How to Navigate the Athens International Airport: What to Expect on Arrival and Departure
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There is nothing better than landing in Greece for a summer of fun. The ocean flows by beneath the plane, then the dry hills around Athens come into view, and before you know it your wheels are touching down at Athens International Airport.
After a long overnight flight, that first glimpse of Greece honestly feels a little surreal.
That being said, navigating the airport can feel slightly confusing the first time, especially if you have been traveling for 24+ hours like I usually have to whenever I visit Greece.
Luckily for you, I have flown in and out of this airport more than twenty times at this point, so I’ve learned the flow pretty well. And while it might seem chaotic at first, it’s actually a fairly manageable airport once you know what to expect.
This post is all about the Athens Airport.
Arrivals at Athens Airport
Getting Off the Plane
There are basically two ways you’ll be instructed to leave the plane.
The first is the normal, easy version, where everyone just files off through the jetway and directly into the terminal.
The second option feels a little more dramatic and, honestly, a little more “European summer movie.” You walk down the airplane stairs onto the tarmac, pile onto a bus with everyone else, and then get driven over to the terminal. This happens pretty often in Athens, especially during busy summer months or with certain airlines.
There’s something about stepping onto the hot tarmac air for the first time that really makes it hit you: you’re finally in Greece.
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Passport Control: Schengen vs Non-Schengen
Passport control depends on where you are flying from.
If you are arriving from another country within the Schengen Zone in Europe, you will probably not need to go through passport control at all. You’ll usually just head straight toward baggage claim.
If you are flying directly from the United States or another non-Schengen country, you will definitely go through passport control after landing.
Thankfully, it’s usually a pretty painless process. The lines can look intimidating at first, but in my experience, they move fairly quickly most of the time.
Just have your passport ready before you get to the desk, and you’ll be through before you know it.
After a long travel day, getting that passport stamp into Greece feels oddly satisfying.
Baggage Claim
No matter how you enter the country, eventually everyone ends up at baggage claim.
It’s one large room with conveyor belts lined up across the space and digital screens showing which flight belongs to which carousel. It’s pretty straightforward and easy to navigate.
The bags can sometimes take a little while to come out, especially if your flight skipped passport control and everyone reached baggage claim immediately. But honestly, I’ve never had a horror story wait there.
Like every airport in the world, people also tend to stand way too close to the conveyor belt while waiting for luggage (I know, so annoying!), so prepare yourself for that universal travel experience.
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Entering the Main Terminal
After grabbing your bags, head toward the exit on the opposite side of the baggage claim room, and you’ll enter the arrivals terminal.
This is usually the moment where Greece starts to feel real. Suddenly, there are people waiting with signs, the smell of coffee everywhere, families greeting each other loudly, and tired tourists trying to remember where they booked transportation.
If you need a bathroom, they’re located down toward the right side of the arrivals area.
If you reserved a rental car, many of the major companies have booths located in the middle of the terminal.
Some rental car companies, however, operate from lots outside the airport instead of inside the terminal itself. In that case, exit the building, turn right, and walk all the way down the sidewalk. The rental car pickup area is usually across the street, near the far end.
Transportation Options from the Airport
Metro
If you’re taking the Metro into Athens, exit the terminal, cross the street, and follow the signs upstairs toward the station. The signage is actually very good and easy to follow.
The Metro is one of the easiest ways to reach central Athens if you’re staying in neighborhoods like Syntagma, Monastiraki, or Acropolis.
Bus
The airport bus stops are located toward the far right side outside the terminal. There’s usually a staffed booth as well as ticket machines where you can buy tickets.
The buses are especially useful if you arrive very late at night when Metro service is more limited.
Taxi
The taxi queue is easy to spot in the center area outside arrivals. Just follow the signs and join the line.
One thing I appreciate about Athens airport taxis is that it’s all pretty organized compared to some airports where you feel like you’re fighting for survival the second you walk outside.
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✨Ultimate Greece Travel Starter Guide!!!✨
Skip the overwhelm — I pulled together the must-knows so you don’t have to dig through a million sites.
Departures from Athens Airport
It’s the saddest day of the summer: the day you leave Greece.
I definitely recommend giving yourself extra time at the airport during the summer months because Athens airport gets very busy.
The departures area, especially, can become crowded fast, and trying to rush through with rolling luggage while weaving around hundreds of other travelers is not particularly enjoyable.
Check-In and Bag Drop
Once inside departures, find your airline on the large departure boards and head toward the appropriate check-in counters.
Some airlines have self-service kiosks now, but honestly, almost every time I’ve tried using one, it has been out of service or having issues. At this point, I usually just go straight to the check-in counter and save myself the frustration.
The check-in area can get crowded quickly, especially during peak island-hopping season when everyone seems to be hauling giant suitcases full of souvenirs home with them.
Security and Passport Control
After check-in, make your way toward security. You’ll need to scan your boarding pass before entering the security line, so keep it handy.
Security at Athens airport is generally pretty efficient. Most of the time, you can leave electronics and liquids inside your bag, and usually you don’t have to remove your shoes either. Of course, airport rules can change at any time, so still pay attention to the signage and follow instructions from the security staff.
Everything is written in both Greek and English, which makes the process much easier for international travelers.
If you are leaving Greece for a non-Schengen country, you will also go through passport control before reaching your gate. This line can sometimes become the longest part of the process, especially if staffing shifts are changing, so definitely budget extra time for it.
The Shopping Tunnel and Gate Areas
Once you finally make it through security, you enter what honestly feels like an endless corridor of duty-free stores, perfume shops, luxury brands, and souvenir displays.
The airport almost tricks you into thinking the gates themselves will be lively too.
They are not.
Most of the restaurants and cafés are concentrated near the main shopping area, while the actual gates are mostly packed together at the ends of long hallways with surprisingly little around them besides rows of seats and the occasional bathroom.
Some gates are even downstairs, which usually means one thing: you are almost definitely boarding a bus out to the airplane parked on the tarmac.
At this point, I always use the last of my euros to buy one final freddo espresso and some snacks for the flight home. It has become part of my Greece routine at this point.
Boarding the Plane
When it’s finally time to board, you may need to show both your passport and boarding pass again before entering.
And depending on your gate, you may either walk directly onto the plane through a jetway or get packed onto another bus that drives you across the tarmac before you climb the stairs into the aircraft.
Honestly, there’s something emotional about that final bus ride away from the terminal.
A few weeks earlier, the airport represented excitement, freedom, and the start of your Greek summer. Now it somehow represents the exact opposite.
But Greece has a way of pulling people back in.
So while leaving always feels a little depressing, there’s also usually that tiny thought in the back of your head already saying: “Well… until next summer, right?”
This post was all about the Athens Airport.
