I have to travel from London to Volos in February. Unfortunately I'm limited to an evening flight which means that I can probably only catch an Athens flight, not Thessaloniki.
Is there any direct way to get from Athens airport to Volos?
Alternatively, if I stayed overnight in Athens, what would be the best way to get to Volos and arrive in the late morning?
I'll be travelling alone and speak only very limited Greek, so I want to avoid unsafe stations or long waits in the dark.
cbtw1
1
dianab1
Pick up a rental car at the airport, and take the Attika highway directly from the airport which connects with the National highway in the direction of Lamia - [and then Volos]. It's only a 2-2.5 hr drive.
3
neckervd
Dianab1 is wright: there isn't any better solution. Trains from Athens Larissa with correspondence to Volos leave Athens Larissa station at 19.29, 23.51 and 6.50, arrival at Volos: 23.40. 5.48, 12.02
4
nicolapicola
OK, I've done this - don't know what time your flight arrives, but you can take the airport bus (E93, I think it is) that goes to the railway station (this bus goes from just beyond the E95 bus stop but buy your ticket from the booth by the E95 bus stop). Ask the driver to tell you when you get to the railway station (in case you don't notice you're there!). I took the 23.51 from Athens to Volos and it arrives about 6.00 am - you may have to change trains at Larissa - if so, it is a very easy change (same platform, I think and when I did it once there were several people going on to Volos) but the ticket man should be able to tell you. OK, it is slow (trains always are in Greece) but it uses up the night. When I took it there were loads of people on it but I did not feel threatened in any way. Arriving at Volos, it was all very quiet but I wandered along to the main part of town (station is only about 5 minutes' walk from the main bit - come out of the station and turn right and then, when you get to the bigger road which runs along the waterfront, turn left into the centre). While I was strolling along I managed to flag down a taxi. Alternatively, I think the last bus from Larissa bus station (also reachable by the E93) goes about 2200 so you'll probably miss it and, in any case, that will land you up in Volos at about 2.30 am so not a good time to arrive.
#2 is right - you could never drive to Volos in 2-2.5 hrs unless you are a total maniac (sorry, Dianab, but we've always taken about 5 hours).
Good luck!
5
dianab1
grecophile, I recently did Halikidiki [Flogita]-Athens in 4.5 hrs without many hold ups at the Petalo Maliakou, or Tembi with an average of 170 kms on the open road - [excluding the 2 above ] driving on the fast left, when ,multi-laned. Ok, I don't recommend it for those who are not accustomed to the route, although in parts, it is very difficult to do less than 150 kms on the national highway. It's only 300 kms to Volos from Athens, and when you don't have any delays around the Petalo, I think it's pretty easily done, and I 'm no maniac on the road, believe me.
6
grkguy
just a word of caution to all foreigners who might drive like diana though! there is a speed limit of 120km and in some places there are police check points with radars so if u want to avoid any fines which are steep see closely what greeks drivers do! they know the places where police might be hiding so if u see a greek shumaher sudenly droping from 170km to 80km it means u d better follow suit!
7
dianab1
The speed limit has been increased to 150km/phr in some parts of the National Highway, [Larissa-Thessaloniki - nearer to Thessaloniki] and on the new Egnatias highway.
8
dianab1
but yes, I have been in Greece for 20 years..and as I stated, do drive with caution on unfamiliar roads !!
I just wanted to make the point that 300 kms, and on an average of 120 kms/phr, without any delays at the Maliako [weekdays, and midday], and with a direct connection to the National highway from the airport, calculates to approx 2.5 hrs or thereabouts,
9
biebdab
I would suggest to travel by 'Proastiakos' suburban train from the airport to Athens, and from there to Volos.
1. I just found out on the proastkiakos.gr website that the direct trains have been ( temporarily ? ) discontinued, thus you need
to change at Neratziotissa ( on the same - and only - platform ) ; e.g. :
Airport dep. 21.12 hrs. - arr. 21.32 Neratziotissa dep. 21.44 - 22.08 Athens
plenty of time to catch the night train ( see # 3, or www.ose.gr ) ! Will be far more comfortable, safe, less annoying and CHEAPER than renting a car !
The airport train runs 3 x per hour, from Neratziotissa to Athens only hourly in evening hours. But this way you avoid the complex and slow bus solution as suggested in # 4. The Proastiakos ticket will cost you € 5 or 6.
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