Travel News • Traveling to Greece

Emirates to Restart Service Between the US and Greece – First Class and Great Economy!

3 years ago
4 Comments
by Charlie
a white airplane flying in the sky
Written by Charlie

Emirates is going to restart their flight between the US and Greece – a fabulous economy option and the only airline with first class on this route!

As airlines look to restart routes around the world that once were very popular, it is certainly a good sign for all of us who are looking at being able to travel again to many places. One of these routes is a special one from Emirates that was very popular with those that wanted a sunny summer vacation.

Emirates Restarting Newark to Athens Service

Emirates announced today the new start date for their previously suspended service between Newark and Athens. This is the same exact route that competitor United Airlines flies (and I definitely would choose Emirates if flying economy!). As another nice note, Emirates was the only airline to fly this route year round (as the other airlines are seasonal). This route actually is part of the Athens – Dubai so you could always book it as a nice stopover in Athens if you are headed to Dubai!

This route will restart June 1, 2021. It will use the same three-class Boeing 777-300ER as the previous schedule had. The bad news is this means the same outdated business class with the angled seats. It does have the famous first class cabin (though not their new one) but since this is on a 777 instead of an Airbus A380, it does not have a shower onboard.

I have flown this exact route in economy and can tell you this – it is definitely my favorite option for economy between the US and Greece. It definitely is an upgrade from the US airlines’ economy options on this leg.

The flight schedule will be the following:

  • Depart Athens 17:35, arriving in Newark at 21:20 on the same day
  • Depart Newark 23:55, arriving in Athens at 16:05 the next day

While the flight from Newark to Athens is definitely not bad, I am not a fan of the schedule into Newark. This is because, if you need to connect, it will almost always require an overnight stay in Newark for a next day connection. Still, if you don’t mind the overnight or you live in the tri-state area, it is definitely nice to leave gorgeous Greece as late as possible!

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About the author

Charlie

Charlie has been an avid traveler and runner for many years. He has run in marathons around the world for less than it would cost to travel to the next town - all as a result of collecting and using miles and points. Over the years, he has flown hundreds of thousands of miles and collected millions of miles and points.
Now he uses this experience and knowledge to help others through Running with Miles.

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4 Comments

  • Let’s hope the people at Emirates know something from both Greek and American officials to start offering this in June

    • From what I am hearing and understanding, I think Greece will be opening up to Americans June 1 – regardless of what the EU does.

  • Charlie, what is the frequency on the Emirates Athens run? Same frequency year round?

    • Hi, BJ – yes, it is the same year round with daily flights (normally, we will see how the schedule shakes out when things fully open).