Logistics

INFORMATION ON TRAVELING TO AND LIVING IN CRETE

2008 International Institute for Political and Economic Studies

Registration

Registration for all participants will take place on Friday, July 11 th from 12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m in the lobby of the dormitory at The Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (MAICh). Signs placed around the campus will direct you to where you need to go. The address is:

Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania
Alsylio Agrokepion, PO Box 85
Chania 73100
Crete - Greece

Early Arrivals/Late Departures 

If your travel plans require that you arrive or depart beyond the Institute dates, you may be responsible for your own accommodations. We encourage students to arrive on July 11 th as rooms at the dormitory may be limited prior to the Institute. If you will arrive in Chania before July 11 th we need to know as soon as possible. If you need to stay beyond August 4 th because of travel reasons and if the dormitory is available, students may be charged an additional fee. A travel information form was included with your acceptance letter and needs to be returned to The Fund for American Studies prior to your arrival.

ENTRY TO GREECE

You may be required to obtain an entry visa to enter Greece. It is necessary that you call your regional Greek embassy or consulate for visa regulations as soon as possible. Students from the United States, Israel, Italy , Croatia, Malta and Bulgaria do not need a visa to enter Greece.

An official letter of invitation signed by Mr. Theodossis Georgiou, Chairman of the Greek Association for Atlantic and European Cooperation will be sent to all students needing a visa. You will need this letter to obtain a visa or any other entry documents. We recommend that you carry this letter with you as you travel.

TRAVEL OPTIONS TO ARRIVE AT MAICH

GETTING TO CHANIA IMMEDIATELY

• By air using charter or (a limited number of) scheduled flights directly to Chania from many European cities.
• By air using charter or scheduled flights to Heraklion Airport in Crete directly from many European cities (transfer from Heraklion to Chania by coach or taxi)

GETTING TO CHANIA VIA ATHENS

• By air to Athens and then by boat (Minoan Lines) to Heraklion from Piraeus (transfer from Heraklion to Chania by coach or taxi).
• By air to Athens and then by boat (Anek Lines) to Chania from Piraeus port.
• By train or by bus to Athens and then by boat to Chania from Piraeus port.
• By air, train or by bus to Athens and then a flight from Athens to Chania (Olympic Airways or Aegean Airlines)

Arriving in Athens by plane, at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport. The Airport is situated outside Athens ( 33 km ). Unless you travel to Chania by plane again, you will have to use either a public bus , metro, suburban railway or a taxi to get to Piraeus, the port of Athens, in order to take a boat to Crete.

• To get to the Port of Athens, you can go by metro & train, suburban rail & train, taxi, or bus.

• By Metro

 The Airport is accessible via Metro Line 3: "Athens International Airport - Egaleo" The last metro leaves the Airport at 23:30

The metro stations from Athens International Airport to Egaleo station are: Athens International Airport, Doukissis Plakentias (connection with Suburban Rail), Chaladri, Ethniki Amina, Katehaki, Panormou, Ambelokipi, Megaro Mousikis, Evagelismos, Syntagma (connection with Metro Line 2: Ag. Antonios - Agios Dimitrios), Monastiraki (connection with Metro Line 1: Piraeus - Kifisia)

Journey time from Athens International Airport to Syntagma is 27 minutes and to Piraeus 60 minutes .

Fares

Single fare : €6

Metro line 3 is connected to:

• Metro line 2: Ag. Antonios - Agios Dimitrios at Syntagma station
• Metro line 1: Piraeus - Kifisia: at Monastiraki station
• Suburban Rail: Larissis Station - Athens International Airport at Doukissis Plakentias Station

In order to reach Piraeus port you must change lines at Monastiraki station and take Metro Line 1, Direction Piraeus.

• By Suburban Rail

  Athens International Airport is connected via the Suburban Rail to Larissis Station (Athens Central Railway Station). The last suburban rail from the airport is at 23:05.

The railway stations from Athens International Airport to Larissis Station are: Athens International Airport, Koropi, Kantza, Pallini, Doukissis Plakentias (Connection with Metro Line 3), Kifisias, Nerantziotisa (Connection with Metro Line 1), Iraklio, Acharnes Railway Junction (S.K.A), Larissis Station (Connection with Metro Line 2)

The journey time from Athens International Airport to Larissis Station is approximately 38 minutes.

• By Taxi

The airport is accessible by taxi on a 24-hour basis. Passengers reaching the Airport disembark at the Departures level, where they can proceed directly to the check-in counters. When leaving the airport, please make use of the taxi queue next to Door 3 of the Arrivals Level.

Indicative taxi charges are presented in the following table:

Prebooked Taxis: Prebooked taxis are provided upon request.

• By Bus

The new Athens International Airport is accessible via Attiki Odos, a six-lane motorway constituting the Athens City Ring Road. Public transportation is provided by express airport bus connections with the Athens city center and the port of Piraeus on a 24 hour basis, ensuring efficient transport of air travelers and facilitating linkage to key tourist attractions.

Six public bus routes serve the airport exclusively connecting to the greater area of Athens and Piraeus.

• Χ92 Kifisia - Athens Airport Express (24 hour operation)
• Χ93 Kifisos Coach Station - Athens Airport Express
• Χ94 Ethniki Amina - Athens Airport Express
• Χ95 Syntagma - Athens Airport Express (24 hour operation)
• Χ96 Piraeus - Athens Airport Express (recommended) (24 hour operation)
• Χ97 Dafni Metro Station - Athens Airport Express

Ticket price: €3.20 and is valid for 24 hours on all public transport means (buses, trolley-buses and metro), but only for one trip to or from the airport.

All Express Buses disembark their passengers at the Departures Level and they depart from the designated area located at the inner curbside of the Arrivals Level, between Doors 4-5. You should validate your ticket ONLY ONCE, if you start your travel using one of the airport express lines, or TWICE, in case you use one or more public transport lines prior to the use of an airport express line.

Combine the Attiko Metro with the public bus express services to the airport.

• Metro line 3: "Ethniki Amina" station
  - Express bus Χ 94
• Metro line 2 & 3: "Syntagma" station
  -Express bus Χ 95.
• Athens - Piraeus Electric Subway: "Stadium of Peace and Friendship" station
  - Express bus Χ 96

• Arriving in Athens by train: International trains arrive at the Stathmós Laríssis in the northwest of the city center; the virtually adjacent Peloponnissou station handles traffic to and from the Peloponnese. Just outside the train station there is a Metro Station which you can use to get to Omonia and from there you change for Pireaus. The yellow trolleybus (#1), which leaves from outside Laríssis, goes to Syntagma and either you will take X 95 to go to the airport or Metro to Monastiraki and from there the train to Piraeus.
• Arriving in Athens by bus : If you're coming into Athensby bus from northern Greece, you'll find yourself at Kifissoú 100, just a ten-minute ride from the middle of town by bus #051. Routes into the city from central Greece arrive rather closer to the centre at Liossíon 260, north of the train stations; from here you take the blue city bus #024 to Syntagma . Most international buses will take you to the train station or to Kifissoú 100; a few drop passengers right in the city centre.

If you want to go from the bus station to the Athens International Airport “El. Venizelos” you can use the bus (24 hour operation) X-93.

• ARRIVING IN CHANIA FROM ATHENS (by plane)
• The best way to reach MAICh from the airport is by taxi. It will cost approximately 15 Euros.

• ARRIVING IN CHANIA – HERAKLION – RETHIMNON FROM ATHENS (by boat)

• From the port of Chania you can reach MAICh by taxi, it will cost approximately 5 Euro or by bus No 13.

GETTING TO CHANIA VIA HERAKLION

If you are flying to Heraklion via Athens, the situation regarding transfers between terminals is the same as described above for Chania (see above).

In order to get from Heraklion to Chania, you will have to take a coach or taxi.

1 st Option: BUS. The journey by coach lasts two and a half hours. The coach leaves every hour from 05:30 to 20:30. You can ask the driver to drop you off at MAICh, instead of getting to the coach station in Chania . You can get from Heraklion airport to the Coach Station by bus. The bus departs every 5 min from 06:00 to 23:00. You will also have to walk 200 meters from the Bus stop to the Coach Station. The port of Heraklion is very close (~500 meters) to the Coach Station.

TIMETABLE OF THE BUSES

2 nd Option: TAXI . The other option (more expensive) is to take a taxi from the airport or port of Heraklion to Chania. The cost is approximately $ 99.00 USD (80 Euro), and it will take approximately an hour and a half.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Distances

• Port of Souda in Chania to MAICh: 2 km
• Airport in Chania to MAICh: 15 km

Transportation

There is a bus that passes from Souda’s Avenue (MAICh) every 20 minutes and goes to the city of Chania. The ticket costs 0,80 Euro (normal) or 0,60 Euro (student fare). The last bus, No. 13, passes from MAICh for Chania at 22:20 and from the Market to MAICh at 22:40. The route is about 15 minutes.

The taxi route from MAICh to the city costs approximately 4,5 Euro together with the telephone call.

NIGHT TRANSPORTATION

Public transportation does not operate after midnight. You will have to use a taxi. Take note that taxi fares double after midnight. You should tell the taxi driver to use the meter.

HOUSING

There will be two students assigned to each dorm room. Each room is air conditioned and has a private bathroom. Each room contains 2 single beds (usually bunk beds) and study areas. Towels and bed linens are provided, and there is maid service twice a week. There are also laundry facilities on campus.

The Fund for American Studies will assign your roommates. In order to promote cross-cultural exchange, roommates will be assigned so that students from the same country are not rooming together. If you smoke, please limit your smoking to areas outside your room unless your roommates give you permission to smoke in the room.

TELEPHONE CALLS AND EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION

It is not possible to call a room in the dormitory. However, there are pay phones throughout MAICh, which operate with calling cards that can be purchased at newsstands.

In case of an emergency, family or friends can contact The Fund for American Studies in Washington, DC. or the offices of the Greek Association for Atlantic & European Cooperation in Athens. Representatives will immediately inform Institute staff in Chania. The Fund for American Studies can be contacted by phone at 001-202-986-0384 or by fax at 001-202-986-0390 and the Greek Association for Atlantic & European Cooperation can be contacted by phone at 001-30-210-865 5979 or by fax at 001-30-210-865 4742.

MEALS

Meals will be provided to all Institute participants at the dining facilities of MAICh. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be served each day unless scheduled otherwise (Sunday lunches are not served). For anyone with special dietary requirements (kosher, vegetarian, etc.), you must contact us via email at bmoore@tfas.org no later than June 30th.

WHAT TO BRING

In class, you may dress casually. There will be one or two occasions where you will need to wear business attire (suits and ties for men, dresses or suits for women). Make sure you have a pair of comfortable walking shoes for tours and sightseeing. You may want to bring a bathing suit and beach towels if you plan on taking any trips to the beach. Although the weather in Crete will be very warm, all dorm rooms and classrooms are air conditioned (so you might want to bring a sweater with you for class).

For our annual Cultural Presentations Dinner, you may want to bring traditional music, dress or other props for the show.

Students should bring notebooks, paper and writing instruments for classes. Reading materials will be provided through our online website at www.tfasinternational.org. Hard copies of the readings will be provided at registration.

MEDICAL INSURANCE

Most countries have bilateral agreements with Greece for recognition of medical insurance. Check with your health insurer to see what their policy is for international travel; insurance may be limited to emergency room coverage only. ISIC holders are offered a helpful travel insurance policy (see International Student Identity Card below ). Have your local insurance agency (or Social Security depending upon the case) provide you with the appropriate forms you should carry with you in case you need medical care.

CHANGING MONEY

Please plan to bring enough money to cover entertainment and transportation costs, incidental expenses and whatever souvenir shopping you might want to do. Students can exchange money at banks located in the airport. You can also use bank machines (ATM’s) located in Chania. Credit cards are frequently accepted at restaurants, bars and shops – but different prices might apply for credit card purchases.

INSTITUTE STAFF

Throughout the Institute, there will be several Institute staff members living on campus who will be available to assist you: Ms. Michelle Jeffress, Director of International Programs, Ms. Brigit Moore, International Programs Assistant of The Fund for American Studies, Mr Emanuel Baptista, Program Assistant for IIPES and Ms Marianna Fyrippi, Executive Assistant of the Greek Association for Atlantic and European Cooperation can assist you with questions pertaining to the Institute or faculty and any issues with the dormitory, public transportation, etc.

QUESTIONS

If you have additional questions before arriving, please contact the staff at The Greek Association for Atlantic & European Cooperation at telephone number +30-210-865 5979, fax number +30-210-865 4742, or email at info@gaaec.org.