ATHENS
Athens
and Greece is proud of it’s new and modern
ELEFTHERIOS
VENIZELOS Airport. The airport is located 30 km northeast of
Athens and is accessed through a six-lane motorway “Attiki
Odos” constituting the Athens city ring road.
The services provided can be compared to the finest airports
of the world.
Maximum security is the major concern.
The most advanced security equipment is being used
whether you are on land or air.
Direct connection to most of the countries of the world, is
provided by the National carrier of Greece Olympic Airways,
and most of the major airlines.
Parking at the airport of Athens is easy. A total of 4800
parking spaces are available on the short and long term
parking and equipped with automatic parking systems.
Restaurants, Cafes and shops are available to make the wait
more pleasant and comfortable to travelers.
Public transportation to and from the airport is provided on a
24 hours basis, by express bus connections with Athens Center
and the Port of Piraeus.
There are three bus itineraries dedicated to carry passengers
to and from the airport.
The cost of the ticket is (EURO 3) per person per way.
-LINE E94: Connects the Ethniki Amyna metro station with the
airport from 07:00 am until 23:00 every 30 minutes.
-LINE E95: Connecting Syntagma Square (Parliament Square) with
the airport on average every half an hour, on a 24hours
service.
-LINE E96: Connects Piraeus Port (Karaiskaki Square) 24 hours
service on average every half an hour.
Telephone number of Spata airport: 0103530000.
THESSALONIKI
In the region of Central Macedonia, there is the international
civilian airport "Macedonia" in the area of Mikra,
Thessaloniki. The airport is 16 kilometres from the centre of
the city and besides its international importance, it also has
an important National and Regional significance and range. The
"Macedonia" airport is the second important airport in the
county and its role will be strengthened by the general
political and financial developments in the area.
The
Athens Metro is
one of the most modern and complex projects in Europe. It is
fast, comfortable and very reliable. It provides
easy access to historical sites and Piraeus Port. The Metro
network is still under construction and one of its projects
was
to connect the airport via the suburban railway,
completed in 2004.
Special facilities available are escalators, lifts for the
disabled, telephones, Special ramps, warning striping on the
platform floors and special spaces within the train vehicles.
Tickets are bought through Automatic Ticket Machines installed
at all Metro Stations or Ticket Offices. Before going on board
the train, passengers need to validate their ticket through
special validation machines. The price for the ticket is (EURO
0.70).
Taxi
cabs in Athens are yellow with illuminated sign marked
“TAXI” on top.
One can stop a cab by simply raising a hand or go to Taxi
stands which are located everywhere in Athens, it may occur
that the taxi already has passengers inside or take other
people during the ride, as it is common to share taxis.
When the meters flag is lighted the taxi is available for
hire.
The fares in Greece are cheaper than anywhere else in Europe.
For a 5km ride the fare is (EURO 6) for a 10km ride it’s
about (EURO 11) depending on traffic.
The amount of the fare paid for a Taxi ride is
the amount written on the meter.
Extra charges apply after 12:00 midnight and for each piece of
luggage carried.
Pre booked Taxi are also available upon request at extra
charge, you may call them in advance from the reception of
your hotel, or directly to their central, they will come and
pick you up from almost everywhere.
Busses
and Trolleys have frequent schedules starting from 05:00am
until 12:00 midnight for all
places in Athens and the suburbs. For local commuting
the fare is (EURO 0.45). Tickets can be purchased at most
newspapers kiosks named “Periptero”.
Upon entering the bus you must validate your ticket at one of
the validation machines and keep the ticket for the whole
trip.
The bus schedules vary according to the destination. The
frequency is between 10 minutes to half an hour.
Bus
terminal for Northern Greece is located at:
260, Liossion street. Athens
Tel: 210 8317147.
Bus terminal for Southern Greece is located at:
100, Kifissou street. Athens
Tel: 210 5147317.
Fares vary according to destinations starting from (EURO 6 to
EURO 40).
Although the service provided by the Greek rail network today is not of a very good standard, compared to the other European countries, it is a nice way to travel and enjoy the beautiful countryside. The trains are relatively slow but quiet reliable. A lot of modernization is on its way and expected to be completed by 2006. The train organization is called OSE. There are two Central train stations in Athens.
The Peloponesse Station is for South of Greece
including Peloponesse.
Address: Sidirodromon St, Athens.
Tel: 0105298735 and 0105131601.
The Larissis Station which serves the North, East and
West parts of Greece.
Address: 31-33 Deligianni St, Athens.
Tel: 0105298837.
The Intercity express trains are the quickest way of
traveling on the Greek mainland.
They run between Athens and the major cities of Larissa,
Thessaloniki, Patra and Kalamata. Tickets can be bought at the
Central Stations or in Omonia Square.
Address: 6, Sina St, Athens.
Tel : 2103627947.
Piraeus
Port is one of the largest ports in Europe and the largest one
in Greece.
It’s the starting point for all commercial routes and for
International routes.
Thousands of people use it yearly to commute to the numerous
popular Islands during the summer months. The port can be
accessed by all major transportation services.
From Athens Syntagma Square Green bus no. 40, runs every 10
minutes to the port.
From Omonia Square bus no.49, runs every 15 minutes to the
port. The port can also be accessed by metro (Red line), which
runs every 5 minutes from Omonia square station and stops
across the port.
Piraeus
Port Authority Tel: 2104511311-9.
Rafina
Port is the second largest in Athens. It was built to assist North East Islands and commercial sea schedules due to
its position. It is convenient for residents of the North East
areas of Athens.
Distance from Spata Airport is 14 km and the length of the
trip about 20 minutes. There is no public transportation from
the airport only by Taxi.
From the center of Athens in Pedion tou Areos park in Victoria
train station there is public bus transportation every half an
hour. The cost of the ticket is about (EURO
2). The distance is 30 km.
Departures from Rafina Port are only to below Islands:
Andros, Lesvos, Limnos, Mykonos, Syros and Tinos.
Port Tel: 2294-022481 and 2294-022487
Driving
in Athens is one the Right and the laws conform to the ones of
continental Europe. In order to drive you need to have with
you a EU driving license or an International driving permit.
Driving is not very difficult, if you are used to the
Mediterranean way. Parking is a headache specially during the
morning hours. Most of the road signs are both in English and
Greek language. The speed limit for cars in residential areas
is 40 km/h (25 mph), on Avenues 80 km/h (50 mph) and on
highways 120 km/h (75 mph). Seatbelts are compulsory by law
for all passengers, although the police is not very strict
about them within the city.
Petrol
Stations can
be found easily within Athens and are open six days a week,
between 8 am to 8 pm. The measuring unit for fuel is the
liter. All stations sell unleaded (95 octane), super unleaded
(98 octane) and Diesel. Gas is not very common and can be
found only on big stations.