This article provides much detailed and useful information about transportation between the Athens airport, the Piraeus port and city center. The transportation includes metro, train, bus, taxi, and private transfer.
The article answers questions below:
- How to get from the Athens airport to city center?
- How to get from the Piraeus port to city center?
- How to get from the Athens airport to the Piraeus port?
- How to get from the Piraeus port to the Athens airport?
You can easily find answers for questions above in two ways:
- You can either read the whole article to decide the type of transportation that you preferred.
- You can select one type of transportation, and then select the starting point either the airport or port, you can check the information in that section.
This article can help you enjoy the economic and easy connection between the Athens airport and the port of Piraeus to Athens city center.
The Athens airport and the Piraeus port
Athens is one of the few European capitals that overlooks the sea, which is why there are two major gateways to the city, the Piraeus port and the Athens airport. If you are travelling from any other European country, most likely you will arrive at Athens International Airport “Eleftherios Venizelos”. If you are departing is from a Greek island, you may arrive at the port of Piraeus.
The Athens airport
Athens has only one airport where both domestic and international flights land. The airport is located about 33 km southeast of the city center. It is a modern and relatively small infrastructure, inaugurated in 2001. The airport has a main terminal and a satellite terminal. The satellite terminal comes into operation only in the high tourist season, when the main terminal has insufficient capacity to contain air traffic. The two terminals are connected through a series of tunnels equipped with moving walkways.
The Piraeus port
The Piraeus port is instead located about 11 km southwest of the center. It is a large infrastructure, equipped with 12 gates, capable of mobilizing the largest number of passengers in Europe. As the port is so big, it’s too long walking distance for tourists. Therefore, using transportation inside the port is necessary and important. The most central gates are E4, E5, E6, E7, E8, E9. These gates are near the railway station, Karaiskaki square that is a hub for buses, and the central ticket office for ferries. The railway station and Karaiskaki square are important points for reaching either the city center or the Athens airport.
Ferries from the Cyclades, which include the most touristic islands of Greece (Santorini, Mykonos, Paros, Naxos, etc), and from the Saronic islands such as Salamis arrive at the central gates. Gate E10 is where vehicles of those arriving from the Cyclades depart. Gates E11 and E12 represent terminals A and B for cruise ships. Gates E1, E2 and E3 receive passengers coming from Crete and the Dodecanese islands (the main one is Rhodes).
How to move inside the Piraeus port?
Since some gates are far apart, if you want to reach either the Athens airport or the city center, you need to first arrive at the Piraeus railway station or Karaiskaki square. The Piraeus port offers two free shuttles. The main shuttle connects gates E1, E2 and E3 to the train station.
Tip: in theory, the X96 bus line (which we will discuss later) also connects gate E1 to Karaiskaki square during the day, but it can only be used to reach the airport. Because the bus only goes to the intermediate stops to pick up passengers but it is not possible to get off the at those stops.
Those arriving at the port of Piraeus by cruise have more problems getting to the Piraeus railway station. The second free shuttle service only operates between terminal A (gate E11) and the furthest away terminal B (gate E12). The distance between terminal A (gate E11) and the train station is approximately 2 km. From terminal A it then takes about 20 minutes on foot to reach the train station. To reach the train station you can use the public transport buses of the OASA company.
Line 843 towards “Perama” runs constantly from 4:40 am to 12:00 pm, with a frequency of about one bus every 15 or 20 minutes. You can find the timetable here. You can also take line 859 in the direction of “Dexamenes – N. Molos Drapetsonas” which runs from 5:00 am to 10:00 pm with lower frequencies than line 843. You can see the timetable here.
Tip: it is not easy to move around the port by taxi because taxi drivers may refuse to make short journeys.
By metro
The metro line operated by the STASY company connects both the Piraeus port and the Athens airport to the center. The subway, although it has only three lines, is very extensive, running for 91 km and stopping at 66 stations.
By metro from the Athens Airport
You can reach the Athens airport train station in around five minutes from the main terminal via a series of clearly signposted moving walkways and walkways. Metro line 3 (blue) trains depart from the airport and run from 06:10 am to 11:34 pm. The frequency varies between 5 and 15 minutes. The metro takes about 40 minutes to reach Syntagma Square, the seat of the Hellenic Parliament. You can see the timetables here.
The line continues to the port of Piraeus and reaches the destination in about 60 minutes overall. The cost of one trip is 9 euros. If you also buy a return ticket (to be used within 30 days), the price rises to 16 euros. You can buy tickets at the automatic machines or at the box offices in the station.
By metro from the Piraeus port
Line 1 (green) to “Kifissia” and line 3 (blue) to the Athens airport depart from the port of Piraeus to reach the center of Athens. Line 1 (green) runs between 05:00 am and 00:15 am and takes 17 minutes to reach “Monastiraki”, the hub of the city. Waiting minutes are between 6 and 15. You can see the timetables here.
Line 3 (blue) runs between 05:30 am and 10:55 pm and takes 17 minutes to reach “Monastiraki” and 20 minutes to reach Syntagma square. The frequency varies between 5 and 15 minutes.
The cost of subway tickets is 1.40 euros. Only if you have to get to the airport does the price become 9 euros.
By train
Next to the underground stations there are Athens Suburban Railway, called Proastikos and managed by the Hellenic Train company. The ticket price is the same as for the subway line. Also in this case, there is a line that connects the Piraeus port and the Athens airport through the center of Athens (Green Line P).
By train from the Athens airport
The train to reach the center of Athens is the one in the direction of “Piraeus” (Green Line P) and not the one in the direction of “Ano Liosia” (Yellow Line P). The train towards the Piraeus port stops at the central station of Athens, called “Larissa”, not far from the Monastiraki district. In “Larissa” there is a stop of the underground line 2 (red line). Trains leave every hour from 06:07 am, 07:07 am, etc. until 11:07pm. Public transport takes about 40 minutes to reach Larissa station and 60 minutes to reach the port of Piraeus. You can find the timetables here.
Tip: the railway line and the metro line coincide between the airport and the “Doukissis Plakentias” stop. That is, if you take the train instead of the metro, remember that you have opportunities to switch to metro until the “Doukissis Plakentias” stop. Because later the routes of the metro and the suburban railway diverge.
By train from the Piraeus port
Two train lines depart from the Piraeus port and both reach the “Larissa” railway station. Trains to the Athens airport (green P line) depart from the railway station running every hour from 4:45am, 5:45am, etc until 8:45pm. It takes 20 minutes to reach Athens Central Station “Larissa”. If you want, you can continue the journey to the airport for 9 euros. You can find the timetables here.
The pink P line instead connects the port of Piraeus to the town of Kiato (town on the Peloponnese coast). The P line runs every hour from 06:15 am, 07:15 am, etc until 10:15 pm. Trains reach Athens Central Station in 20 minutes. You can view the timetables here.
By bus
Some buses managed by the OASA company travel 24h. Express buses depart from the Athens airport, denoted by an X in front of the number. They are special buses that cost 5.50 euros and can only be taken by those who intend to leave or reach the airport. The Piraeus port is also served by an express bus, but it works differently than the buses that travel from the airport.
You can buy tickets in the various box offices (often open 24 hours) or automatic machines that you will find near the stops.
By bus from the Athens airport
You can take the bus directly outside the Athens airport, in front of the main terminal exit, “arrivals” section.
The bus to get directly to the center is the X95 line, which ends in Syntagma square. During the journey, the line makes some intermediate stops, often coinciding with subway stops. The bus travels 24 hours and takes between 40 and 60 minutes to travel the route (depending on traffic). The bus leaves every 20 to 30 minutes. To see the timetable, you can click here.
Another important bus that leaves from the airport is the X96 line, which goes to the port of Piraeus. The buses travel 24 hours with a frequency of about 30 minutes during the day and one hour during the night. The line takes about 90 minutes to reach the port. You can see the timetable here.
The X93 line instead connects the airport to the Kifisou bus station, a hub for extra-urban lines. The buses run 24 hours a day, but are less frequent than the previously mentioned lines. During the night the frequency is about one bus every hour. During the day, buses run every 30 to 40 minutes. The journey takes approximately 60 minutes. You can see the timetable here.
Finally, the X97 line connects the airport to the “Elliniko” metro station, the terminal of line 2 (red). During the night, the service extends and ends in the more central “Dafni” metro station still along line 2. It is a minor service, which travels with a frequency of about one bus every hour. You can see the timetable here.
By bus from the Piraeus port
Buses to reach the center leave from the cruise terminal. Bus 040 connects the cruise terminal to Syntagma square. The bus travels 24 hours with frequencies between 15 minutes in daylight and 30 minutes at night. It is not a convenient service because it takes about an hour to get to the center and can be very crowded. You can see the timetable here. The cost is 1.20 euros, like all other lines in Athens except for the express lines.
The X80 line is an express service that runs only from May to October. The bus makes a few intermediate stops, so it can reach the center in about 30 minutes. The most important stops are “Akropoli”, “Syntagma” and the metro stops “Syggrou-Fix” and “Neo Faliro”. The service runs between 07:00 am and 9:15 pm with frequencies between 35 and 40 minutes.
There is no specific ticket for the X80 bus. The following must be used: 1) the day ticket for all public transport in Athens, costing 4.10 euros and valid for 24 hours from validation; 2) the 20-euro tourist ticket valid for 72 hours (this ticket includes all means of public transport, as well as the round trip to the airport).
Obviously, it is possible to take the X96 bus to reach the airport for 5.50 euros, but be careful. During the day (from 05:00 am to 08:00 pm), the bus leaves from the “Drapetsona” stop, near gate E1, and makes a couple of stops before reaching the heart of the port (Karaiskaki square). During the night, the bus leaves directly from Karaiskaki square.
By taxi
You can book yellow taxis both via the App and via the website. Free Now is the official taxi app. The Uber App works but you must remember that it can only call yellow taxis and not private car owners who make their cars available. Taxiplon website can also help you to call a taxi.
By taxi from the Athens Airport
The taxi station is located just behind the bus station, in the square at the Athens airport entrance, in front of the “Arrivals” section. Taxis charge a fixed rate of 38 euros for daytime departures (between 05:00 and 00:00) and 54 euros at night (between 00:00 and 05:00). Taxis take about 25 minutes to get downtown.
By taxi from the Piraeus Port
Taxi drivers apply a fixed rate of 25 euros during the day (from 05:00 am to 00:00 am) and 32 euros during the night (from 00:00 am to 05:00 am). The taxi to the Athens airport costs 54 euros during the day and 70 euros at night.
Remember that taxis may refuse to take you from the cruise terminal to the Piraeus train station.
By private transfer
By private transfer from the Athens airport
Many companies provide a transfer service from the Athens airport to the centre. For example, Keytours offers private transfers from 45 euros to carry up to 3 people. A transfer for 4 people costs 84 euros and for 5 people 90 euros. For trips at night (between 11:00 pm and 05:30 am), Keytours applies a supplement of 10 euros.
By private transfer from the Piraeus Port
Transfers from the Piraeus port to the center are less common than transfers from the Athens airport. In this case, Keytours offers a service costing 32 euros for one or two people, 33 euros for 3 people, 64 euros for 4 people, 70 euros for 5 people. Also in this case, the company applies a supplement of 10 euros for night journeys (between 11:00 pm and 05:30 am).
Ultimately, from the airport any means can be convenient to get to the center of Athens. Just remember that the train arrives at the main railway station, so it is especially worthwhile if your final destination is another Greek city.
If you arrive at gates E1 – E10 of the port, the metro and the train are much more convenient means of transport than the bus. If, on the other hand, you arrive at the cruise terminal, you can easily reach the center with the X80 bus in the summer or less easily with the 040 bus, which runs all year round. Perhaps, for those arriving at the cruise terminal, a taxi and private transfer are the most convenient solutions.
Note: Schedules and prices reference time mentioned in the article is 11 December, 2022
Written by Enrico, Translated by Hua and Photos from Hua
