Dear Participants,

 

In order to get to your hotel as smooth as possible, you may want to follow the instructions below. There are a few ways to get to central Athens from the airport. We recommend you to go by metro (the easiest):

 

As soon as you are done with customs at Athens International Airport, please follow the signs to the train (metro) station. You will have to go to the terminal departures level (arrivals is in the lower level), exit the airport terminal building and walk across the street.

 

The metro (line 3, depicted in blue) begins at the Airport and ends in Monastiraki. The first metro leaves the airport at 6:30 am and the last one at 23:30 pm. Trains depart from the airport station at every hour and at every hour and half (6h30, 7h00, 7h30, …). The tickets costs 6 € for a single trip (only 3 € for over 65 year citizens, in these cases a proof of age may have to be produced), but it is possible to buy group tickets if you travel in pairs or in threes (10 € ticket for two people travelling together, 15 € ticket for three people, no group ticket for larger groups). This ticket is valid for until midnight of the day, that it is validated, for unlimited rides with all means of urban public transportation and it doesn’t need re-validation. Once you get your ticket you are requested to validate it in the machines that you will find as you walk downstairs to the platforms. Please note that trains from the Suburban Rail System also depart from the airport at the same station that the metro. You do not want to get onto the suburban trains, as they would take you to Larissis train station, which is a bit far from the centre.

 

Once in the metro, you must go until “Syntagma station (it takes about 40 minutes from the airport). Once there, change to line 2 (depicted in red) direction “Agios Dimitrios” and get out at the next station (“Akropolis). From there simply walk to the hotel (see map).

 

All instructions in Athens metro (written and by loudspeakers) are given both in Greek and in English. You may want to look at http://www.ametro.gr/ (Athens metro) and http://www.aia.gr (Athens International Airport) for additional info.

 

If you arrive late at night (between 23h30 and 6h30) you can also go to Syntagma square by the X95 bus line, which operates 24 h per day (there are services every ca. 20 minutes). The single ticket is 2.90 € (no bus group tickets), that has to be bought in bus ticket outlets just in front of the bus stop or by the driver. Validate the ticket inside the bus (once validated, the ticket is valid for 24 hours for all transportation fares in Athens, see details at http://www.oasa.gr/uk/transport/i_sygin_eisitiria.asp ). Once in Syntagma square, you can go to the hotel by taxi (short ride, around 3 ) or on foot.

 

Alternatively, you may prefer to hire a taxi. A taxi trip from the airport to the hotel will cost you 20-30 €, perhaps more depending on local traffic. If you decide to hire a taxi, you may negotiate a fixed fare with the driver (do not expect to pay less than 25-30 €).

 

CONFERENCE SITE

To get to the conference site from the hotel you need ~20 min on foot (with a good sense of direction, or a map in your hands), or 6-8 min by getting back to the metro station “Acropolis” direction “Agios Antonios” and getting off two stops later at metro station “Panepistimio” (both stops are on the same red metro line). Get a regular ticket (0.70 €) and validate it before entering the train. Once out of the train follow the direction "National Library/Academia" to exit the station, then follow the directions on the map. To return to the hotel, enter metro station “Panepistimio” direction “Agios Dimitrios” and exit two stops later at metro station “Acropolis”.

Keep in mind that there are daily passes for all means of public transportation (3 ) and weekly passes for all means of public transportation (10 ). They can be purchaced at any metro station. They are not valid for travelling towards the airport (you need a separate ticket).

 

DINNERS

On Friday 30th evening we’ll have dinner at Strofi Tavern (25 Rovertou Galli St, corner with Propyleon St). On Saturday 1st we’ll have dinner at Akropol restaurant (3 Filomoussou St, ). Please find both places located in the map for your convenience.

 

Good luck and enjoy your stay in Athens.