Mykonos-Athens: Ferry or plane?
 

Hi all,
we will be finishing up our Greek Island trip on Mykonos and must return to Athens for a few days of sightseeing before flying back to Montreal. Can anyone suggest the best way to get from Mykonos to Athens? Some of the slower ferries seem to be quite long, and the plane is a bit more expensive but I am not sure what is best. Any recommendations/experiences you can share?
Thanks!

There's a 4.5 hour car ferry operated by Blue Star Ferries from Mykonos to Rafina. From Rafina there's a bus that will take you back to Athens, about an hour away. Last year they showed a 2-hour highspeed ferry but it looks like that's not operating this summer.

Go to this website, http://www.bluestarferries.com/ENGLISH/defaultmain.htm, click on "Domestic Lines/Cyclades/Itineraries" to see what applies to your timeframe.

On www.gtp.gr I see that the 'I J' company is operating its 2-hour highspeed ferry from Mykonos to Rafina as well.

http://www.gtp.gr/RoutesResults.asp?...00RAFRAF,271,8

Interesting, I never thought of that option. Just out of curiosity, how far from Athens is the Piraeus port (by bus/transport?

There's a Metro from Monastiraki right to Piraeus. It's about a 15 minute ride. Here's a link to the Athens Metro map:

http://www.ametro.gr/main/project/de...p_big_down.jpg

Monastiraki is central, and from there you will see on the map that you can also get the Metro to the airport.

There are also two highspeeds operating between Mykonos and Rafina. The Seajet2 (Blue Star) takes about 2hrs 15min, and the Highspeed 3 (Hellenic Seaways) about 2hrs 30min. The Seajet2 is a small passenger-only ferry prone to cancellation in high winds. The Highspeed 3 is a large car-carrying ferry and more reliable, but runs 6 days/week rather than daily. It could be substituted on the schedule with one of the other highspeeds (there are five) but all are very similar, so that would be of no consequence.

Aegean and Olympic Airlines together have seven flights per day from Mykonos to Athens, each about 35 min. After collecting your baggage you can go straight from the terminal by Metro to central Athens. The train takes 45 min.

Should you decide to fly, book your flight early, but if you opt for the ferry wait until you get to Mykonos before buying your tickets.

It appears from the Blue Star website that they've stopped the Seajet run between Rafina and Mykonos. Can this be true? I was surprised to see that a car ferry is now making that trip.

Lee, as far as I can tell Seajet2 is still running. http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w..._00/00/0000_43 shows it on today's ferry departures doing the Rafina-Tinos-Mykonos-Paros route. Also, I have been watching the Paros main dock webcam, and am pretty sure it is the one coming in about 1050 and departing at 1100 Greek time every day (small passenger-only catamaran with mostly blue livery).

I just checked Blue Star's website again, even went into their booking function. No Seajet from Rafina to Mykonos. I remember seeing it on their website about a month ago. I wonder which is correct, their website or the newspaper? Could it be that the demand for a car ferry outweighed the demand for their passenger-only service?

Lee, http://www.gtp.gr/RoutesDetails.asp?...2&Intern=0 shows the Seajet2 departing Mykonos at 1150 and arriving Rafina 1400. It changes to a slightly later departure on 12 Jun. One would think Blue Star's own website would be the most accurate, but GTP and Kathamerini seem to agree. Anyway, that little blue catamaran I have been seeing on the Paros webcam sure looks like the Seajet2

Interesting. Did you notice that it's the "I J" seajet, not the Blue Star? Also, that schedule is only until June 11. I wonder what the plan is for the rest of the summer.........

We're beginning to sound like trainspotters (wierd British pastime). No, I didn't know it was IJ instead of Blue Star. Since my last post I looked at the enlarged photo of the boat on the GTP website, and I am now 99.9% sure that's what I have been seeing on the webcam.

Actually, one of the reasons I have been checking the http://www.parosweb.com/paros-webcams/portcams.html is I have been looking for the Antiparos excursion boat, which usually docks in the foreground of the main dock picture. I haven't seen it yet, so either it is docking somewhere out of view, or isn't running yet. I expect to see it by this weekend, though. BTW, the webcam is fun to watch if you know when the ferries are coming it, but dead boring otherwise. After dark you can't see anything.

After 11 Jun the schedule changes for Seajet2 to depart Mykonos at 1205 and arrive Rafina at 1420, so it appears it will be going that route all summer. The one time I bought a ticket for Seajet2 (about four years ago) it rammed the pier at Tinos the day before my departure, and put itself out of action for two months. That was also the one time I stayed in a Piraeus hotel, having hastily arranged an earlier ferry that arrived there late at night.

These days I prefer to fly, but keep an eye on the ferries just in case I can't get a seat on the plane.