Piraeus the 19th century, after Athens' declaration as the capital of Greece. In the modern era, Piraeus is a large city, bustling with activity and an integral part of Athens, acting as home to the country's biggest harbour and bearing all the characteristics of a huge marine and commercial-industrial centre. The port of Piraeus is the chief port in Greece, the largest passenger port in Europe and the second largest in the world, servicing about 20 million passengers annually. With a throughput of 1.4 million TEUs, Piraeus is placed among the top ten ports in container traffic in Europe and the
Port of Thessaloniki Port of Thessaloniki The Port of Thessaloniki () is one of the largest Greek seaports and one of the largest ports in the Aegean Sea basin, with a total annual traffic capacity of 16 million tonnes (7 million tonnes dry bulk and 9 million tonnes liquid bulk). As a free port, it also functions as a major gateway for the Balkan hinterland and southeastern Europe. The Port of Thessaloniki also contains the second largest container port in Greece, after the Port of Piraeus. In 2007 the Port of Thessaloniki handled 14,373,245 tonnes of cargo and 222,824 TEU's, making it one