Athens Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport Guide

Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos opened on 28 March 2001, replacing the old Ellinikon International Airport. Located 30 km east of central Athens by road, it is the primary gateway for the Greek capital and the broader Attica region. In 2024 it handled 31.85 million passengers — a record year and a 13.1% increase on 2023 — establishing it as the 15th-busiest airport in Europe.

The airport operates under a public-private partnership between the Greek state (55%) and private investors (45%) through Athens International Airport S.A. It has two parallel runways of 4,000 m and 3,800 m respectively, and recorded 268,301 aircraft movements in 2024. The hub carrier is Aegean Airlines, with Olympic Air also based here. In 2024 the airport connected Athens to 157 destinations in 55 countries, served by 68 carriers.

The main terminal is divided into Hall A (non-Schengen flights) and Hall B (intra-Schengen and domestic services). A separate Satellite Terminal, linked via an underground walkway, handles primarily low-cost carriers and can process up to six million passengers annually. The airport is directly connected to central Athens by metro and suburban rail.