Getting There

Main Airports

Athens (ATH) (Elfetherios Veniselos) (www.aia.gr) is located 33km (23 miles) northeast of the city. To/from the airport: There is a six-lane motorway linking the city and the airport, and regular airport buses run 24 hours from the centre and the port of Piraeus. In addition, metro line 3 has been extended so that some trains run between Monastiraki in the city centre and the airport. Facilities: Duty-free shops, car hire, banks, ATMs, bureaux de change, bar and restaurant facilities, post office, business centre and hotel.

Thessaloniki (SKG) (Macedonia) is 14km (9 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Regular coach and taxi services are available. Facilities: Duty-free shops, restaurants, bars, banks/bureaux de change, car hire and a post office.

Corfu (CFU) (Kerkira) is 3km (2 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Regular coach, taxi and local bus services are available. Facilities: Duty-free shop, cafe, bar and car hire.

Rhodes (RHO) (Paradisi) is 16km (10 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Coach, taxi and local bus services are available. Facilities: Duty-free shop, car hire, bank, bureau de change, cafe and bar.

Departure Tax: €12.

Heraklion (HER) (N. Kazantzakis) is 3km (2 miles) from the city. To/from the airport: Taxi and local bus services are available. Facilities: Duty-free shop, car hire, bank, bureau de change and bar.

Getting There by Water

Main ports: Corfu, Heraklion, Igoumenitsa, Patras, Piraeus (Athens) and Rhodes.
 
International car ferry lines link Patras and Igoumentisa with Ancona, Bari, Brindisi and Venice in Italy year round, and there are also summer services from Corfu to these ports. There is also a service between Rhodes and Marmaris in Turkey.

Major ferry operators covering the international routes are Superfast (tel: 210 891 9000; www.superfast.com), Minoan (tel: 210 920 0020; www.minoan.gr) and ANEK (tel: 210 323 3481; www.anek.gr).

Greek ports (notably Piraeus, Corfu, Santorini, Mykonos, Rhodes and Heraklion) are used by a number of cruise lines.

Rail Passes

InterRail: Offers unlimited first- or second-class travel in up to 30 European countries for European residents of over six months with two pass options. The Global Pass is available in durations of one month, 22 or 15 days for those looking to travel continuously; otherwise there are passes that allow for 5 days of travel to be used over a ten-day period or a ten-day pass to be used over a period of 22 days. Each pass is valid across all countries.

The One-Country Pass: Offers travel for three, four, six or eight days to be taken in one month in any of the countries except Belgium Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. Travel is not allowed in the passenger's country of residence. Travellers under 26 years receive a reduction. Children's tickets are reduced by about 50%. Supplements are required for some high-speed services, seat reservations and couchettes. Discounts are offered on Eurostar and some ferry routes. Available from Rail Europe (tel: 0844 848 4064; www.raileurope.co.uk/inter-rail).

Eurailpass: The global Eurail pass offers unlimited train travel in 21 European countries. Select, regional (Greece is grouped with Italy) and one-country Eurail passes are also available. Tickets are valid for two months or three months and permit between three and ten days travel in those periods. The passes cannot be sold to residents of Europe. Available from The Eurail Group (www.eurail.com).

Getting There by Road

It is possible to ferry cars and caravans across to one of the major ports of entry. Points of overland entry are from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia via Evzoni (550km from Athens), and Niki (633km from Athens); from Bulgaria via Promahonas (736km from Athens); from Turkey via Kastania (985km from Athens) or Kipi (892km from Athens). For car ferry information, see Getting There By Water.

Bus: There are routes from Athens via Thessaloniki to cities in Albania, Bulgaria and Turkey. Information and bookings are available from the Hellenic Railways Organisation Ltd (OSE) (www.ose.gr; tel: 1110), which operates international coach services.

Getting There by Rail

The national railway company is Hellenic Railways Organisation Ltd (OSE) (www.ose.gr; tel: 1110). A good way to travel from the UK is to take the Eurostar through the channel tunnel, from London to either Brussels or Paris, both of which have onward connections to Greece. For further information and reservations, contact Eurostar (tel: 0843218 6186 within the UK, www.eurostar.com) or Rail Europe (tel: 0844 848 4064, within the UK; www.raileurope.co.uk).