We are going to be taking a 2 week trip to Italy & Greece at the end of Sept. Our current plan is to take an evening flight from Rome to Santorini & the only options have a layover in Athens for 4-6 hours over night. Has anyone done this? Do they kick you out of the airport or will they let us hang out/"cat nap" in the airport while we wait for our next flight? We had read about an overnight ferry from Athens to Santorini however have not been able to find any actual price/schedule information so have decided flights are going to be the most convenient & best use of our time.

Here is the website with all the dope about best places in Athens airport to sleep... actual info contributed by people who have done it ..

http://www.sleepinginairports.net/li...rios+Venizelos

You can hang out no problem. People do it all the time, and if you have a ticket for an departing flight you have every right to be there. The best place for a cat nap would be at your departure gate. They're away from the main area where all the shops are located and are usually quiet. There will be lots of empty space to stretch out since in the wee hours there aren't too many flights arriving or departing.

You can check here to see if there's an overnight ferry on the day you need it. http://www.openseas.gr/OPENSEAS/index_en.vm

By the way, I just returned from Greece and had a 5am departure. There were lots of people sleeping at my departure gate when I arrived around 3:30am.