New Athens X80 express bus links Piraeus cruise ship port to Acropolis and Syntagma Square

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A new express bus service links the cruise ship terminal at Pireaus with the Acropolis (above) as well as Syntagma Square in Central Athens

Editor’s 2018 Update: The X80 route resumes service on Thursday May 10. Click here to read a Keep Talking Greece article with information about the service, including fares, schedules and stops.

New route: Buses began running today on a new express service route that links the Piraeus cruise ship port to the Acropolis and Syntagma Square in Central Athens.

The X80 express bus will run seven days a week from 7 a.m. until 21:30 (9:30 p.m.), with departures every 30 minutes. The trip along the 25 km route from the cruise ship terminal to Syntagma Square is estimated to take between 30 and 45 minutes.

OASA, the Athens Urban Transport Organisation, introduced the new route to help make it easier for tourists arriving at Athens by cruise ship to reach Syntagma and the Acropolis — two of the city’s most popular attractions.

The bus will stop at the OLP terminal gates, the Piraeus town center, the Sygrou-Fix metro station, the Acropolis and Syntagma Square.

For 2018, two types of tickets can be used to take rides on the X80 — the €4.50 ticket that is valid for umlimited use on the metro, buses and trams in the city center for 24 hours, or the €22 tourist ticket that is valid for 3 days of travel.

Below are two maps that show the X80 route and stops at Piraeus as well as the route and stops in Central Athens. Click here to view an OASA PDF document showing the complete X80 route between Piraeus and Syntagma Square.

For general information about all modes of Athens public transportation, click here.

This map, from the Athens Urban Transport Organisation website, shows the X80 bus route stops at Piraeus. Click the image to view a larger-size picture.

This map shows the X80 bus stop locations in Central Athens

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Comments

11 responses to “New Athens X80 express bus links Piraeus cruise ship port to Acropolis and Syntagma Square”

December 26, 2015

May Fung

we will arrive Athens Piraeus by cruise MSC Fantasia on 2/2/2016. we would like to take X80 bus from the cruise port to visit Parthenon. we only have 5 hours, do we have enough time? we will leave at 10:00 a.m. and back to the ship at 3:00 p.m., can you tell me the bus schedule ? what time to deprt? what time to come back?

Reply
1. December 26, 2015
  
  admin
  
  Here is a link to a thread of questions about this service on the TripAdvisor.com Athens forum: http://tinyurl.com/opczmez You may find some answers to your questions in the most recent posts there. If you don’t learn everything you need to know, consider asking in that thread or post a new question on that forum. Also check for information that other cruise passengers may have posted on this subject on Cruise Critic: http://www.cruisecritic.com/
  
  Reply
September 3, 2016

Arlene M

Which stop would be closest to the Plaka?

Reply
1. September 3, 2016
  
  admin
  
  Either Syntagma Square or the Acropolis stop … Plaka is just a short walk from either.
  
  Reply
  1. July 6, 2017
    
    Margaret McCleery
    
    Is Plaka easy to find when leaving the Acropolis. How long to walk from the Acropolis to Syntagma square
    Thanks
    
    Reply
    1. July 7, 2017
      
      admin
      
      It’s easy to find — it’s right below the Acropolis. Can’t estimate how long the walk would take because it depends where in Plaka you are and whether you’re wandering the maze of streets. I personally would allow at least half an hour, longer if it’s very crowded.
      
      Reply
March 31, 2017

Truther

This is a fantastic resource of information on the X80. It’s much easier to understand that the official information sheet. Thank you for making this website!

Reply
August 15, 2017

Emma Taylor

Hi. Is the bus still running August 2017? If so is it easy to locate at port? Thanks in anticipation!

Reply
1. August 16, 2017
  
  admin
  
  Emma, a friend in Athens has told me the bus is seasonal for summer only, so it definitely should be operating throughout this month. Here is a shortlink to the website showing the bus route and the real-time location of the buses running the route: https://tinyurl.com/yaxtdoh2 I have never taken a bus from Piraeus but imagine it should be easy to find.
  
  Reply
October 5, 2017

Rocco van Rooyen

Can a person board the X80 express bus from the port (coming off a cruise liner) with travel case and get off at Syntagma Square if one intend staying in Athens for a few nights in a hotel? Also, can one board a Metro train from the Metro station there to a next Metro station with one’s travel cases?

Reply
1. October 6, 2017
  
  admin
  
  Of course you can … We have travelled on Athens express buses, the tram and the metro with our suitcases without any problems other than the hassle of awkwardly negotiating your way through crowds with luggage in tow.
  
  Reply