United Airlines announced they will add a new seasonal route connecting Chicago (ORD) with Athens (ATH) for the summer schedule. With this addition, United now operates three seasonal non-stop routes to Athens, with the Chicago (ORD) route joining its New York (EWR) and Washington D.C. (IAD) routes. The New York route resumes service on March 30th, 2024, while the Washington D.C. route resumes service on April 14th, 2024. In total, United now offers travelers a total of fifteen non-stop transatlantic routes to Europe from the Chicago hub.

United’s New Chicago to Athens Route

Between May 23rd, 2024 and August 11th, 2024, United will operate daily non-stop flights between Chicago (ORD) and Athens (ATH). The new daily flight will have the following flight times:

• UA422 Chicago (ORD) to Athens (ATH), departing 4:35PM and arriving at 10:50AM (next day) – 10hr 15min flight time
• UA 423 Athens (ATH) to Chicago (ORD), departing 12:45PM and arriving at 4:25PM – 11hr 40min flight time

Credit: GCMAPPER.

United will operate its 787-8 Dreamliner on this route in a three class configuration: 28 Business Class seats, 21 Premium Economy Class seats, and 194 Economy seats. The Business Class cabin features the Polaris product from United, with direct aisle access for every passenger. In Economy, passengers have the option to choose from any of the 36 Economy Plus seats, which feature an increased pitch and additional recline.

Credit. The Points Guy. Polaris Business Class.

Credit: United Airlines. Premium Economy.

Credit. The Points Guy. Economy Class

Booking United’s New Chicago to Athens Route

The new route already appears on the United site and is available for booking via cash or United MileagePlus miles. The round-trip cash prices for a tickets on the inaugural flight are significantly inflated with rates starting at: $3,238 USD in Economy Class, $4,333 in Premium Economy, and $13,748 in Business Class. The normal prices for a round-trip cash ticket should settle around the following rates: ~$1,250 USD in Economy Class, ~$2,500 in Premium Economy, and ~$5,500 in Business Class.

While MileagePlus Saver Award space is available, it is severely limited. The average MileagePlus saver award rates on routes to Europe are as follows: 40,000 points in Economy Class, 50,000 points in Premium Economy, and 80,000 points in Business Class.

Final Thoughts

As of May 2024, Chicago will offer two non-stop routes to Athens. The new United flight will challenge the American Airlines monopoly on the Chicago (ORD) to Athens (ATH) route, but should fare well given the size and importance of the United hub in Chicago. With the new Athens route, United now offers customers three flight options between the United States and Greece. The larger network footprint and more connection options is especially valuable to loyalty customers not living in a United hub.