Cost of Seabourn airport transfers in Athens

[lisa6191]

We will need to go directly to the airport when our cruise ends in Athens. Does Seabourn provide transfers? If so, does anyone know the cost? Or does anyone have any other suggestions for transfers from Piraeus to the Athens airport? Obviously we could take a cab but I was wondering if there is a better option.

 

Thanks!

[T^2]

We did a cab transfer this summer and absolutely no issues.  Fixed rate from Piraeus to airport.  I don't remember what the rate was but fairly certain it is posted online.

[marazul]

A couple of days before you disembark SB circulates airport transfer options.  Some include an excursion on the way and some are direct transfers.

This practice is common in just about every SB cruise we have been on.  They are not offered on the website, only on board.  

If you need some advance notice, go to SB Square a couple of days after the cruise starts and ask.  This will give you time to book private transport on the internet if you are not happy with the options offered.  A good option that we have used often is George's Taxi https://www.taxigreece.com/

Edited January 8, 2020 by marazul

[margbem]

I can recommend Welcome Pickups. We used them from airport to Athens riviera rental house, house to port then Barcelona port to airport. Very reliabl.

[lisa6191]

Thank you! How long does the trip to the airport take? We are scheduled to arrive at 7 am, and I was planning to book a 10:10 flight to Santorini. Does that seem doable? I know the ship isn't guaranteed to arrive at 7 am, but we leave Mykonos at 6 pm the night before so it seems likely that we will be there in plenty of time.

[marazul]

1 hour ago, lisa6191 said:

Thank you! How long does the trip to the airport take? We are scheduled to arrive at 7 am, and I was planning to book a 10:10 flight to Santorini. Does that seem doable? I know the ship isn't guaranteed to arrive at 7 am, but we leave Mykonos at 6 pm the night before so it seems likely that we will be there in plenty of time.

40 minutes. You should be off the ship by 7:30 at the latest,  so you can make it with enough time.  But you don't have time to spare.

 

You are better off booking your own car because the SB transport might not leave until later and they have to load all the luggage and wait for all the passengers.  Also, it is almost certain there will be taxis waiting for fares, but you can't count on it that early and you may have competition from other passengers for a ride.  Booking a car service like George's is not much more than taking a taxi and they will be waiting for you so you will not waste any time looking for a taxi. Tell the driver to pick you up at 7:15 and he will be waiting as soon as you walk off the ship.  

Edited January 8, 2020 by marazul

[Qld13]

When we did an Odyssey cruise in Athens back in July our travel agent booked our transfers using PAM tours (PAM DMC) all cars were Mercedes and the drivers were excellent. Would highly recommend. But I did noticed there was a taxi rank outside the terminal at Piraeus which had plenty of taxis.

[lisa6191]

Thank you for the recommendations! I will book with one of those companies. I don't want to have to worry about it.

[tv24]

On 1/8/2020 at 11:01 AM, margbem said:

I can recommend Welcome Pickups. We used them from airport to Athens riviera rental house, house to port then Barcelona port to airport. Very reliabl.

Very useful referral which we may need this coming Fall.  Thanks.  I wrote it down in my notes.

[frantic36]

7 hours ago, tv24 said:

Very useful referral which we may need this coming Fall.  Thanks.  I wrote it down in my notes.

 

We used them in Athens for our pick-up from the airport to hotel and transfer from hotel to port. We found them efficient and as we had a few bags they ensured we had a car that could cope with our luggage. Both drivers we had made recommendations for  1) our stay in Athens and 2) a restaurant near the port as we were doing a back to back and exploring in that area.

 

Julie

[tv24]

3 hours ago, frantic36 said:

 

We used them in Athens for our pick-up from the airport to hotel and transfer from hotel to port. We found them efficient and as we had a few bags they ensured we had a car that could cope with our luggage. Both drivers we had made recommendations for  1) our stay in Athens and 2) a restaurant near the port as we were doing a back to back and exploring in that area.

 

Julie

Thanks, Julie.  This will be part of our challenge.  We will arrive at the airport and need to get to a rented apartment, stay there for 3 weeks, then get to the Piraeus port with lots of luggage.  We will probably use this car service.  thanks.

[margbem]

21 hours ago, tv24 said:

Thanks, Julie.  This will be part of our challenge.  We will arrive at the airport and need to get to a rented apartment, stay there for 3 weeks, then get to the Piraeus port with lots of luggage.  We will probably use this car service.  thanks.

Cool Cruiser - if you are thinking of renting a car we had one delivered to our rental apartment then picked back up from us on the morning of embarkation so we did not have to drive into Piraeus. We used Morphis and they were excellent and cheap. The coastline is fabulous - worth seeing!

[tv24]

3 hours ago, margbem said:

Cool Cruiser - if you are thinking of renting a car we had one delivered to our rental apartment then picked back up from us on the morning of embarkation so we did not have to drive into Piraeus. We used Morphis and they were excellent and cheap. The coastline is fabulous - worth seeing!

Thanks for the tip!  But I think we will avoid rental cars, especially in crowded Athens.  As aging travelers, we find ourselves a bit too stressed driving in unfamiliar areas.  Better let someone else drive!

[margbem]

2 hours ago, tv24 said:

Thanks for the tip!  But I think we will avoid rental cars, especially in crowded Athens.  As aging travelers, we find ourselves a bit too stressed driving in unfamiliar areas.  Better let someone else drive!

Totally agree! We stayed in Vouliagmeni on the coast and didn’t venture near the city as we had visited previously.

[rols]

On 1/9/2020 at 3:01 AM, margbem said:

I can recommend Welcome Pickups. We used them from airport to Athens riviera rental house, house to port then Barcelona port to airport. Very reliabl.

Ah yes we used them too, the guy was super, had the same one from the airport to the hotel and then again from the hotel to the port. It was easy to book and relatively cheap from what I recall. 

[Dusko]

Some very interesting and useful information here. Many thanks to all. We are booked on the May 23 cruise out of Athens ending in Rome on June 7. We are going to spend a couple of days extra at each end of the cruise. Obviously the information about transfer between Port/airport and the city hotels is really appreciated. Would it be a good idea to take a private tour in either city? If so, does anyone have any recommendations as to a good tour company?

 

[Mark56]

We’re going to take a half day private tour of Athens and then have the driver deliver us to the airport when we’re done. We’re thinking of using George’s taxi.  

[marazul]

1 hour ago, Mark56 said:

We’re going to take a half day private tour of Athens and then have the driver deliver us to the airport when we’re done. We’re thinking of using George’s taxi.  

Great choice.

We have been using George's Taxi since it was just George and his yellow Mercedes taxi.  He was known among frequent travelers to Greece as "George the Famous Taxi Driver."  Now his two sons run the operation and have turned it into a full service tour and transport company.  They still provide the great service that made George "famous" back then and if you are lucky, you might get George to drive you around.  If you do, say "yassou" for us.

[lydiamight]

Hi Lisa-----we came off The Encore in Athens in the spring of 2019. There is a "flat rate" charge by the taxis for a trip to the airport, it is Euro54 which equates to around $60. Journey time is approx 40 minutes and there were absolutely loads of taxis waiting alongside the ship when we got off. 

[margbem]

Welcome Pickups are 59 euros so not much difference. As we get older we like to see a man with our name on a card waiting for us!!

[Baerchen]

We booked our flights through Seabourn. That gave us a $700 per person discount but it also automatically included the airport transfer from the ship at the end of the cruise (no transfer incl. at the beginning as we will be arriving a few days early).

[jenidallas]

23 hours ago, marazul said:

Great choice.

We have been using George's Taxi since it was just George and his yellow Mercedes taxi.  He was known among frequent travelers to Greece as "George the Famous Taxi Driver."  Now his two sons run the operation and have turned it into a full service tour and transport company.  They still provide the great service that made George "famous" back then and if you are lucky, you might get George to drive you around.  If you do, say "yassou" for us.

I concur... I’m a big fan of George’s.  I feel like I’ve met most of the family now and George himself is a great guy!  The family has split their time over the years between the US and Greece and the sons went to school in the States so they all speak impeccable English.