Athens Transport Tickets: ATH.ENA Card, Fares, Tap to Pay

All Athens city buses, trolleybuses, trams and metro lines 1, 2 and 3 use one OASA fare system. Fares below are from OASA's price list, which shows no update date.

How much are Athens metro and bus tickets?

City tickets cover buses, trolleybuses, trams, metro lines 1, 2 and 3 as far as Koropi, and the suburban railway between Magoula, Piraeus and Koropi. They do not cover the airport express buses or the metro section from Koropi to the airport.

Which ticket is cheapest for your stay?

• One or two rides a day: 90-minute tickets (€1.20) or tap your bank card.
• Four or more rides a day: the 24-hour ticket (€4.10). Tapping a bank card reaches the same €4.10 cap automatically, without deciding in advance.
• Three to five days of steady use: the 5-day ticket at €8.20 costs the same as two 24-hour tickets, so it pays off from the third day.
• Arriving and leaving by air within three days: the 3-day tourist ticket. Two single metro airport tickets cost €18 on their own, so €20 for both airport trips plus three days of city travel is usually the better deal.
• A month or longer: 30-day passes cost €27 for the city or €45 including airport routes, but OASA loads long-term passes only on a personalised card (see below).

Paying by contactless bank card or phone

OASA's contactless payment page lists:

• Accepted: Visa and Mastercard, physical cards or Apple Pay, Google Pay and smartwatch wallets. Maestro, American Express, JCB, Diners, Discover and China UnionPay are not supported.
• Fares: €1.20 per 90-minute journey, with a maximum daily charge of €4.10 for city rides however many trips you make. Airport journeys are charged separately at €5.50 (express bus) or €9.00 (metro).
• The key rule: always use the same card or device to tap in and out at metro stations and when boarding each bus, trolleybus or tram. OASA warns that mixing devices, such as a plastic card and the same card in a phone wallet, can lead to double charges.

Contactless covers full fares only. If an inspector's device does not recognise your tap, OASA's fines page points to the Littlepay portal (athens-oasa.littlepay.com), where you can check the validations made with your card.

For general card acceptance in shops and taxis, see paying in Greece: cards, cash and ATMs.

ATH.ENA Ticket, anonymous card or personalised card?

Practical limits worth knowing:

• The paper ticket cannot be topped up until its current product has expired. You cannot add a 24-hour ticket on top of an unused 90-minute ticket.
• Neither the paper ticket nor the anonymous card is replaceable if lost; any value on it can be used by whoever finds it.
• Stored value on an ATH.ENA Card works like a wallet and is capped at €4.10 a day for city travel. OASA suggests it for airport or X80 trips when the card already holds a city product, and advises against loading an airport ticket on top of an active time-based product.
• Personalised cards carry your photo and protect your balance if lost, but OASA's issuing process asks for a passport or ID card and an official document showing a Greek social security number (AMKA). Most short-term visitors therefore cannot get one, and so cannot buy discount fares or 30-day passes.

Where to buy tickets

According to OASA's points of supply page:

• Metro stations: every station on lines 1, 2 and 3 has ticket machines, and staffed STASY counters reload cards and tickets.
• Tram stops: many have machines, which accept bank cards only.
• At the airport: buy at the airport metro station or in the express bus departure area.
• Elsewhere: OASA machines around the city, and partner kiosks and shops for ticket packs and reloading.

Anonymous ATH.ENA Cards are sold at ticket counters. If you are arriving by air, our guide to getting from Athens airport to the city compares the metro, buses and taxi.

How to validate, and what happens if you don't

From OASA's validation guidance:

• Metro and suburban railway: validate every time you enter and exit the station. Hold the ticket in your right hand and use the reader on the right of the gate.
• Bus, trolleybus and tram: validate once when you board.
• Check the remaining time shown on the reader. If your 90 minutes will run out before you arrive, OASA says to validate a new ticket.
• Wide gates are for travellers with luggage, pushchairs, children or disabilities.

A passenger without a valid ticket is fined €100, or €50 if entitled to a reduced fare (Joint Ministerial Decision 80212, Government Gazette B 3005/28.05.2026, as cited by OASA). OASA's fines page adds that:

• The fine is halved if you buy and activate a pass of at least 30 days within 10 days and pay within 60 days.
• Unpaid fines are passed to the Greek tax office at four times the amount.
• Metro and tram fines are issued by STASY. If you were fined because your bank-card tap was not recognised and you have no Greek tax number, OASA says to email fines@stasy.gr with your proof of validation.

Children and discounts

OASA's list of eligible persons gives free travel to children under six. Reduced fares (for example €0.50 instead of €1.20 for a 90-minute ticket) exist for ages 7 to 18, people over 65, students including those of foreign universities up to age 25, and large families. However, OASA states that entitlement is certified only by a personalised ATH.ENA Card, so check eligibility with OASA (information line 11185) before counting on a discount.

If you need lifts rather than stairs between the airport and the centre, see our step-free airport-to-city route.