Travelling to Greek Sails

Poros is a small island situated on the north-east corner of the Peloponnese, 30 nautical miles south of Athens at the southern end of the Saronic Gulf.

Most visitors fly into Athens International Airport and then travel to Poros either via Piraeus, the port of Athens, or by road. The most common route is via Piraeus and the ‘Flying Dolphin’ hydrofoil or ‘Flying Cat’ high-speed catamaran services.

The road trip is via Corinth crossing the famouns canal and on to Galatas, the village on the mainland opposite Poros. From Galatas it is only a 5 minutes hop on the ferry to cross the channel to arrive on the island of Poros and Poros town itself.

Overview of travelling from Athens airport to Greek Sails

Travelling from the airport to Piraeus takes from 45 minutes in a taxi to 75 minutes by the direct bus link. The ferry then takes 60 or 75 minutes depending up whether you catch a hydrofoil or ‘Flying Cat’ service. Greek Sails is then a 5-10 minutes stroll from the ferry arrival point in Poros.

Exploring getting from Athens to Greek Sails in Poros in a little more detail...

Being the capital rather than simply a holiday destination, Athens provides a wide range of flight options with both national carrier and budget airlines. If you book early you can often find very reasonable fares even for peak season. Options include, but are no means limited to:

1. Aegean Airlines
2. British Airways
3. easyJet
4. Olympic Air (the renamed ‘Olympic Airlines’)
5. Numerous airline options via sites such as:
   • Kayak
   • CheapFlights.co.uk
   • Expedia.co.uk
   • eBookers.com
   • Travelocity.co.uk
   • Opodo
   • eDreams

The international airport code for Athens International airport is “ATH” and the airport is also sometimes referred to as “Venizelos airport”.

Travelling from Athens airport to Piraeus

From the airport you can travel to Piraeus, the port of Athens, by:

1. The X96 airport bus which takes around 75 minutes and leaves from just outside the arrivals hall (see ‘Coaches’ on plan) - €3.20 (2010)
2. The Athens metro which takes around 60 minutes and leaves from just opposite the main terminal (see light blue walkway and ‘Metro & suburban train station’ on plan) - €6.0 (2010)
3. A taxi which takes about 45 minutes and leaves from outside the arrivals hall - approx. €45 (2010)

The X96 bus is direct from the airport to the harbour and so you only need to sit and watch the city pass by. Walk out of the arrivals hall, turn right and buy a ticket from the small booth. Buses run approximately every 20 minutes. See ‘Coaches’ on the map (X96 timetable).

The metro is modern and clean and requires a change at Monastiraki (Monaσthpaki) station in central Athens, however the transfer is a simple change of platform...it’s not like making your way though a maze of London underground tunnels. Walk up to departures from the arrivals hall and then across the aerial walkway to the metro station, buy a ticket, then down the escalator and it is the platform to your right (Metro Blue Line timetable).

Obviously the taxi will take you direct the the harbour and leaves from right outside the arrivals hall.

The Athens airport website provides an excellent map of connections to and from the airport. On the map, the X96 route is shown in light aquamarine blue and the relevant metro lines blue and green.

Travelling from Piraeus to Poros

From Piraeus there are options of:

1. Hydrofoil (‘Flying Dolphin’) which takes 60 minutes - €22.50 (2014)
2. Catamaran (‘Flying Cat’) which takes 75 minutes - €22.50 (2014)
3. Ferry which takes 2½ hours - €13.30 (2014)

It is always wise to pre-book Flying Dolphin/Cat tickets in season to ensure you can get on the service you want and worth checking with us regarding departure times which can vary with the weather and the whim of the shipping company, particularly ‘out of season’!

Piraeus is a busy and large harbour and you will want the E9 gate into the harbour once you arrive. The Flying Dolphin and Cat services run from the quayside next to this gate and the ferry service from further round near the E8 gate. Useful maps of the port area can be found GreekLandscapes.com and Hellenic Seaways.

Arrival in Poros

The Greek Sails yacht base is a 5-10 minute walk along the quayside from the ferry point in Poros past moored private yachts and fishing boats. If we are not collecting you from the ferry, simply get off the ferry, turn right and walk along the quayside keeping the water to your right until you come to our yachts moored at the far end of the quay.

Assistance with your transfer arrangements

Greek Sails provides transfer from the airport to Poros on Saturdays during the season for flights arriving between 11:00 and 16:00. These transfers are either by minibus/taxi to Piraeus and then by Flying Dolphin or Flying Cat to Poros, or by minibus overland via Corinth to Poros. This transfer is €40 per person each way including any ferry tickets and all taxi/minibus fares.

We are also happy to help you with tickets and travel enquiries at any time even if you are not using our transfer service.

Alternative ideas

Some flights can arrive into Athens too late to allow you an easy transfer to Poros the same day, but then consider, you have just arrived in one of the great cities of the ancient world; home of the Pantheon, Temple of Zeus and remains of the ancient city. Why not turn your travel into a mini-break and spend one or two nights in Athens and take the opportunity to see the marvels of the home of western civilisation - you get two holidays for the price of one set of flight tickets!