Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" — Attraction in Municipality of Spata - Artemida

My wife and I recently traveled from Georgia to Athens, Greece, fulfilling her long-held dream to explore its rich history and art. As a couple with diverse backgrounds—she, born to Chinese immigrants in San Francisco, and I, a native of Georgia—we were thrilled to visit Athens and Paros for a short stay. We traveled light, with minimal luggage, and opted for Wizz Air’s round-trip priority tickets to ensure a smooth journey. While our trip was largely enjoyable, the return experience at Athens International Airport left us deeply disheartened due to a chaotic and unnecessarily stressful boarding process.

Our flight from Kutaisi to Athens was relatively calm, with friendly staff and no major issues. However, the pre-boarding process at Athens for our return flight was disorganized and distressing. Despite our priority tickets, there was no designated line for priority passengers, so we joined the general queue. As we approached the gate, we observed significant confusion and stress among passengers, particularly Georgian travelers, who were frantically attempting to fit their carry-on bags into metal luggage measurement stands. The scene was noisy, chaotic, and visibly overwhelming, with some passengers resorting to forcing their bags into the stands under pressure.

As we neared the gate, I was unexpectedly separated from my wife and directed by a gate agent to place my nearly empty duffle bag—containing only essentials like medication, chargers, and toiletries—into a luggage measurement stand. I complied, sliding the bag vertically into the stand, where it fit perfectly. To my surprise, the agent insisted I place it horizontally instead, an unnecessary request that felt arbitrary and added to the growing tension. When I questioned the process, pointing out the undue stress it caused, the response was dismissive, with one agent suggesting that the chaos stemmed from passengers’ lack of English proficiency or unfamiliarity with rules. This explanation felt unfair and reductive, unfairly targeting travelers, particularly Georgians, rather than acknowledging systemic flaws in the process.

The lack of clear communication, marked lines, or proactive guidance from airline or airport staff exacerbated the situation. Simple measures—like designated group lines, early verbal instructions, or staff assisting at the start of the queue—could have alleviated the chaos. Instead, passengers faced a stressful, dehumanizing experience that felt punitive rather than procedural. After complying with the luggage check, a gate agent belatedly recognized our priority status and apologized, admitting they were unaware we had already been subjected to the process. While the apology was appreciated, it did little to mitigate the frustration of witnessing fellow travelers endure unnecessary hardship.

When I raised my concerns with a senior agent, I was told the issue stemmed from passengers attempting to avoid luggage fees on a low-cost airline and their limited English proficiency. I respectfully countered that the root cause was poor organization by the airline and airport, not the passengers. Travel is inherently stressful, and it is the responsibility of those managing the process to create a humane, efficient system. Blaming travelers for systemic shortcomings is not only unfair but also perpetuates a cycle of frustration and misunderstanding.

In contrast, I’ve experienced airports like Tokyo’s, where staff and volunteers proactively guide passengers, ensuring a seamless, compassionate process despite high traffic. This stark difference underscores the need for Athens International Airport and Wizz Air to adopt better practices—clear signage, managed lines, and empathetic staff—to prevent such chaotic and humiliating experiences. While our trip to Greece was memorable, this distressing airport experience highlighted the importance of treating all passengers with dignity and respect, regardless of background...

Still a third world operation, reminds me of the good old days in Greece in the 60's and 70's. Chaos is a Greek word after all. Considering the huge number of tourists that come through here, and that Greece is part of the EU, it's surprising how badly the Athens airport compares to other airports. Examples: (1) The tax return stamp office is a huge line, serviced by maximum two people. Instructions are confusing, and many people in the line are in a very stressed state of mind, lots of shouting and confusion. Staff from some of the check-in counters need to force their way through the line to access their desks, further adding to the chaos. The customs clerks ask you to show some of your purchases, so then you have to fight back against the line, hoist your suitcase onto a single table that is too high for most women, pull out your stuff, then fight back to the counter to wave your purchases at the clerks and get your stamp. (2) There is no indication where each airline's check-in counters are (or at least I never saw any) so you just have to guess, and they are all in a big long line, a random mix of domestic and international. We walked from one end to the other before finding ours, and were briefly waylaid by a Star Alliance sign at the wrong end that suggested Air Canada was there. (3) The boarding areas for flights are woefully small for the bigger planes. For my flight (Air Canada to Montreal) we were jammed in like sardines, very hot and stuffy, spilling out into the corridor. Tempers were short, people were getting angry at each other and the situation. There was no indication of where each zone should line up. Once I got to the front I saw there were small waist level signs, impossible for the majority to see. When they made announcements, the sound was bad and caused further confusion. When they announced "pre boarding" which was for people in wheelchairs and small children, plus many, many other apparently fit people, a lot of people thought they were saying "three boarding", causing a crush to the front. All in all, my experience with the airport was very unpleasant, a big thumbs down to the people who run it, and to a certain extent Air Canada for their terrible boarding process, although the tiny waiting room I assume wasn't their fault. On a positive note, the Aegean lounge was very nice, one of the best I've...

First trip to Greece and therefore, my first time arriving in Athens airport! First impressions: an OK airport but the arrivals hall needs a bit of an upgrade. A bit tired and cramped. When my flight from Doha arrived it didn't appear that the ground staff was ready for the number of passengers getting off flights. Obviously anyone with an EU passport was able to proceed swiftly but non-EU passports had to queue for nearly 2 hours to get through passport control. The air conditioner wasn't on full blast either. The queue just seemed to snake on forever and the staff was literally sorting the queue dividers as we were congregating at passport control. Quite unorganised and just a lot of yelling at passengers rather than using the intercom for announcements. Signage could be improved as well. Hopefully the e-Gates will be in use the next time I'm in the country. It looked like it was still being setup which is perhaps why we had to queue but there should've been an interim process in place to progress passengers in a more efficient manner. The baggage area was chaotic and once I got out it was still chaos. After 30 mins or so the crowd finally started to thin out. I was waiting for my friends to arrive so I didn't leave the airport and had to wait for them for about 4 hours (they were arriving from Dubai). There are a couple of bakeries, a mini supermarket, toilets at either end of the arrivals hall, rental car desks, Vodafone desk and an information desk. I just did a whole lot of ppl watching to keep me entertained after I had sorted my Europe e-SIM (ordered online) and had lunch at the first bakery I saw. I did like that there was a place to sit on lounge seats (which had seen better days) to charge devices for free. Also liked that the WiFi was free and that there is an airport line, the blue one (see photo of train lines). This is what my friends and I used to get to the city for EUR9.00 each (NZD18.14c) and it was possible to pay for our ticket using our credit card which you simply scan at the gate. The train station is just a 5 min walk from the...