TNTraveler

10 of us arrive in Athens at 10:09am Saturday, May 26th. We will have a 6hr layover before our flight into Paros. We would like to leave our luggage somewhere and cab into Athens for lunch. Any ideas? I just can’t stand the idea of hanging in Athens airport for 6 hrs! I’m sure tiny Olympic airlines won’t let us check in 6hrs early. Should I rent a hotel room at the airport for 1/2 day and drop them there? If so, where? Lost here!

brotherleelove2004

"Tiny Olympic Airlines" has been part of the huge Aegean Airlines fleet for several years.

There is a luggage storage service on the Arrivals level near exit/entry door #1, called "Care4Bag". http://www.care4bag.gr

crazyh

Remember you have to get back to the airport maybe 2 hours before your flight to check in and go through security leaving you with maybe 4 hours. No sense in getting a room and throwing away good money.

You can get a taxi to central Athens which will take around 30-45 minutes depending on traffic and back again in the same time period leaving you with not a whole lot of time left.

I believe there are places near the airport for lunch which may be a better option and give you ample time to get back to the airport for the check-in/security process.

Unfortunately I don't know of anything near by but I'm sure there'll be some help by other members.

As stated by brotherleelove there is luggage storage at the airport.

Roger1x

Actually, I think that you can check in and drop off your bags early. I've never done 6 hours early but I have done 4 hours. Also if lunch is all you care about your might consider going to Rafina instead of Athens. It is much closer and has several good restaurants. Normally lunch service doesn't start to 1PM but you should find something open by noon or so.

Another option would be to go across the street to the Sofitel and eat in the outdoor café. It is not cheap but not that expensive either and you save 3 round trip cab fares. Although if you went to Rafina, the bus should work fine for you.

Heimdall

The Olympic Air counters are open all day, so you can check in and drop off your luggage early. Actually Olympic Air (the old Olympic Airlines no longer exists) is a large presence at Athens Airport, because it is the main carrier for domestic flights to airports all over Greece.

If you haven't already checked in online and printed out boarding passes before leaving home, check in and get your boarding passes before leaving the airport. Then all you have to do is head straight to the departure gate when you return to the airport. It is recommended you be back at the airport one hour before domestic departures.

I agree with Roger1x that Rafina would be a good place for lunch. You can catch the KTEL Attica bus across the street from the terminal in front of Hotel Sofitel. Buy your tickets on the bus, not at the kiosk at the terminal, which is for buses to Athens and Piraeus. Buses to/from Rafina leave about every hour throughout the day, and take about 20-30 minutes to reach Rafina. The KTEL Attica timetable is partly in English, and will give you an idea of when buses depart: http://ktelattikis.gr/en/en_airport_timetable

Rafina is a small ferry port well known for its fish tavernas. You can find somewhere to eat overlooking the port, and enjoy a little sea air while waiting for your flight to Paros.

Rafina is the

Heimdall

Ignore "Rafina is the" at the end of my post, which I would have deleted had I been able to preview.

brotherleelove2004

Taking the bus to Rafina for lunch is an excellent idea.

TNTraveler

Thanks everyone! I’ll check if I can drop bags earlier and if not nice to know there is a baggage holding place. A rare thing in this new world we live in. Thanks too for the tip on lunch in Rafina!

Heimdall

You <b>will</b> be able to check in your bags early. I have done that as much as 10 hours in advance and gone into Athens for the day. If you leave your luggage at the Care4bags luggage service you will need to return to the airport a little earlier to retrieve them and drop off at Olympic Air. Care4bags charges can be found here: http://www.care4bag.gr/baggage_storage.html

Strongly recommend you all check in online and print out boarding passes up to 48 hours in advance. Olympic Air have the busiest check-in counters at Athens Airport, and sometimes lines are long. When you check in online and have printed boarding passes you can go to the baggage drop-off point instead, which is much quicker.

Heimdall

Another option in addition to Athens and Rafina, is Attica Zoo, which is very near the airport: http://www.atticapark.com/?lang=en

malinka

Instead of the bus, it is better to take a car (https :// www. hellenictaxi. com) . You will have more time and it's gonna be much faster