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Santorini Secrets

The Largest Travel Blog for Santorini and Greece

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THINGS TO DO

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How To Get From Athens to Santorini

You basically have 2 ways to get from Athens to Santorini: by ferry or by plane. I am explaining below which one is the best and most efficient method for 2019.

athens to santorini

In my honest opinion, the absolute Best Way to get from Athens to Santorini is by plane (taking a 45mins flight from Athens).

The ferry from Athens to Santorini takes 5-8 hrs (depending on which ferry you choose) and if you are visiting the island only for  3-4 days then you will be wasting too much time on the sea. If it’s your first time in Greece though, it can be an interesting experience, as I am explaining below.

  • Let’s Ferry is the largest and most safe website in Greece to book your ferry tickets from Athens to Santorini but you can also use it just for checking timetables and prices between Athens and all greek islands
  • Expedia has all the available options for flights from Athens to Santorini (JTS is Santorini’s airport code) with all possible airlines (Aegean, Ryanair, Volotea, TUI, Olympic etc)

READ ALSO:

ON THIS PAGE:

Keep reading…

VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW
  • You basically have 2 options of getting from Athens to Santorini: by ferry or by plane.
  • Best way To get From Athens to Santorini: By Plane (45mins) especially if you are vigiting Santorini for 2-3 days only as you won’t be wasting your time on the ferry (it takes 5-8 hrs) but the ferry can be an interesting option if it’s your first time in Greece and you will be spending more than 5 days on Santorini 
  • Best Website for Ferry Prices & Timetables: Let’s Ferry
  • Athens has 2 ports with ferries to Santorini: Piraeus (or Pireas – PIR) and Rafina (RAF). Piraeus is the largest port with more ferry options but Rafina is closer to the Athens Airport (El.Venizelos).
  • Between April-October there are more than 7 ferries a day from Athens to Santorini (from Piraeus port) and 2 ferries a day from Athens to Santorini (from Rafina port) ; there are far less ferry options in the winter (November-March) 
  • How long is the ferry ride from Athens to Santorini: it varies from 5hrs (fast-Seajet Ferry) to 8 hrs (slow-Blue Star Ferry) 
  • How much does it cost to take a ferry from Athens to Santorini: the slowest ferry (Blue Star) costs 40 euros and the fast ferry (Seajet Ferries) can cost up to 80 euros
  • You can book your ferry online but you always have to get the ticket printout from the ferry kiosk in Piraeus port (Athens port) or any other greek travel agency (it’s the greek law) – AKTINA TRAVEL AGENCY is in Athens Airport
  • Best Way to go from Athens Airport to Athens main port (Piraeus) to take any ferry is by taking the Athens Airport Bus X96 (X96 Bus Route – X96 Bus runs every 20-30 mins) – X96 Bus ticket costs 6 euros (adult) and 3 euros (kids) or buy an ATH.ENA Card
  • Best Way to go from Athens Airport to Rafina Port is by taking another bus (called KTEL) that runs every 1 hr from the Airport.
  • Direct International Flights from Athens to Santorini: only from major european cities and only between April-October
  • Santorini’s Airport Code: JTR
athens to Santorini
The idiot's guide on how to get from Athens to Santorini

Ok, so let’s see all the available options:

1. Athens to Santorini by plane

Flying to Santorini (45mins on the air) is the best thing you can do (especially if you are staying on the island for less than 5 days)

Taking a flight to Santorini is obviously the quickest and most expensive option bu it is highly recommended if you are staying on the island for anything less than 5 days as you won’t be wasting time on the slow ferry boats.

It’s also the best thing you can do if you are only interested in Santorini and not bothered about Athens (Greece’s capital).

The best and cheapest website to book or search for flights from Athens to Santorini is Expedia as it has all the available options (including the low-cost airlines like Ryanair).

santorini flight airport
Aegean Air is the best greek airline that can take you to Santorini. This is one of their planes on Santorini's airport.
santorini airport
A shuttle bus will take you from the airplane to the Santorini Airport terminal

A few useful info to have in mind when booking your flight to Santorini:

  • Santorini’s Aiport website

  • Athens Airport Code is : ATH  (Athens)

  • Santorini’s Airport Code is: JTR (Thira – Santorini’s official name)
  • Every plane that lands on Santorini, takes off after 40 minutes to fly back to Athens.
  • The exact times of the flights change and they are not the same throughout the year, so make sure you get the right times from Expedia as it will give you all the available flights immediately.
  • There are more flights from Athens to Santorini between April – October (high season)
  • If you book your tickets well in advance (6 months) you could probably find some very good deals with return tickets. I have flown to Santorini with just 30-40 euros (with return!) , so it’s definitely do-able!
  • The cost of the flight from Ahtens to Santorini may come up to 200 euros during the high season (April-October) 

The airlines that fly from Athens to Santorini in 2019 (April-October) are:

PROs OF FLYING FROM ATHENS TO SANTORINI:

  • So much faster than the ferry (30-40 mins on the air)…you can literally save a whole day and spend it in Santorini instead
  • If you have just landed at the Athens airport you can just wait there till your connection flight to Santorini departs (Athens Airport is not very big but leave at least 2.5 hrs between the 2 flights otherwise it is going to be very risky and tight)

CONs OF FLYING FROM ATHENS TO SANTORINI:

  • It can be much more expensive
  • The flight times to Santorini may not be convenient and you might have to spend some boring hours at the Athens airport
  • You don’t get to see any other Greek islands ( you can get a glimpse of them by taking the ferry which is like a mini cruise in a way…see below)

The airlines that fly directly to Santorini from major European cities in 2019 (April-October) are:

ARRIVING AT AND DEPARTING FROM  SANTORINI AIRPORT:

santorini airport
The passport control area in Santorini's airport is small but the check should be fairly quick.

Santorini’s airport is very small and it can be extremely crowded during the high season. 

santorini airport
There is only one baggage carousel in Santorini airport and that’s a small one.
santorini airport
You won’t have to wait for ages to get your luggage.

There are plenty of car rental options at the Santorini airport but it is always wise to book well in advance.

The best website to rent a car for Santorini is Rentalcars.com .

santorini airport
There are plenty of car rental options at the Santorini Airport but you should better book online in advance

There are also many taxis waiting for you at the airport and the Santorini local bus as well.

A taxi from the Airport to Fira would cost you 25 euros and in general to all other directions shouldn’t charge you more than 40 euros (the furthest towns are Oia and Akrotiri).

READ ALSO: How To Get Around Santorini

santorini airport transfer
There are always taxis and the local bus that will be waiting for you outside of the aiport upon your arrival.

2. Athens to Santorini by ferry

ferry to santorini
There is a slow and a quick ferry from Athens to Santorini

Going to Santorini by ferry is the second option you have and it can be a very nice experience, if you are visitng the island for any more than 5 days and if it’s your first time in Greece.

A few important things to know about the ferries from Athens to Santorini:

  • You have 2 ports to chose for your departure from Athens to Santorini: Piraeus port or Rafina port. Piraeus will always give you more ferries options on a daily basis but Rafina is closer to Athens Airport.

  • The slow ferry from Athens (Piraeus)  to Santorini takes approx. 8 hours to arrive (Blue Star Ferries) – check timetables here

  • The quick ferry from Athens (Piraeus to Santorini) takes 5 hours to arrive (Seajets, Golen Star Ferries) – check timetables here

  • Slow Ferry ticket to Santorini costs ~20-30 euros (depending on the seat you chose)
  • Fast Ferry ticket to Santorini costs ~70-80 euros (depending on the seat you chose)

FERRY OPTIONS FROM ATHENS TO SANTORINI (2019 UPDATE)

Before deciding which ferry to take (and also to check timetables and prices for all ferries) you should head over to Let’s Ferry and simply put your desirable dates.

You basically have the following options for ferry boats from Athens to Santorini:

Let’s see all the available options in more detail:

BLUE STAR FERRIES:

Blue Star Ferries are the largest but slowest ferries from Athens to Santorini and they only depart from Piraeus port twice a day during the high season

Bluestar Ferries are the biggest you can take to go to Santorini and are the most stable but also the slowest (8 hours to arrive)

No matter how bumpy or windy it is, you won’t feel much with these ones.

The Blue Star Ferries from Athens to Santorini, visit other islands before they arrive at Santorini which can give you a very good glimpse of some other greek islands too (Syros, Paros , Naxos, Ios).

You don’t get to see much but it’s nice to feel like you are on a small cruise!

The best way to check for the available Blue Star Ferry times schedule is to visit the Let’s Ferry website.

They run all 365 days per year and there are basically 2 ferries per day from Piraeus port to Santorini: one in the early morning and one in the afternoon.

Check the exact timetables for 2019 on Let’s Ferry .

 

Where can you book Blue Star ferry tickets from Athens to Santorini?

You don’t really have to book the ferry tickets in advance or online.

There is no need for that because they rarely sell out.

But…you can always book them online (just to be sure) on the Let’s Ferry website (even if you don’t book them there, you can always check the timetables of the ferries on the dates you want to travel)

BE CAREFUL THOUGH:

According to the greek law the tickets have to be printed out only by certified travel agencies or the Ferry companies , so even if you book it online you have to visit a travel agent or the kiosk at the ferry port to take the print outs anyways (not a big deal..everyone is doing that anyways).

How much the Blue Star Ferry ticket cost?

The cheapest ticket for the Blue Star ferry costs 20 euros (no reserved seat)  but it’s highly advisable to get an aiport style seat which will cost you 40 euros per person.

A cabin is not really required (it’s just 8 hours) and you can go outside while the ferry is sailing.

BUT FOR THE LATEST PRICES ALWAYS CHECK THE  Let’s Ferry WEBSITE.

SEAJET FERRIES:

seajet ferry santorini
Seajet Ferries are smaller and faster to take you to Santorini but they are also more expensive and they are closed (you cannot go outside - they are like an airplane inside)

Seajet Ferries are less stale and that is becasue they are faster to take you to Santorini.

On average there are 3 Seajets Ferries on a daily basis from Athens to Santorini during the high season and they take about 5 hours to take you to Santorini.

You don’t have the option to go outside if you board the Seajet Ferries as they are closed-type ferry boats (like a catamaran).

Also, bear in mind that these are most highly to get cancelled depending on the weather conditions (very unlikely from June-September but it’s always a possibility).

Check the exact timetables for 2019 on Let’s Ferry .

Where can you book Seajet ferry tickets from Athens to Santorini?

These tickets do sell out as there is a limited number of seats on these ferries.

The best thing you can do is to book them online in advance on Let’s Ferry website.

You would still have to get the printout from the ferry kiosk outside of the ferry before departing (so make sure you arrive there early enough).

How much the Seajet Ferry ticket cost?

The cheapest ticket for the Seajet Ferry Cost 55 euros but depending on the time and the ferry you choose the ticket might cost you up to 80 euros (one way)

Theere are no cabins on these ferries.

BUT FOR THE LATEST PRICES ALWAYS CHECK THE  Let’s Ferry WEBSITE.

HOW TO GET FROM ATHENS AIRPORT TO PIRAEUS PORT

x96 bus Athens Airport
X96 is the Athens bus that will take you from Athens Airport to Piraeus ferry port

The easiest and cheapest option to get to Athens ferry port called Piraeus is by taking the bus X96 that stops just outside of the Athens airport.

X96 bus takes between 50 mins to 80 mins (depending on the traffic) to go to the Athens ferry port (Piraeus) and the X96 bus route to Piraeus ferry port is the following:

This is how to get from the Athens Aiport Exit to the X96 and X95 bus stops just outside of the airport:

Santorini Ferries depart from E7 Port Gate so you have to stop at the bus station : STATION ISAP (which is also a metro station).

Or in greek : ΣΤΑΘΜΟΣ ΗΣΑΠ

In case you feel lost you can just ask the bus driver (they always speak english if you speak with a very clear accent like an italian mafioso in a away…:) )

But in reality you will find some brand new GPS screens showing you where you actually are:

x96 bus Athens Airport
There are GPS screens showing you where you are on the X96 Athens bus

The X96 bus runs 24/7 and there is a bus every 30 mins roughly (in Greece time runs in a very strange way…so never expect something to be on time…that’s just a small tip from greeks…you’d better get used to that unfortunately).

But there is a X96 bus every 20-30 minutes, so there will be one for you too!

x96 bus Athens Airport
There are screens outside of the Athens Airport that will tell you when is the next X95 or X96 Athens bus (roughly every 20-30mins)

Click here to see all the stops of X96 Bus (from Athens Airport to Piraeus Ferry port to Santorini) and the timetables

For the X96 bus, you have to buy tickets from a kiosk which is just outside of the bus stop (and also just outside of the airport, just follow the “Bus” signs in the airport).

For adults the Athens bus ticket (called “ATH.ENA) costs 6 euros and for kids (under 6) it costs 3 euros.

athens bus ticket
The Athens Bus Ticket for X96 Bus (and X95 bus that goes to the center of Athens - Syntagma Square)
athens bus santorini
Validate your tickets once inside the X96 bus and you can actually use the same ticket for 90 mins

You can also take a taxi from the Athens airport to the Piraeus Ferry port which costs 50-60 euros but it’s really not recommended because it doesn’t worth it in my opinion…

The X96 bus is pretty fast and it costs only 6 euros!

Also, BE CAREFUL:

Sometimes the X96 Athens Airport Buses say: “AEROLIMENAS-PEIRAIAS”

Don’t get confused.

This is a greek version of saying: “Airport – Pireaus” , so it’s the same really…

HOW TO GET FROM ATHENS AIRPORT TO RAFINA PORT

bus rafina airport
The KTEL bus that will take you from Athens Aiport to Rafina port - they depart from a different bus stop than X96 and they usually have orange and white colour

The easiest and cheapest way to get from Athens aiport to Rafina port is by taking a KTEL bus.

These are different buses than the blue ones (like X96 or X95) and the bus stop is just across the street (see picture above).

You buy the ticket on the bus from the driver and it costs around 3 euros (there might be a slight difference every year).

The timetables for the bus Athens Aiport to Rafina are on the following table (rpughly a bus every 1,5 hour):

athens ariport rafina bus
The Rafina port bus runs every 1.5 hour from the Athens Airport.

HOW TO GET FROM ATHENS AIRPORT TO CENTRAL ATHENS

athens bus x95
X95 is the bus that will take you from Athens Aiport to Syntagma Square (central Athens) but you also have the option of taking the metro

To go from Athens Airport to Syntagma Square (the most central point in Athens) you have to take either the metro from the airport (it’s actually overground for some stations and then it goes underground) or the bus X95 which will take you to Syntagma Square within 30-40 mins.

The X95 bus stop is next to the X96 bus stop and the tickets are exactly the same and are sold from the same kiosk.

This is Bus X95 route (from Athens airport to Syntagma square – central Athens):

You can also take the metro line 3 to get to Syntagma Square from the Athens Airport.

Check on this link the timetables for Athens metro lines

These are the timetables of Athens Metro Line 3:

athens metro
Athens metro timetables Syntagma Square to Athens (it stops at other stations too...)
athens metro
Athens metro timetables Airport to Syntagma square (it stops at other stations too...)

CONCLUSION

You basically have 2 options to get from Athens to Santorini: by plane or by a ferry.

My honest recommendation is to take the ferry only if it’s your first time in Greece and only if you are going to spend more than 5 days in Santorini.

A smart idea is also to mix the 2 options and get the ferry to go to Santorini (preferrably the Blue Star ferry as it’s more stable and less likely to cancel due to bad weather) and then get a flight back to Athens.

If you do take the ferry though, make sure you have plenty of movies loaded on your tablet, crosswords and books in hand… (it’s also a good idea to have some food with you because even though there are some restaurants in the Blue Star Ferries they are not offering the best food in the world…).

You also get to see some other greek islands before you arrive in Santorini (ok…it’s just the port but you can still take a selfie with another greek island on the background).

For me, the best way to check timetables and even book your ferry tickets online has been Let’s Ferry for the last years and I highly recommend it to everyone looking to get a ferry to Santorini.

I remember the days when I was a kid (or even till recently) when as a family we had to visit a specific travel agency to book and get the ferry tickets but these days are long gone!

No matter how you choose to travel from Athens to Santorini, it is for sure that your heartbeat will rise when you are approaching the island…

And there is no way you won’t be surprised by the amazing blue colour of the greek sea !

READ OUR OTHER AMAZING TIPS FOR SANTORINI

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Highest Rated Hotels in Santorini:

Best Hotel in Oia: Maregio Suites
Best Hotel in Fira: Cosmopolitan Suites
Best Hotel in Imerovigli: Grace Santorini
Best Hotel in Firostefani: Tsitouras
Best Hotel in Perivolos: Orabel Suites
Best Hotel in Perissa: Anastasia Princess
Best Hotel in Kamari: Sunrise Studios

Highest Rated Villas in Santorini:

Best Villa in Oia: Anemi House

Best Villa in Fira: Anteliz Villa

Best Villa in Kamari: Eolia Villa

Best Villa in Pyrgos: Sensation Villa

Best Villa in Akrotiri: Cavo Ventus

Best Villa in Firostefani: Villa Aura

Best Villa in Imerovigli: Grace Villa

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SantoriniSecrets.com is the largest and most informative travel blog for all things Santorini, Athens, Mykonos and Greece maintained by local travel bloggers who love Greece and its islands more than anything else in this world. Some of us were actually born in Santorini and some others have spent many months not only visiting the greek islands but actually living on it for long periods of time. We are not just visitors. We are from Greece!

We consider ourselves the tipsters of this magical place, called Greece.

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MORE THAN 10,000 PEOPLE GET OUR TIPS FOR SANTORINI AND THE GREEK ISLANDS IN THEIR INBOX BEFORE THEY TRAVEL: