Tinos is accessible from Athens only by ferry, with departures from Piraeus and Rafina. This guide recommends taking the fast ferry from Rafina for the most efficient two-hour journey to the island.
Published: July 7, 2024 | Updated: May 15, 2026•By Pavlos Inglesis
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GreeceTinos
You have only one way to get from Athens to Tinos: by ferry, since the island does not have an airport. I am explaining below which one is the best and most efficient ferry.
Tinos is connected to Athens by ferry only (from Piraeus and Rafina ports) In all honesty, I believe that the absolute Best Way to get from Athens to Tinos is by taking the fast ferry from Rafina Port (it takes about 2 hours to arrive on the island).
Tinos port is pretty big for a Greek island of this size and can accommodate several ferries a day
There are several ferries per day from Athens to Tinos that take from 2 to 4.5 hours (depending on which ferry and port you choose), and it’s a relatively quick and straightforward way to travel to the island. As a rule of thumb, if the ferry to a Greek island takes more than 5 hours, then it’s better if you fly to the island.
You can always search directly from here for the available ferries to Tinos:
Ferryhopper is the largest and safest website in Greece to book your ferry tickets from Athens to Tinos, but you can also use it just for checking timetables and prices between Athens and all Greek islands.
It’s obvious that whatever I am explaining in this post applies to the return trip from Tinos to Athens as well. A Golden Star Ferry arriving in Tinos, Greece; these are the fastest ones that take around 2 hours to reach the island from Rafina
Keep reading…
ATHENS TO TINOS TIPS:
You have only 1 option for getting from Athens to Tinos: by ferry
Best way to get from Athens to Tinos: By the fast Ferry from Rafina (2.5 hours) because it’s simply faster than any other ferry from Piraeus
Best Website for Ferry Prices & Timetables: Ferryhopper
Athens has 2 ports with ferries to Tinos: Piraeus (or Pireas – PIR) and Rafina (RAF). Piraeus is the largest port with more ferry options in general, but Rafina is closer to the Athens Airport (El. Venizelos), and it may have ferries that suit your schedule better; in my honest opinion, you should choose Rafina port because the fast ferries to Tinos depart from there
The ferry port for Tinos in Piraeus Port is E7 (on Google Maps) (but always check your ticket as this may change)
Between April and October, there can be more than 7 ferries a day from Athens to Tinos (from Piraeus Port or Rafina Port); there are far fewer ferry options in the winter (November-March)
How long is the ferry ride from Athens to Tinos? It varies from 2 hours to 4.5 hrs; the same applies to the ferry from Tinos to Athens
How much does it cost to take a ferry from Athens to Tinos? It changes every year, but in general, it can cost from 49 euros to 76 euros per person
You must book your ferry online, and you can then enter the ferry with the barcode that will be in the email that will be sent to you. This will be written in the email you will receive from Ferryhopper, and it is now the system that most ferry companies use, but some smaller companies may ask you to get a printout from a kiosk that is outside the ferry, and it is this printout that will allow you to enter the ferry. As a rule of thumb, if your ticket you got through email from Ferryhopper, has a barcode, then you can enter the ferry directly.
How long is the flight from Athens toTinos? There are no flights to Tinos, as the island does not have an airport
Best Way to go from Athens Airport to Athens main ferry port (Piraeus) to take any ferry is by taking the Athens Airport Bus X96 (X96 Bus Route – X96 Bus runs every 20-30 mins) – X96 Bus ticket costs 6 euros (adult) and 3 euros (kids) or buy an ATH.ENA Card
Best Way to go from Athens Airport to Rafina Port is by taking another bus (which is called KTEL) that runs around every 1 hour from the Airport.
Direct International Flights to Tinos: There are no flights to Tinos as the island does not have an airport
Strikes in Greece: strikes can happen anytime in Greece and for any means of public transportation within short notice; usually, they may happen on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays; yes, they may mess up your trip but they are necessary for the hard-working people of Greece so that they can have decent salaries and benefits for their lives. So, get over it and try to find some alternatives for your trip (a taxi is usually the best option).
Strong Winds – Ferries Cancellations: in case there are strong winds (which can be pretty common in August in Greece), then the Greek Port Authorities may stop all ferries from departing, so bear in mind this is also a possibility that can mess up your trip; as an average there might be 4-5 days during the summer months that this can happen so get prepared
Business Seats on Ferries in Greece: in my opinion, they are not worth the extra money, as you only get a bit more space and a slightly quieter area to sit, but even the standard seats are very spacious
The Ferry Schedule for all Greek islands is announced only 2-3 months before the actual trips, so if you cannot find any scheduled ferries for your trip 3 years from now, please check again 2 months before your actual trip.
Ok, so let’s see all the available ferry options from Athens to Tinos (that also apply to the return trip, Tinos to Athens):
Athens to Tinos Ferry Schedule
The SEAJETS Ferries from Piraeus are usually the fastest ferries to any Greek island, but that’s not the case for Tinos because the Golden Star Ferries from Rafina are faster
The Ferry Schedule from Athens to Tinos is only announced a few months before the actual dates of the trips, which means that the times for the busy summer months of May, June, July, August, and September are only announced around February or March of the same year.
However, there are not that many changes usually as there are many ferries that depart sometime in the morning and afternoon and go through several islands.
Here is an Example of a Ferry Schedule from Athens to Tinos in September from Ferryhopper:This is a typical Ferry Schedule from Athens to Tinos in the summer months (May, June, July, August, and September); note the different departure ports (Piraeus / Rafina)
This is just an example of a ferry schedule!
For the latest Ferry schedule, always check on Ferryhopper.
The winter ferry schedule is less frequent, with probably 1-2 ferries a day. If you book your ticket through Ferryhopper you are going to get a link through email where you can download the tickets with the barcode that looks like this (it will open up in your browser, and you can just screenshot it); this ticket will have your seat number as well, and it is individual for every passenger, so kids and vehicles will have their own barcodes and separate ticketsHighspeed and Seajet are usually the fastest ferries to Greek islands, but that’s not the case for TinosThis is the Economy Class (or regular seats) on the high-speed ferryI am not the tallest guy in the world, but I had plenty of space in the economy seats of Highspeed 4The business class seats were almost similar to the economy class, but this may differ slightly from ferry to ferry; in my opinion, they are not worth it on any ferryIt might be tricky to locate the exact seat number that is on your ticket, but you can always ask the crew of the ferryUnfortunately, there are no restaurants on any of the ferries, but there are plenty of options for nibbles, sandwiches, and Greek pastries in the small shops that are called Everest and are pretty much on every ferryThere is always plenty of luggage space on board any ferry, but you need to be careful as these are unattendedThere is always an open space on any ferry (smoking is strongly prohibited everywhere), but its size depends on the ferry itself; usually, the slowest ferries (Blue Star) have the largest outdoor spaces, and the fastest ones (catamaran-style Highspeed and Seajets) have more limited outdoor spaces
BLUE STAR FERRIES
Blue Star Ferries are the largest but slowest ferries from Athens to Tinos, and they only depart from Piraeus port twice a day during the high season (the journey takes around 5.5 hours)Bluestar Ferries are the biggest you can take to go to Tinos and are the most stable, but also the slowest (4.5 hours to arrive)
No matter how bumpy or windy it is, you won’t feel much on Bluestar Ferries, but in case there are strong winds, the Greek Port Authorities may not allow any ferries to depart, for safety reasons.
Almost all ferries from Athens to Tinos visit other islands before they arrive at Tinos, which can give you a very good glimpse of some other Greek islands too, before they arrive at their destination. You don’t get to see much, but it’s nice to feel like you are on a small cruise!
Where can you book Blue Star ferry tickets from Athens to Tinos?
I highly recommend you book your ferry tickets online through Ferryhopper before you even land in Greece. It is the easiest and safest way to guarantee you are going to get a seat. In fact, for July, August, and September, I recommend you book the ferry tickets online at least 1 month in advance. To be honest, you will always find a seat on a ferry, but if you are planning to get your vehicle on the ferry, then you need to book very well in advance, as there are limited spaces for cars and motorbikes in their garages.
BE CAREFUL THOUGH:
As long as the email you receive from Ferryhopper has a barcode on it, you will be fine to enter the ferry with this. It will be very clear in the email you will receive from them, though. Otherwise, you will get instructions on how to get the printout ticket, as some smaller ferry companies don’t have a barcode system on their tickets (very old-fashioned indeed…). This is not a problem, however, and all you have to do is go to a kiosk outside of the ferry itself, a nd people there will print out the ticket for you. Ferryhopper will give you instructions on where to go exactly.
How much does a Blue Star Ferry ticket cost?
For the latest prices, always check theFerryhopperwebsite.
FLIGHTS TO TINOS
There are no flights to Tinos, Greece, because there is simply no airport on the island.
HOW TO GET FROM ATHENS AIRPORT TO PIRAEUS PORT
X96 is the Athens bus that will take you from Athens Airport to Piraeus ferry port The easiest and cheapest option to get to the Athens ferry port, called Piraeus, is by taking the bus X96 that stops just outside the Athens airport.
X96 bus takes between 50 minutes to 80 minutes (depending on the traffic) to go to the Athens ferry port (Piraeus), and the X96 bus route to Piraeus ferry port is the following:
This is how to get from the Athens airport Exit to the X96 and X95 bus stops just outside of the airport:
Tinos Ferries depart from E9 Port Gate, so you have to stop at the bus station, which is called: STATION ISAP (this is also a metro station).
Or in Greek : ΣΤΑΘΜΟΣ ΗΣΑΠ
In case you feel lost, you can just ask the bus driver (they always speak English if you speak with a very clear accent like an Italian mafioso in a way… ????)
But in reality, you will find some brand-new GPS screens showing you where you are:
GPS screens are showing you where you are on the X96 Athens bus
The X96 bus runs 24/7 and there is a bus every 30 mins roughly (in Greece time runs in a very strange way…so never expect something to be on time…that’s just a small tip from Greeks…you’d better get used to that unfortunately).
But there is an X96 bus every 20-30 minutes, so there will be one for you too!
For the X96 bus, you have to buy tickets from a kiosk which is just outside of the bus stop (and also just outside of the airport, just follow the “Bus” signs in the airport).
For adults, the Athens bus ticket (called “ATH.ENA) costs 6 euros, and for kids (under 6) it costs 3 euros. The Athens Bus Ticket for X96 Bus (and X95 bus that goes to the center of Athens – Syntagma Square)is called ATH.ENA ticket
You have to validate your tickets once inside the X96 bus, but you can use the same ticket everywhere for 90 minutes
You can also take a taxi from the Athens airport to the Piraeus Ferry port, which costs 50-60 euros, but it’s really not recommended because it’s not worth it in my opinion…
The X96 bus is pretty fast, and it costs only 6 euros!
Also, BE CAREFUL:
Sometimes the X96 Athens Airport Buses say: “AEROLIMENAS-PEIRAIAS”
Don’t get confused.
This is a Greek version of saying: “Airport – Piraeus”, so it’s the same…
HOW TO GET FROM ATHENS AIRPORT TO RAFINA PORT
This is how the KTEL bus that will take you from Athens airport to Rafina port looks like – they depart from a different bus stop than X96, and they usually have orange and white colours The easiest and cheapest way to get from Athens airport to Rafina port is by taking a KTEL bus. These are different buses from the blue ones (like X96 or X95), and the bus stop is just across the street from the airport exits (see picture above). You can buy the ticket on the bus from the driver, and it costs around 3 euros (there might be a slight difference every year).
The timetables for the bus from Athens airport to Rafina are in the following table, but you should always check the official website of KTEL Buses for the latest timetables:
Athens airport to Rafina Ferry Port Timetable, but for the latest Schedules, always check the official KTEL Website
HOW TO GET FROM ATHENS AIRPORT TO CENTRAL ATHENS
X95 is the bus that will take you from Athens airport to Syntagma Square (central Athens), but you also have the option of taking the metro (subway) To go from Athens Airport to Syntagma Square (the most central point in Athens), you have to take either the metro from the airport (it’s overground for some stations and then it goes underground) orthe bus X95, which will take you to Syntagma Square within 30-40 mins.
The X95 bus stop is next to the X96 bus stop, and the tickets are exactly the same and are sold from the same kiosk.
This is the Bus X95 route (from Athens airport to Syntagma square – central Athens):
You can also take the metro line 3 to get to Syntagma Square from the Athens Airport.
These are the timetables of Athens Metro Line 3 to and from the Airport (there is a train every 36 minutes):
Athens Metro Line 3 (Piraeus Port – Central Athens – Airport) – Click to Enlarge
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How long is the ferry ride from Athens to Tinos?
The ferry ride to Tinos is usually around 2.5 hours with the fast ferry (Golden Star Ferries from Rafina port), but it can also be up to 4.5 hours with the slower but cheaper ferry (Blue Star Ferry).
What is the best way to travel from Athens to Tinos?
The best way to travel from Athens to Tinos is by the fast ferry from Rafina port because it is relatively faster than any other ferry from Piraeus port.
CONCLUSION
You basically have lots of options to get from Athens to Tinosos: by ferry from Rafina port or by ferry from Piraeus Port. My honest advice is to take the fast ferry from Rafina (the one that takes about 2.5 hours)
General advice for ferries in Greece is that you need to make sure you have plenty of movies loaded on your tablet, crosswords and books in hand… (it’s also a good idea to have some food with you because even though there are some snack shops, they might not have everything…). You also get to see some other Greek islands before you arrive in Tinos (ok…it’s just the port, but you can still take a selfie with another Greek island in the background).
For me, the best way to check timetables and even book your ferry tickets online has been Ferryhopper for the last few years, and I highly recommend it to everyone looking to get a ferry to Tinos from Athens.
Tags:GreeceTinos
Last updated: May 15, 2026
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