go all the way back top the airport and go through the lines and check-in situations that are required of flying. If you are going to Mykonos for example it is a thirty minute flight. But it may take you an hour or more to get to the airport if traffic is bad, plus you need to be there an hour before your flight to check in. Then provided there are no delays when you land in Mykonos you have to get into town or wherever your hotel is which will take another thirty minutes including getting your bags. Total time: Three and a half hours.
So. if you are making a connecting flight to the island on the day you arrive from Greece then make sure you have slew of time inbetween flights in case you are delayed. But if you are planning to spend the very first day or so in Athens take ferries or highspeeds.
If you arrive in the morning or afternoon and are going to Rhodes, Crete, Lesvos, Chios or one of the islands that have overnight ferries that leave in the late afternoon or early evening you can take your bags to Pireaus and check them in one of the luggage storage facilities in the port and then take the metro to Thission or Monastiraki and visit the Acropolis. These facilities are in the cafe-restaurants located behind the ticket offices and the bus terminal. I don’t recommend leaving your bags at the airport luggage storage and coming back for them unless you have another flight. Its a long way to go.
Or what some people do is arrange a taxi transfer and combine it with a tour of Athens that leaves you at the ferry. Then you just put your luggage in the trunk and visit the sites of Athens, have a late lunch and then catch your ferry. I recommend booking a cabin.
Another valuable lump of advice is to save the Athens portion of your journey for the end. That way you give yourself a buffer to protect you against missing your flight home in case your ferry is delayed due to weather or a strike. (It happens). You can spend that very first night in Athens and see the Acropolis and then save your shopping, museums, and other archaeological sites in and around Athens for the last two or three days of your tour. I suggest at least two nights in Athens at the end. Three nights if you plan to visit Delphi or other destinations on the mainland.
Meeting in Athens at the Airport
If you are looking for a meeting place for friends and family arriving on a later flight the flawless spot is the Kafeneo, the cafe just to the right of the exit when you leave the international baggage claim. (It may have switched names but the location is the same.) Its just across from the Greek National Tourist Organization’s Desk where you can get ferry schedules and free brochures on the islands and other destinations in Greece. You can get free maps too. Another place to meet which is more pleasant, especially if you have a long wait, is the Olive Tree Restaurant which is by the McDonalds, up the escalator from the main shopping area. There is a wireless cafe next door and the food at the Olive Tree is remarkably good.
There is a lot of info here and some of it may be confusing so if you have any questions just e-mail me at [email protected]
Got time inbetween flights? Go to the zoo! The Attika Zoological Park opened in May of two thousand one and next to the Acropolis it is very likely the most interesting place in Athens. If you have a layover in Athens before your flight to the islands or home, why sit around and look at stressed people when you can see one of the happiest collections of animals in the world. The zoo in Spata is one of the most humane and is the third largest bird collection in the world! It is a brief rail from the airport and if you are traveling with kids it is a surefire way to keep them glad and interested in what would normally be wasted time. For more information see www.athensguide.com/zoo
Another excellent option is the Megapanos Winery. In fact with a taxi tour you can do both if you have enough time. Check with George the Famous Taxi Driver