Getting around Athens: the metro, the ATH.ENA card, ferries and flights home

Athens public transport is cheap by Australian standards: a 90-minute ticket costs €1.20 and a month of unlimited travel €27. The trick is buying the right ticket for the airport.

The short version

• One ticket covers the metro, tram, buses and trolleybuses for 90 minutes: €1.20 full fare, €0.50 reduced [1].
• Residents should get a personalised ATH.ENA Card. It's the only way to buy 30-day and 365-day passes and reduced fares [1][3]. The 30-day urban pass costs €27 [1].
• Since January 2025 you can simply tap a contactless bank card or phone at the validators, and the system charges the cheapest fare for your trips [2].
• The airport is the exception: a metro airport ticket costs €9, the express bus €5.50, and the taxi fixed fare to the centre was raised from €40 to €50 by day in late 2026 [1][4].
• There are no non-stop flights between Athens and Australia. You'll connect through a Gulf or Asian hub.

The network: what goes where

Athens transport is run by OASA, which covers the metro, the tram and the city's buses and trolleybuses. Suburban rail (the Proastiakos) is a separate railway, and the airport has its own fares.

A fourth metro line is under construction through the centre, but plan your life around the three that run today.

Coming from Sydney or Melbourne, you'll notice a few differences:

• Less coverage. The northern and southern suburbs depend heavily on buses, and a car or taxi is often faster at night.
• Strikes happen. Transport stoppages are announced in advance in the Greek press, and there's often a short service window so people can get to work. Smartraveller also notes that road closures in central Athens are common and often unannounced [5].
• Ticket checks are real. Inspectors board without warning. Always validate, even with a pass.

Tickets, the ATH.ENA card and contactless

The fares (2026)

These are OASA's published prices [1]:

If you travel daily, the 30-day urban pass pays for itself at around 23 single trips a month. A year's pass works out at €25 a month.

Paper ticket, card or contactless?

• ATH.ENA Ticket: a reusable paper-style ticket for short-term fares. Fine for visitors.
• Anonymous ATH.ENA Card: plastic and rechargeable, but it can't hold long-term passes.
• Personalised ATH.ENA Card: has your name and photo. You need it for 30-day and 365-day passes and reduced fares [1][3].
• Contactless bank card or phone: tap a Visa or Mastercard debit, credit or prepaid card, or a digital wallet, at any validator showing the contactless symbol on the metro, tram, buses and trolleys. The system works out the best-value fare for your trips [2]. It's the easiest option in your first weeks. Your Australian bank card works too, but check your bank's foreign transaction fees.

Getting a personalised card

1. Optionally, start the application online at the ATH.ENA card site and print the QR code [3].
2. Go to a ticket office at a major metro station (not every station has one) [3].
3. Bring your passport. For a reduced fare, also bring proof of eligibility, such as a student card [3].
4. Staff take your photo and you set a PIN. It takes a few minutes [3].
5. Load a 30-day or 365-day product at a ticket machine or office.

Reduced fares are for groups such as children, young people, seniors and eligible students. OASA publishes the full eligibility list [1].

Getting to and from the airport

Athens International Airport (Eleftherios Venizelos) is at Spata, east of the city. Your options:

• Metro Line 3: straight to Syntagma and Monastiraki. Buy the €9 airport ticket, not a €1.20 one. A standard ticket isn't valid on airport routes, and inspectors check [1]. Going only as far as Pallini, Kantza or Koropi costs €5.50 [1].
• Express buses: X95 to Syntagma, X96 to Piraeus port, X93 to the intercity bus station (KTEL Kifisos) and X97 to Elliniko. €5.50 one way [1]. Contactless payment was trialled on these lines first [2]. Smartraveller warns that pickpocketing and bag slashing are common on airport buses and trains, so keep bags in front of you [5].
• Suburban rail: shares the airport branch and continues west towards Piraeus and beyond.
• Taxi: fixed fares apply to the city centre. In September 2026 the government announced a rise from €40 to €50 (single tariff) and from €55 to €65 (double tariff, which covers nights), effective once published in the Government Gazette [4]. Use the official rank, and only licensed yellow taxis [5].

If you'll fly often, the 30-day pass that includes the airport (€45), or the €16 metro return, beats buying single airport tickets [1].

Piraeus and the islands

Piraeus is Athens's main ferry port, and the end of Metro Line 1, the X96 bus and the tram. The port is huge, and gates for different islands can be a long walk apart. Check your gate on your ticket and allow 30 minutes from the metro.

The smaller ports of Rafina and Lavrio, east of the city, serve many Cycladic and Evia routes. KTEL buses run there from central Athens.

Smartraveller's ferry tips are worth knowing. There are usually only one or two brief announcements before arrival. You'll probably carry your own luggage up and down stairs. And it pays to arrange onward transport in advance [5]. In summer, book popular routes ahead. In winter, check timetables, because frequencies drop and wind cancels sailings.

Taxis and apps

Athens taxis are yellow and plentiful, and fares are low compared with Sydney. The minimum fare stays at €4 [4]. Smartraveller's advice: only use licensed taxis, make sure the meter is running, and check your receipt when paying by card [5]. The main ride-hailing apps in Athens work with licensed taxis, which is handy if your Greek doesn't stretch to giving directions.

Thinking of driving instead? Read our guide to converting your Australian licence first. Greek rules depend on your residence status, and parking in the centre is hard work.

Flights home to Australia

There are no non-stop flights between Athens and Australia, so every trip home involves at least one connection. The common one-stop routings go through the Gulf (Abu Dhabi, Doha, Dubai) or an Asian hub. Some travellers prefer a cheap European hop to a bigger hub first.

To give you a sense of prices: in late 2026, Etihad was advertising Athens–Melbourne return economy fares from about €1,450 for November 2026 to February 2027 dates [6]. December, and the Greek summer when half of Melbourne is visiting family, cost more. Book early for Christmas.

A few practical points:

1. Get to the airport by metro or X95 at least three hours before a long-haul departure. The airport is busy in summer.
2. If you're travelling on two passports (common for Greek-Australians), leave Greece on the one you entered on. Use your Australian passport to enter Australia.
3. Register your travel and check advice on Smartraveller [5].

Got a question about the best route home, or the late trip home from Piraeus? Join Cooee Greece, our Facebook group for Australians in Greece, at /join/.

Sources

1. Prices of products – OASA (Athens Urban Transport Organisation)
2. Contactless payments with cards on metro, trams, buses and trolleys starting today – Proto Thema
3. Athens transport tickets and cards – AthensTransport.com
4. Airport taxi fares to rise in Athens and Thessaloniki – Greek City Times
5. Greece travel advice – Smartraveller
6. Flights from Athens to Melbourne – Etihad Airways

Keep reading

• Driving in Greece: converting your Australian licence
• Moving to Athens from Australia: the complete guide
• Nightlife in Athens: where Australians go out
• Your Australian driver's licence abroad