Welcome Pickup Pricing

[donaldsc]

I am trying to figure out Welcome Pickups pricing.  All the sites have have logged on to figure out how much it is going to cost me to get from Athens airport to the Athens Marriott by taxi say that the fixed price cost will be 38 E which seems fair.  The sites also say that I am better off booking on Welcome Pickups which is priced the same as the taxi price.  However when I log onto the Welcome Pickups site I get a price of 76 E.  If  makes a difference I have to enter 2 people and 2 suitcases onto the Welcome Pickups site.  Am I doing something wrong?  Has the price for the airport to hotel been raised because of inflation and increased gasoline costs?  It the 38 E taxi fare old data?

 

As a side question - has anyone taken the 14 E metro bus from the airport to city center.

 

Thanks for the info.  

 

DON

[marazul]

21 hours ago, donaldsc said:

I am trying to figure out Welcome Pickups pricing.  All the sites have have logged on to figure out how much it is going to cost me to get from Athens airport to the Athens Marriott by taxi say that the fixed price cost will be 38 E which seems fair.  The sites also say that I am better off booking on Welcome Pickups which is priced the same as the taxi price.  However when I log onto the Welcome Pickups site I get a price of 76 E.  If  makes a difference I have to enter 2 people and 2 suitcases onto the Welcome Pickups site.  Am I doing something wrong?  Has the price for the airport to hotel been raised because of inflation and increased gasoline costs?  It the 38 E taxi fare old data?

 

As a side question - has anyone taken the 14 E metro bus from the airport to city center.

 

Thanks for the info.  

 

DON

Yes.  Don't book ahead.  There are a million taxis at the airport.  It is a fixed price.  There is a huge sign at the head of the line specifying the prices.  Before you get in the cab agree that the price on the sign is the price you will pay. 

[pdmlynek]

On 8/13/2022 at 4:42 PM, donaldsc said:

I am trying to figure out Welcome Pickups pricing.  All the sites have have logged on to figure out how much it is going to cost me to get from Athens airport to the Athens Marriott by taxi say that the fixed price cost will be 38 E which seems fair.  The sites also say that I am better off booking on Welcome Pickups which is priced the same as the taxi price.  However when I log onto the Welcome Pickups site I get a price of 76 E.  If  makes a difference I have to enter 2 people and 2 suitcases onto the Welcome Pickups site.  Am I doing something wrong?  Has the price for the airport to hotel been raised because of inflation and increased gasoline costs?  It the 38 E taxi fare old data?

 

As a side question - has anyone taken the 14 E metro bus from the airport to city center.

 

Thanks for the info.  

 

DON

 

Based on your number of posts, you are not a newbie to travel, but let me state the obvious: Do NOT buy taxis up front.  Ever.  There is never a good reason to do so. 

 

You send the money, and the taxi driver doesn't show; what is your recourse?  If you send him the money, he has 0 reasons to waste his time to pick you up.  He'll pick up someone else and get paid from that person.  This is true anywhere in the world.

 

If you do happen to find a taxi from the taxi company that you contracted with, and you wave a receipt in the cabbie's face, the cabbie will tell you that it is void or invalid, or that he doesn't participate in that program, or can simply refuse to take you without an explanation.  

 

Even under the best circumstances, remember, this is Greece.  Things go wrong. Reservations get lost, bookings misplaced.  

 

Also, even if the taxi company does everything perfect, is scrupulously honest, and everything works great, what happens if your flight gets delayed?  Is the cabbie going to wait for you?  If he waits, are you going to pay the cabbie for the 6 hrs that he waited? If he doesn't wait, are you going to spend more money to get another taxi?  

 

Booking a taxi is just foolish.

 

[pdmlynek]

On 8/13/2022 at 4:42 PM, donaldsc said:

...

As a side question - has anyone taken the 14 E metro bus from the airport to city center.

 

Thanks for the info.  

 

DON

 

There are two ways of using public transportation to get from/to the airport, downtown, and the port: metro and express bus.

 

The X buses go between these three points, but they also stop along the way.  Check if the hotel is somewhere on the route.  If not, you'll need to transfer.  However, whereas the X buses have luggage racks, the regular city buses do not.  

 

The metro is more comfortable and faster.  The metro from the airport goes directly downtown, Syntagma Square, and onwards.  You can also transfer to other lines.  Having taken both a few times, either is fine, though I slightly prefer the metro. 

 

The prices in June were, if I remember correctly, 4.90 EUR for the bus and 9.00 EUR for the metro.