Transportation to and from Athens Airport

What is the distance from Athens Airport to the centre of Athens?

The distance between the airport and Athens city centre is 34 kilometres / 21.1 miles. It is possible to cover the distance in about 30 minutes, however during rush hour the journey time is 45 minutes or more.

Metro to Athens

The metro is the most practical way to get into the city of Athens. Metro line 3 (blue) runs twice an hour between the airport and metro station Aghia Marina west of Athens, the metro stations in the city centre are called Syntagma (15th station) and Monastiraki (16th station). These are two of the most well-known squares in Athens. It takes you about 40 minutes to reach the centre of the city. You can purchase tickets from the ticket counter and ticket vending machines at the station of Athens Airport. Before boarding, you must validate your ticket at one of the validation machines close to the escalators which bring you to the platforms.

Metro tickets
Tickets valid for 90 minutes cost € 10.00 per person, € 18.00 for two people and € 24.00 for three people. The price of a return ticket that you can use for 48 hours is € 18.00. Young people below the age of 18 years, students younger than 26 years and seniors over the age of 65 years can buy a ticket for half price. Children up to 5 years can use public transport in Athens for free. The last metro from Athens Airport leaves at 23:30 hours, the first metro from the city centre goes around 05:35 hours. Please consult website and timetable metro line 3 for more information.

Top 5 activities in Athens

1. Acropolis (Parthenon) entrance ticket and guided walking tour
2. Acropolis Museum entrance ticket
3. Greek food walking tour through the streets of Athens
4. Delphi guided day trip from Athens
5. Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Athens, Piraeus and Athenian Riviera

Tickets for the world famous Acropolis cost € 10, with which you can visit the Acropolis and Slopes (Theatre of Dionysus). You can also buy a combined ticket for € 30, allowing you to access the Acropolis and Slopes, Ancient Agora, Roman Agora, Hadrian’s Library, Olympieion, Kerameikos and Aristotle’s School (Lykeion), this ticket is valid for 5 days. Tickets can be purchased online and at the entrance gates, children up to the age of 18 have free access to the Acropolis and other sights.

Bus to Athens

It is also possible to travel by bus from the airport to Athens (and Piraeus). Piraeus is a port city, located within the urban area of Athens. There are four bus lines, namely Airport Express bus X93 (Kifissos Intercity Bus Station), Airport Express bus X95 (metro station Syntagma), Airport Express bus X96 (Piraeus) and Airport Express bus X97 (metro station Elliniko). Don’t be confused by the name ‘Express’, because the buses make many stops on their way to the final destination. The journey time to Bus Terminal Kifissos (Bus Terminal A) is 65 minutes, this is one of the two major bus stations in the capital together with Bus Terminal Liosion (Bus Terminal B, travel time: 50 minutes). Both bus stations are accessible by bus service X93. Syntagma and Elliniko metro stations can be reached in 60 minutes and 45 minutes respectively.

Bus X96 takes you to Piraeus in 90 minutes. You will reach bus stop New Faliro at Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium (football Olympiakos) and Peace and Friendship Stadium (basketball and volleyball) in around 80 minutes. The prices are the same, € 6.00 for a single trip. Persons younger than 18 and older than 65 only have to pay € 3.00, this also applies to students. Children up to 5 years can travel for free. Please consult Airport Lines Athens Airport for more information.

TIP: If you plan to use public transport in Athens and Piraeus regularly during your visit, a 3-day Tourist ticket might be interesting. This card gives you 72 hours access to all (trolley)buses, subways, trams and city trains in the metropolitan area of Athens. A return trip to and from Athens Airport by metro or bus is also included in the price. The costs are € 22.00 per person.

To and from the ports of Piraeus, Rafina and Lavrio
Athens Airport is widely used by people who want to visit one of the many Greek islands. The harbour of Piraeus (Port of Piraeus) is one of Europe’s largest passenger ports. From here several Greek islands are reachable by boat, most ferries depart in the direction of the Saronic Islands (including Elina), Crete and the Cyclades archipelago (including Paros and Naxos). Piraeus has three passenger terminals for cruise ships, known as Terminal A – Miaoulis (main terminal, gate 11), Terminal B – Themistocles and Terminal C – Alkimos.

Airport Express bus X96 runs between Athens Airport and Piraeus. It is better not to remain seated till the last stop, get out a few stops earlier at the bus stop Agios Spiridonas. A local bus or taxi will take you from this bus stop to the cruise passenger terminals. You can also travel by metro from Athens Airport, but then you have to change at metro station Monastiraki to metro line 1 (green). The regional bus services of KTEL take travellers from the airport to the ports of Rafina and Lavrio (change buses at Markopoulo Mesogaias), buses depart in front of the Arrivals hall opposite Hotel Sofitel. Please consult website Piraeus Port Authority for more information.

There is no car sharing service available at the airport. If you are planning to rent a car in Athens, take a look at our car rental tips and see the full list of all car rental companies at Athens Airport!

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