Greece: Heraklion airport?

[Eastridge]

The ABD Greece trip ends at Heraklion airport.

I recently read that Heraklion is considered one of the worst airports in Europe. No AC, not enough seats, bad toilets, etc.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/heraklion-airport-crete-worst-in-world/

If you've been on the ABD Greece trip: Is this airport really that bad? Apparently a new airport opens in 2027 or later.

 

[sayhello]

Yikes! I did Greece in 2013, so my experience is pretty old. It's a small airport, not much to it (or at least it was 11 years ago). Sad if it's gotten that bad!

Sayhello

 

[AquaDame]

We only flew into Heraklion and out of Chania. I don't remember it being particularly hot or awful, but we did not stay long. Chania has A/C, food, and bathrooms - the bathroom was a little slammed and dirty but it was fine. There weren't enough seats for literally everyone there as it was a busy time of day, but we easily found some after a few minutes of waiting as flights were constantly departing and folk were shuffling. If you can add a time on the end, I can say the drive along the coast was gorgeous. There is a bus you could take that goes every hour if you aren't comfortable driving it yourself. We had to make the drive anyway as the only nonstop for me to Oslo only went from Chania, but I was glad we spent a few days on the western side of the island in addition to staying around Heraklion.

 

[floribr1]

Our Greece ABD ended on October 13, so we were just at the HER airport... I will say that it was probably the most stressful airport experience in recent memory. It felt super crowded and frantic, and there seemed to be at least double the number of people compared to seats. Also, they are constantly making announcements (boarding / changed gates, etc.) which they choose to blast at maximum, eardrum rattling volume.

I also heard that a new airport is in the works. I can only hope that will be an improvement, as I can't imagine much worse than what they currently have!

 

[Eastridge]

Thanks for the feedback. I’ll probably wait for the new airport to open.

@floribr1, I hope your ABD Greece trip went well, other than the HER airport.

 

[aggiedog]

If you want to go to Greece, I wouldn't defer just because of one airport. And it's Greece. It could easily take much longer to finish the airport.

I almost died this summer. While I've never been one to put things I wanted to do off until retirement or some other distant goal, it really hit home that we truly don't get any guaranteed days. Do things while you can and make the best of it.

 

[Eastridge]

Thanks for the advice, and yes I am not deferring things in general. Greece is just one of many destinations I’m interested in, so I’m factoring in all aspects of possible trips to choose which to prioritize.

 

[aggiedog]

Makes sense. Nice to have lots of choices!

 

[pjacobi]

Toilet problems in Greece are explained by any travel guidebook. In some places, the sewage system cannot handle paper products. After using toilet paper, you must dispose of it in the provided trash can.

It's a good lesson in learning how the rest of the world lives!

Adapt to the Greek method or learn to use a bidet.


-Paul

 

[floribr1]

Thanks for the feedback. I’ll probably wait for the new airport to open.

@floribr1, I hope your ABD Greece trip went well, other than the HER airport.

The trip was fantastic, and the HER airport experience did not spoil anything. Our ABD guide told us that the new airport they were starting to build has been put on hold, since after they started the initial digging they encountered some ancient ruins (it is Greece, after all. ). So who knows how long it will be before there is a new airport...

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

I don't recall the Heraklion airport being any worse than the other airports in Greece. However I will say that the airports in Greece were overall the worst I've been to (I'm not as well traveled as a lot of posters here, but have been to every continent except Antarctica). They were chaotic, crowded, insufficient signage, not enough seating, workers all seemed to be in a bad mood, all required (hot) bus rides out to the plane, etc.

But I wouldn't let that stop me from traveling to Greece.