The Peloponnese - The Rough Guide to Greece - page 189

Church of Áyios Andhréas
Daily 8-11am, 4.30-7pm
This huge neo-Byzantine confection lies at the southwest end of the waterfront on the
spot where St Andrew is said to have been martyred in 69 AD, and where an ancient
temple to Demeter once stood. The saint's relics are housed within, including his skull.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE PÁTRA

By air Patra/Araxos Airport ( W araxos-airport.com), 40km
south of Pátra, is mostly served by charter flights from
Germany and Belgium (May-Sept only). Check W jetairfly
.com and W tuily.com.
By bus Buses for the Peloponnese, Athens, Ioánnina,
Thessaloníki and Vólos depart from the main bus station
( T 26106 23 886), a short distance northeast of the train
station. Buses for Zákynthos go from Óthonos & Amalías 47
( T 26102 20993); for Lamía, Tríkala, Kefaloniá and Crete
from Óthonos & Amalías 58 ( T 2610 274 938); and for
Mesolóngi, Agrínio, Náfpaktos and Delphi from Nórman 5
( T 26104 21205).
Destinations Athens (every 20min daily, 2.30am-9.45pm;
3hr); Agrinio (8 daily; 1hr 45min); Árgos (1 Fridays; 4hr);
Éyio (12-16 daily; 1hr); Itéa (for Delphi, 2 daily, Mon-Sat;
3-4hr); Ioánnina (2 daily; 4hr 30min); Itháki (1 daily, via
Kefaloniá; 6hr), Kalamáta (2 daily; 4hr); Kalávryta (2-4
daily; 2hr 15min); Kalogriá (3-5 daily in season; 1hr
15min); Kefaloniá (3 daily; 4hr); Lápas/Metóhi (for
Kalogriá; 6-10 daily; 50min-1hr); Lefkádha (2 weekly;
3hr); Mesolóngi (8-10 daily; 1hr); Náfpaktos (1-7 daily;
1hr); Pýrgos (6-10 daily; 2hr); Thessaloníki (4 daily; 7hr);
Trípoli (1-2 daily, via Lámbia; 3-4hr); Vólos (1 daily,
except Sat; 6hr); Zákynthos (4 daily; 2hr 30min including
ferry from Kyllíni).
By train The train station is on Óthonos & Amalías. At the
time of writing all rail services were suspended. Rail

replacement buses run to Kiáto from where you can
connect to trains running to Athens/Pireás.
By ferry Ferries leave from or near the Triándi Jetty (Gate
6), at the end of Norman Street; ticket agencies are also
located along here, on the waterfront street. Italy-bound
ferries (see box, p.27) leave from early afternoon to
midnight. You must check in with the agent's embarkation
booth at least 2hrs before departure. Though services are
frequent, all Italy-bound ferries stop for around 2hrs in
Igoumenítsa, adding significantly to the total sailing
time. Free stopovers on Corfu are not allowed. You can
take the domestic ferry to Corfu and pick up Italy sailings
from there, though fares will be the same as from Pátra.
International destinations Ancona (2-3 daily; 19hr
30min/20hr 30min); Bari (1-2 daily; 14hr 30min/16hr);
Brindisi (1 daily; 14hr 30min); Venice (1 daily; 1day
7hr/1day 7hr 30min).
Domestic destinations Corfu (1-2 daily; 6hr 15min/6hr
45min); Igoumenítsa (3-5 daily; 4hr 45min-7hr);
Kefaloniá and Itháki (1-2 daily; 3hr 20min/3hr 45min).
By car Pátra is linked to the mainland by the suspension
bridge across the gulf from Andírio to Río (5 min; €12 car
toll). The old ferry services are now used only for vehicles
not permitted on the bridge. If going beyond Pátra, then
there is a fast bypass to the east. From Pátra you can reach
Kórinthos in 2hrs along the national highway; the onward
journey to Athens takes another 90min.

2

INFORMATION
Tourist o ce Info Center Patras at Óthonos & Amalías 6
(daily 8am-10pm; T 26104 61740, W infocenterpatras.gr)
offer free internet (30min) and free bike rental (3hr;
passport/ID necessary). They also have a kiosk on Platía

Trión Symáhon (daily 9am-1pm & 5-8pm), with wi-fi
access. EOT (Mon-Fri 7am-9pm; T 26104 30915) are
located at the western end of Nórman, near the Triándi
Jetty, Gate 6, from which ferries to Italy depart.

GETTING AROUND
By bus Local buses go from Óthonos & Amalías north of
the main bus station; tickets are available from kiosks, and
are cheaper than when bought from the driver.
By car If you are driving in or through Pátra, you will

find the traffic and one-way system no less frustrating
than in Athens; a map showing the direction of traffic, if
not vital, will at least save time and probably maintain
sanity.

ACCOMMODATION
Most of Pátra's hotels are on Ayíou Andhréou, one block back from Óthonos & Amalías, or on Ayíou Nikoláou, which runs
back from the sea, near the train station and Platía Trión Symáhon.

Adonis Kapsáli 9, cnr Záïmi T 2610 224 213, E hotela
[e-mail]. This large high-rise hotel is well
furnished and maintained. Most rooms have balconies

overlooking the h arbo ur, though bathrooms are small. Free
wi-fi throughout. €60
Astir Ayíou Andhréou 16 T 2610 277 502, W hotel