IVF AROUND THE WORLD DR GEORGIOU CLINIC

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1 TRAVEL INFORMATION Travelling from Athens airport to IVF Around the World or to your hotel: You have several options: 1. Taxi (night time rates are higher) 2. IVF Around the World driver Airport bus 5 4. Metro 8 5. Pre-booked airport transfer 40 upwards via one of the many firms which advertise on the Internet. Taxi 35-40: There is a taxi rank outside the airport, where you can pick up a taxi. The cost direct to IVF Around the World is Euros during the day, but significantly more at night (approx 55). (The official fare is fixed by the government. Ask for an electronic taxi receipt to avoid being charged too much.) Take a map with you so you can show the driver the exact road. IVF Around the World driver 60: John Clarke, husband of the English nurse, Sharon, who works at IVF Around the World, offers a pick-up/drop-off service from the airport to the clinic or to your hotel. He charges 60 Euros each way, but this cost is shared if others need picking up at the same time. You can pre-book by ing [email protected] with details of your flight and arrival time. If you are worried about your trip, if metros, taxis or buses are planned to be on strike, or if you are arriving late at night, this can be a good option: it can be nice to know you will be greeted by a friendly face when you arrive John will be waiting to meet you just outside customs with a bottle of water and a smile. He will also take you to the hospital and wait while you have tests/consultations/preop checks and then drop you at your hotel whatever you need during your time in Athens. Airport Bus X95 5: The Airport Express Bus X95 runs from the bus stop at the airport to very close to IVF Around the World and costs 5 Euros each way. Buses run 24 hours a day and takes 40 minutes.

2 The bus runs more frequently than the metro and the stop is nearer to the clinic than the metro station. Follow signs for buses at the airport, then buy your ticket at the ticket booth, which you will find near the airport bus stop. Note that during the night the ticket booth will be closed until just before the bus is due to leave, so you will need to queue at the closed booth and wait for someone to come to sell the tickets just before the bus leaves. You must validate your ticket i.e. date stamp it, in a machine when you get on the bus. Where to get off: The X95 runs down Mesogeion and onto Vassilas Sofias - so ask for the stop called PL.AMPELOKIPON. (Platia Ambelokipon: ΠΛ.ΑΜΠΕΛΟΚΗΠΩΝ) on the Street: LEOF.VAS.SOFIAS on your journey to IVF Around the World or the next stop: PL.MAVILI (ΠΛ.ΜΑΒΙΛΗ. platia Mavili, Mavili Square - in front of the Athinais Hotel) on the Street: LEOF.VAS.SOFIAS. Do not be afraid to ask the driver or other passengers to let you know when its your stop. The next stop is Platia Mavili (Mavili square) which is where the Athinais and Alexandros hotels. The bus continues into central Athens (Syntagma square). You can find bus timetables on - look for the union jack icon to see the page in English and then use the search function to show the x95 timetable. The bus runs more frequently than the metro Do not be afraid to ask the driver or other passengers to let you know when it s your stop. When you get off at Platia Ambelokipon, the stop is opposite the Athens Tower (Skyscraper that says InterAmerican near the roof and has Alpha Bank and Equal café on the ground floor). Navigate the crossings toreach the Athens Tower, then go down Sinopis (the road with New York Sandwiches on it). When you reach Epoca café, turn right onto Evinou. The Clinic is about half way down Evinou on the left hand side. The next stop is Platia Mavili (Mavili square) which is where the Athinais and Alexandros hotels are. The bus then continues into central Athens (Syntagma square). Return journey: For your return journey by bus, the stop is on Mesogeion go out of the clinic, turn right and walk to the top of Evinou; turn left onto Sinopis; past New York Sandwiches; at the end of Sinopsis; turn right onto Mesogeion and the stop is almost opposite National Bank near to the pharmacy. For the return trip, you can buy tickets on the bus.

3 Timetable: You can find bus timetables on look for the Union Jack icon to see the page in English, and then use the search function to show the X95 timetable. Metro 8: The Metro is easily found at the airport follow the signs for Trains : this takes you outside the airport building, across the road and then you need to go up lift/escalator/stairs to the floor above, then keep following the signs to the trains along a moving walkway. After the end of the moving walkway you get to a sort of atrium which has a shop, cafe, ticket booths and ticket machines. Before you get onto the platform, you need to buy your ticket: from the machines if you have change/small notes; or from the ticket booths if you only have large notes. The station you need is Ambelokipi (but there is only one ticket price for all metro routes from the airport). A one-way ticket costs 8 Euros (though if you are travelling with someone else, its cheaper to buy a group ticket). After you have bought your ticket, you need to authorise it in a machine at the top of the stairs i.e. punch in a datestamp, before you go down onto the platform. The airport is the last station on the line, so all the metro trains leaving the airport are heading back to Athens so you just need to board the train that has its doors open on the right hand side as you step off the escalator. There are luggage racks, but the security officers prefer you to keep bags and suitcases next to you at all times. The train runs overground initially, then goes underground when it gets nearer to Athens. It s a pleasant journey and all stations are marked in Greek and English, so it s easy to follow. The trains have bilingual maps inside and bilingual announcements so you will easily be able to navigate. The journey takes about minutes, and there are usually 2 trains every hour, but trains do not run at night. The same metro line runs down past Ambelokipi and Megaro Moussikis (the clinic is in between those stations), through to Syntagma (the centre of Athens). IVF Around the World is a 5-10 minute walk from Ambelokipi station. Leave Ambelokipi station using the exit (or the lift) signposted for Alexandras/Soutsou. When you come outside, turn right onto Alexandras, cross Soutsou (near the Agora restaurant) and keep going until you reach the big crossroads with Kiffisias on the left and Vas Sofias on the right. Look across the roads, to the right, and you will see the Athens Tower (skyscraper that says InterAmerican near the roof and has Alpha Bank and Equal café on the ground floor), Cross the multiple crossings until you reach the Athens Tower, then go past the Equal Café and New York Sandwiches along Sinopis. Turn right when you get to

4 Epoca Café onto the backstreet, Evinou. IVF Around the World is about half way down Evinou on the left hand side. Be very wary of pickpockets on the metro and in the metro stations. Timetable: You can find the timetables on Further info about buying bus, train & tram tickets: In central Athens metro, bus and tram tickets are interchangeable (except for the metro/bus all the way to/from the airport). You can buy them in advance (you can also buy airport metro tickets in advance, too, but they cost more than city centre tickets) from booths and machines in metro stations and at the airport, and from machines at tram stops. Some kiosks of the kind that sell drinks / snacks / newspapers etc. also sell tickets (but they are limited in the ticket selection they offer, so depending on what you need, it may be best to buy n advance). Always remember to validate your ticket using the punch machines just before you hop on a metro train/tram, or just inside the the bus.

5 IVF Around the World contact details: Address: IVF Around the World BIOMEDICAL CENTRE 8 Evinou Athens (11527 is the greek postal district) Tel: The road Evinou is parallel to Evrou. At the Southern end (which has a closed down shop on one corner and a cafe on the other corner called Expressaki), there is no road sign to tell you that you have found the right road, but there is a road sign at the Northern end of Evinou (which has the Epoca café on one corner and To Sagura (a souvlaki restaurant with big glass windows) on the other corner. See the following Google maps for more info: afd491cb0e8b6162d , &spn= , &sll= , &sspn= , &gl=uk&z=16 (This map shows the Metro station and also the hotels President, Athinais and Elizabeth all are within 5 mins walk of IVF Around the World.) We believed this information was correct at December 2012 but our views may change.