Disembark process? - catching a flight

[upgrademe]

If the ship arries in Athens Greece @ 7Am, would we be able to catch an 11:30 AM return flight home?

[jtl513]

Maybe ... if everything goes right. Remember that you should be at the airport 2 hours before departure.

[usetobeacagirl]

Big thing to remember. Find out where they do customs. On the ship or off. And take off ALL your own luggage don't give it to the boat to take off, very important, if you do, you won't make it. If the airport isn't too far away you should be OK. Just be the first ones to be off the boat and I mean the first. If they dock at 7am. Be at the gangway waiting at 6:30am with luggage, believe me you won't be alone. Make sure ALL your paper work is filled out correctly and your bill on board is paid and you know what transportation you are taking, don't take a shuttle, get your own taxi. Pay a skycap at the airport to get your tickets, boarding passes, luggage tags, etc. (about $20.00) and he will make sure you don't stand in lines and get you to your gate in time. Just be prepared and organized and you will be fine. Good Luck, Peace, Robyn:D

[dakrewser]

Big thing to remember. Find out where they do customs. On the ship or off. And take off ALL your own luggage don't give it to the boat to take off, very important, if you do, you won't make it. If the airport isn't too far away you should be OK. Just be the first ones to be off the boat and I mean the first. If they dock at 7am. Be at the gangway waiting at 6:30am with luggage, believe me you won't be alone. Make sure ALL your paper work is filled out correctly and your bill on board is paid and you know what transportation you are taking, don't take a shuttle, get your own taxi. Pay a skycap at the airport to get your tickets, boarding passes, luggage tags, etc. (about $20.00) and he will make sure you don't stand in lines and get you to your gate in time. Just be prepared and organized and you will be fine. Good Luck, Peace, Robyn:D

 

That might be true in Fort Lauderdale, but Athens, Greece is quite a bit different!

[dakrewser]

If the ship arries in Athens Greece @ 7Am, would we be able to catch an 11:30 AM return flight home?

 

Probably not. The port for Athens is in Piraeus - a fair drive from the airport. And Greek traffic is awful. Go for a 1 PM or later flight and you should be fine.

 

And don't try to take your own luggage off, and don't try to take a taxi - you'll go broke on the cab fare!

 

Book HAL's bus to the airport, you'll be glad you did.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Don't schedule a flight before 2 PM from Athens!!

 

You should count on being at the airport 3 hours before for an International flight.

[Aussie Gal]

The traffic in Athens is horrendous. It will take you ages to go from Piraeus to the airport as you have to cross the city.

 

I agree with the posters above, allow plenty of time, in fact I think you should be at the airport 3 hours before your flight. We have found in Europe that this is the norm.

 

Also, Greek Immigration Officers may not come on board until after 7am and then you will be in trouble with a 11.30am flight. It is not worth the hassle on the last day of your cruise with the stress of wondering if you will make the flight.

 

I would prefer to take a taxi to the airport instead of waiting for the bus to load up passengers.

 

If you decide to do this it will cost you 57Euros. Here is a website you may be interested in.

 

http://www.allgreecetravel.com/athens/athens_transportation.asp

 

Good luck. We always try and spend a night in the port of disembarkation so that we don't have this worry after a wonderful cruise.

 

Jennie

[Harry1954]

If the ship arries in Athens Greece @ 7Am, would we be able to catch an 11:30 AM return flight home?

it is quite a drive from the port to airport and we found the traffic in Athens horrible. You are assuming you arrive in port, dock, and disembark on time - which generally is true. i would strongly suggest you push back your time to later flight if possible to avoid stress you dont need.

harry