Chalkidiki is located in northern Greece near the city of Thessaloniki on the shores of the Aegean Sea. The resorts can only be reached by road by car or by regular buses from Thessaloniki.
There is no railway to Halkidiki.
By air
The vast majority of travellers get here via the nearby airport Thessaloniki SKG (50 km from the nearest resorts), which receives a large number of flights from all over Europe.
The second closest airport is Kavala KVA (129km from the nearest resorts), but there are significantly fewer flights to this airport and therefore more expensive.
Ryanair has a large base at Thessaloniki Airport with direct flights to over 40 destinations across Europe.
You can also buy tickets to Thessaloniki with the following airlines:
- aegenair.com - The Greek national airline flies from Thessaloniki to destinations such as Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Chania, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Heraklion, Larnaca, Milan, Munich, Rhodes, Rome, Zurich
- airserbia.com - often very cheap flights to all of Europe with a connection in Belgrade
- austrian.com - via Vienna to all over the world
- lufthansa.com - via Frankfurt and Munich to the whole world
- jet2.com - seasonal flights to many UK cities
- eurowings.com - Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Cologne
Airlines such as TAROM, easyJet, El Al, Norwegian, SAS, Wizz Air and Turkish Airlines also fly to Thessaloniki.
Compare airfares to Thessaloniki
By bus from Thessaloniki to Halkidiki
The flight to Thessaloniki is just the first part of the journey to the sea. If you're not renting a car at the airport, you'll need to take a bus to your destination.
All connections between Thessaloniki and all resorts in Halkidiki are provided by a single bus company, KTEL Halkidikis. It has a very clear website by Greek standards, where you can check the timetable and buy your ticket online.
- Timetables on ktel-chalkidikis.gr
- Online ticket purchase at eticket.ktel-chalkidikis.gr
Ticket prices and frequencies
The most frequent buses from Thessaloniki to the resorts on the westernmost tip of Kassandra run along the route Nea Potidea - Afytos - Kallithea - Kriopigi - Polychrono - Chanioti - Pefkochori - Paliouri, where you can use 10 to 12 connections per day during the summer season.
The more distant resorts on the Sithonia and Athos peninsulas are usually reached 4-5 times a day.
Ticket prices are based on distance and are the same when purchased online and on site. Each bus has half the seats allocated for online tickets and half for on-site purchase from the driver or from the ticket office at the larger bus stations.
Examples of ticket prices
- Thessaloniki - Pefkochori: 12,90 eur
- Thessaloniki - Kallithea: 9,60 eur
- Thessaloniki - Neos Marmaras: 14,20 eur
- Thessaloniki - Sarti: 20 eur
- Thessaloniki - Ouranoupoli (Athos): 13,60 eur
Where can I find the bus station in Thessaloniki?
There are three bus stations in the city, which can be a bit confusing. All services to Halkidiki depart from the KTEL Halkidikis bus station in the east of the city, which is operated directly by the bus company.
The bus station can be reached from the centre by public transport lines 45A and 45B (about once every 10 minutes), and there is a direct service from the airport on line 79A, but only in July and August.
