Athens Airport Arrivals (ATH)

Flight Arrivals at Athens Airport

Athens International Airport is the major airport that serves as a gateway to the city of Athens, and the Attica region of Greece. ATH is the airport’s official IATA code, in order to distinguish it from similar establishments, and another name commonly used for the airport is the Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport, in honour of Eleftherios Venizelos who was a prominent Cretan political figure and a Prime Minister of the country. The Athens International Airport arrival area is modern and well equipped for its passengers, and all facilities are within walking distance. Nearby are several forms of ground transportation, as well as information counters and tourism desks that can be useful to foreign travelers.

The airport of Athens is found to the east of the city center, and approximately 20 km away. It is nearby the towns of Koropi, Markopoulo, Spata and Loutsa, and is connected to all prominent areas in the vicinity by major motorways. The main road that provides access to Athens from the airport is the E94. Passengers on arrival flights can easily reach the city if they have no vehicle parked at the airport, or if they are not being collected at the airport by family or friends. There are four public bus services that are available every fifteen minutes to half an hour that travel to a variety of destinations, including the Kifissos Bus Terminal (a good connection for intercity buses), Syntagma Square, Port of Piraeus and Dafni Station, for connections to the Athens Metro Line 2. The buses can be found outside of exits four and five on the arrivals level, and are reasonable in price. A few buses are also available for travel to other towns, such as Rafina, Markopoulo, Lavrio, Kalyvia and Keratea.

Passengers who are travelling to hotels in Athens or in the nearby vicinity may also be able to arrange a complimentary hotel shuttle. This service should be arranged when the hotel reservation is confirmed. Alternatively, taxis are available from outside the airport’s arrival area twenty-four hours a day, and are always a quick and convenient way to reach any destination, even though they are more expensive than buses or trains.

Athens Airport also has its own train station, from where trains take passengers to Athens every half an hour. The airport is connected to the Athens Metro Blue Line 3, and its station is also served by suburban train services that pass by the Larissis Station from where all international train services are available, as well as those that travel to northern Greece and towns such as Thessaloniki. Trains from the airport will cost 8 Euro per person, or a little less if a couple of persons are travelling as a family or group. Young children may also travel for free.

Although the above-mentioned forms of transport are all considered as excellent, arriving passengers often prefer a rented car, from one of the Athens Airport car hire companies. The companies available include Budget, Avis, National, Hertz and Sixt, and their rental counters are in the arrivals area. The companies’ vehicles are parked nearby the airport terminal as well. Driving in central Athens is not usually recommended, however, a rented car is ideal for travelling to all areas nearby the city center, and to other towns and cities in the region.

Passengers can arrive at Athens International Airport on flights offered by several airline companies, and from many destinations around the world. The airport is used as a hub by four airline carriers, and they are Olympic Air, Hellenic Imperial Airways, Cyprus Airways and Aegean Airlines. Flights are available by these companies from Istanbul, London, Moscow, Tel Aviv, Barcelona, Brussels, Frankfurt, Rome, Paris, Larnaca, Heraklion, Sofia, Chania and Thessaloniki, as well as many other locations. A few airlines companies only offer seasonal flights to Athens Airport, such as US Airways, UM Airlines, TAP Portugal, Norwegian Air Shuttle, Germanwings, Delta Air Lines, Air Canada, Aer Lingus and Croatia Airlines, while others offer year-round flights. A few more prominent airline companies that fly to the airport include British Airways, Alitalia, Air China, Air Malta, Air France, EasyJet, Emirates, Iberia, KLM, Lufthansa, Sky Express and Vueling.

In 2018 the airport handled approximately 24 million passengers. Facilities available are more than adequate to support the current number of passengers that pass through the terminal on a daily basis, however, plans are in place to expand the airport’s capacity, and in future the airport will be able to handle fifty million passengers per annum.

Passengers arriving at the airport will find a main terminal building and a satellite terminal. These buildings are linked by an underground foot tunnel and an above-ground walkway. The above-ground connection is a new addition to the airport structure, and provides a link to the terminal area that now handles all Schengen flights. Passengers will find many useful facilities within the airport terminals, and the entire complex is accessible to persons with mobility challenges. Facilities available include a Lost and Found office, porter services, baggage storage services, travel agencies, banks and ATM's, currency exchange services, wireless internet connections and several shops and restaurants. There is even a hotel on the airport grounds, should a passengers need somewhere close by to stay the night. It is the Sofitel Athens Airport Hotel, and it has a capacity for 700 guests. Business meeting rooms are also available at the hotel and within the airport terminal.

Airlines and their respective ground-handling agents are responsible for the management and delivery of a passenger’s luggage items, therefore, if any problem is experienced, the passenger should contact the appropriate airline or ground handlers.

Further details regarding Athens International Airport arrivals can be found online, or passengers can contact the airport’s call center at +30 210 3530000.