iLoveStep 4 · Leaving
Leaving Greece
The way out, the border check, the last-day jobs and what to take home.
Getting out
To Athens airportMetro, X95 bus (24 h), taxiTaxi fare€50 day, €65 nightPiraeus gatesWhich gate your ferry usesOn to AlbaniaCorfu–Sarandë ferry
- Non-EU travellers are checked out of the Schengen area with fingerprints and a photo (EES). Athens airport advises arriving 2.5 hours before your flight; queues can be long in summer.
- Ferries leave on time and doors close early: be at the port 30–45 minutes before on foot, 60–90 with a car.
- On an island with a morning flight? Check the wind the day before: a cancelled ferry can strand you.
Last day
Store your bagsAthens, islands and portsBorder check (EES)What happens on exitFlight delayed?Claim compensationYour trip recapOne card to share
Shopped tax-free? Visitors who live outside the EU can claim back VAT on bigger purchases. Ask the shop for the tax-free form, then get it stamped by customs at the airport before you check in your bags.
What to take home
- Olive oil and olivesFrom a farm shop or market. Bottles over 100 ml go in checked luggage.
- Thyme honeyStrong, dark and found on most islands; Crete's is famous.
- MastihaResin, sweets and liqueur from Chios, sold all over Greece.
- Ouzo, tsipouro or local wineSantorini's Assyrtiko is a good one to look for.
- Greek coffee and a brikiThe small pot it's made in; light and cheap.
- Olive-wood boards and spoonsLook for solid wood, not veneer.
- Natural sea spongesA tradition of Kalymnos and Symi.
- Komboloi (worry beads)From simple to handmade amber.
Never take stones, pottery or anything else from an archaeological site or the sea bed: exporting antiquities is a crime in Greece.