Disembarkation in Athens

[Kozimoto1209]

Hello,

i will be on the Azamara Journey disembarking in Athens. The ship arrives in port at 6am, is it possible to make a 10am flight?

Thanks in advance.

[excitedofharpenden]

I'd be nervous. It's quite a way to the airport from the port and if there are delays getting off then it would be stressful. Personally I would go for an earliest 11am flight, but preferably after 12. 

 

I'd also say you are better booking a ride rather than rely on the taxi rank. Some of the drivers are way too fast driving for me. I'd highly recommend WelcomePickups. 

 

Phil 

Edited August 25, 2019 by excitedofharpenden

[uktog]

I would agree with Phil 

Strikes are not unheard of at Piraeus and whilst disembarkation  and embarkation always happens it can be delayed. 

There will always be someone who tells you they made their early  flight on time but there will be many others who might tell you about stress or even not making the flight so my advice would be a much later flight

Edited August 25, 2019 by uktog

[donaldsc]

You have 4 hours from the time the ship hopefully docks to when the plane takes off.  Not when you have to be at the airport but when it takes off.  

 

Google says that it takes 37 minutes on a Sunday from Piraeus to Athens airport on a Sunday.  Will it take longer on a weekday?  What if there are any traffic delays or if the Greeks have one of their frequent strikes going on.  You have not said whether the flight is within the European zone or not.  What if the ship gets in even slightly late?  How long will it take to get from the walking off the ship to your transport to the airport including getting your luggage and going through customs and immigration.  How long will it take to check in at the airport.  How long will it take to get through security?  If the flight is international, how long before takeoff do you have to be at the gate.  When you miss your flight when is the next one and how much will it cost you.

 

You do the math.  I can never figure out why people try to do these ridiculous really close connections.

 

DON

Edited August 25, 2019 by donaldsc

[Kozimoto1209]

Thanks for the input, It seems unanimous. I would normally never consider such tight timelines but we are flying to Tel Aviv. There are 2 flights daily 10:10am and 10:30pm. One is too early and the other is too late. 

I was thinking of spending the night at the port and going the following day but then we loose a day in Israel.

The ship is in Crete the day before so it should be on time into Athens. We plan on carrying our own luggage off the ship and taking a taxi to the airport.

Does any of this new information make a difference?

[uktog]

42 minutes ago, Kozimoto1209 said:

Thanks for the input, It seems unanimous. I would normally never consider such tight timelines but we are flying to Tel Aviv. There are 2 flights daily 10:10am and 10:30pm. One is too early and the other is too late. 

I was thinking of spending the night at the port and going the following day but then we loose a day in Israel.

The ship is in Crete the day before so it should be on time into Athens. We plan on carrying our own luggage off the ship and taking a taxi to the airport.

Does any of this new information make a difference?

Not really.  European clearance for flights to Israel will probably require you to be at the airport 2 hours before departure so that would be 0810.  Travel time to the airport is 30-45 minutes and traffic at that time is bad.  As I said before, there is no guarantee embarkation will start before 8.  I have twice come into Athens (Piraeus) and both times disembarkation was did not start until well after 8

[Kozimoto1209]

10 minutes ago, uktog said:

Not really.  European clearance for flights to Israel will probably require you to be at the airport 2 hours before departure so that would be 0810.  Travel time to the airport is 30-45 minutes and traffic at that time is bad.  As I said before, there is no guarantee embarkation will start before 8.  I have twice come into Athens (Piraeus) and both times disembarkation was did not start until well after 8

Thanks for the additional information.

It looks like we will spend the day in Athens and take the later flight.

Thanks again!

[donaldsc]

1 hour ago, Kozimoto1209 said:

Thanks for the input, It seems unanimous. I would normally never consider such tight timelines but we are flying to Tel Aviv. There are 2 flights daily 10:10am and 10:30pm. One is too early and the other is too late. 

I was thinking of spending the night at the port and going the following day but then we loose a day in Israel.

The ship is in Crete the day before so it should be on time into Athens. We plan on carrying our own luggage off the ship and taking a taxi to the airport.

Does any of this new information make a difference?

 

I was going to say that flying into Israel, the airplane boarding security hassles will be really onerous.  Glad that you decided to change.

 

Apropos of nothing, how long before takeoff did your airline say you had to be at the airport?

 

DON

Edited August 25, 2019 by donaldsc

[Kozimoto1209]

9 minutes ago, donaldsc said:

 

I was going to say that flying into Israel, the airplane boarding security hassles will be really onerous.  Glad that you decided to change.

 

Apropos of nothing, how long before takeoff did your airline say you had to be at the airport?

 

DON

Haven’t booked yet, still looking into it. I will definitely check to see when we need to be there before flight.

Thanks for the tip Don

[kinghw]

Hi Ron:

 

I'm on your cruise Dubai-Athens next April. Another option might be to request Azamara if you could disembark in Heraklion on the last full day of the cruise. There are afternoon and evening "puddle-jumper" flights from Heraklion to Athens, which would allow you to enjoy the day in Crete and get to Athens airport the night before your Tel Aviv connection. To me, trading the last night on Journey for an extra day in Israel would be worth it.

 

Henry

[BBMacLaird]

11 hours ago, kinghw said:

Hi Ron:

 

I'm on your cruise Dubai-Athens next April. Another option might be to request Azamara if you could disembark in Heraklion on the last full day of the cruise. There are afternoon and evening "puddle-jumper" flights from Heraklion to Athens, which would allow you to enjoy the day in Crete and get to Athens airport the night before your Tel Aviv connection. To me, trading the last night on Journey for an extra day in Israel would be worth it.

 

Henry

 

I had the same thought, but I know many don't like missing the last night aboard ship. It's when everyone is saying their farewells and exchanging contact information with new friends. 

That said, it IS an option for OP.

[Kozimoto1209]

On 8/26/2019 at 6:58 AM, kinghw said:

Hi Ron:

 

I'm on your cruise Dubai-Athens next April. Another option might be to request Azamara if you could disembark in Heraklion on the last full day of the cruise. There are afternoon and evening "puddle-jumper" flights from Heraklion to Athens, which would allow you to enjoy the day in Crete and get to Athens airport the night before your Tel Aviv connection. To me, trading the last night on Journey for an extra day in Israel would be worth it.

 

Henry

Hello Henry,

I had thought of that, and may consider it. I also thought I might stay over in Athens then take the morning flight to tTel Aviv. I would then rent a car to get us around a bit quicker, especially over to the Dead Sea. It’s a nice problem to have...lol.

Thanks for your insight Henry.

Ron