ATHENS, 31 August 2004 — Hundreds of thousands of Olympic athletes and visitors began what Greek media termed the “Great Escape” from Athens yesterday, an exodus that has so far run as smoothly as the Games themselves.
After a spectacular closing ceremony signaled the end of the Olympics on Sunday night, up to 200,000 visitors were set to leave for overseas destinations by late today.
Thousands of Athenians who delayed summer holidays until the end of the Games were also expected to head for the beaches of the Greek islands and to family reunions across the country. “The airport is very busy, there is a lot of traffic and thousands of people but there have been no delays so far, everything has been running smoothly,” an airport spokeswoman said at midday yesterday.
“With more than one-third of scheduled flights behind us, we are doing quite well”.
Among efforts to ensure smooth departures are a ban on entry to airport terminals for non-ticket holders and strict parking and traffic restrictions, while live music and circus performances are on hand to entertain travelers while they wait. Greek media said the “Great Escape” is the biggest mass departure Athens has had to handle.
Yesterday alone, about 70,000 athletes, officials and foreign visitors will board 900 flights, and almost as many will leave today, a 50 percent increase from the daily average in August, itself Greece’s peak holiday month.
At the port of Piraeus, the eight cruise ships that have been used as floating five-star hotels are also preparing to sail away in the next three days. Not only athletes, sports officials and foreign visitors will be pouring out of the capital — Athenians too will be leaving the city. “September is finally here and I will be leaving,” said central Athens cafe owner Dimitris Karaiosifoglou. “We did our duty for the Olympics and now it’s time to rest.”
Traffic on highways out of the capital was slightly busier than usual, but no traffic jams were reported.
About 4,000 top security personnel brought to Athens from around the country for Olympic duty will also go home in the coming days, as will the 45,000 Greek volunteers who helped out at the Games.
But many police and troops, on duty in the summer heat since the beginning of August as part of the biggest security operation in peacetime Europe, will be unable to relax until the end of the Paralympics in late September.
Athens Airport Set for Olympic Passenger Record
Athens airport expects to break an all-time flight traffic record yesterday as tens of thousands of athletes, officials and spectators at the Olympics leave the city.
A total 882 flights are scheduled to operate at the airport, 87 more than the previous record posted on Aug. 12 — the day before the Games’ opening ceremony, the airport said in a statement.
Around 75,000 passengers are expected to leave, including nearly 10,000 Olympic athletes and officials. The previous record from Aug. 21 stands at 59,969 passengers.
The Athens International Airport opened in March 2001.
“It’s a difficult day. We aim at a strong finish to wrap up the Olympics in the best way possible,” said Greek Transport Minister Michalis Liapis, who visited the airport to inspect the smooth running of departures.
Security measures at the site are tight and access to the airport is restricted to people with flight tickets. No problems or delays have been reported so far.
