Heraklion Airport

I was checking in for the Stockholm flight with Scandinavian Airlines. The airport was packed with too many flights at the same time. Check-in was ok but at Heraklion you have to take your already checked in luggage to a screening point. It was chaotic with 2 people trying to keep order and 4 full planes dropping their luggage.

Have been travelling through HER airport last 5 yrs (twice yearly) present day experience is unrecognizable from the eighties with major improvements to space refreshments cleanliness and aircon. Only a couple of years ago I was able to carry a large wrapped package in the hold though more recently excess weight has been charged for. It is all a bit 'Greek' at Heraklion but well would one expect anything else yes as another review has remarked. The departure lounge does leave a little to be desired still but even there gone are the lines of furtive secret smokers on the upper landing on route to the duty free area now there are also notices abound proclaiming that sleeping on the hall floor is now prohibited. The mens loo door in the arrivals/baggage reclaim hall still hangs stubbornly open revealing its occupants in various states of undress. Long flight delays and gate changes seems to go on plaguing HER along with the seeming lack of wi-fi even though it is flagged.

Heraklion Airport is definitely showing its age and a bit dirty. The ground staff is pretty slow. We had to wait for nearly one hour to get our bags! We returned on October 5th and once again the airport seemed to be pretty chaotic. At check-in counters your bags are weighed and labelled but you have to carry your luggage to a bag drop-off counter yourself which was quite confusing. Security controls quick and professional - no complaints about that. But the departure area is very small and narrow for an airport of this importance. All in all I am not very impressed with this airport. They get their job done but its quite chaotic.

We arrived in time at Heraklion airport to fly back to Norwich. First of all the check-in desks were late opening and we had to queue for 30 mins. After checking-in we had to take our cases for scanning and then queue for Passport Control. We queued at Passport Control for 45 minutes and hardly moved. There were about 50 people waiting at this time. We were aware that one security person was letting a few people through at a time - we were also aware that people were getting through quicker by pushing in from the left and centre and were allowed through the authorities thus ignoring the proper queue. It was so hot and people in the proper queue were getting frustrated at being ignored. The officers on the "other side" of the barrier thought it was a huge joke and didn't hide their amusement at our frustrations. We queued for over an hour and a half before a Thomas Cook rep took control of the situation and when we finally got through we looked back across the concourse and there must have been well in excess of 400 people waiting to get through Passport Control for various flights. The annoying thing was that being EU Nationals the security officer didn't even want to look at our passports as we were English! We have never experienced such disorganisation at an airport before - never again!

Heraklion airport has been a busy international airport for over 25 years and apart from increasing in size it has not been updated at all. It is expensive the hire car parks are almost impossible to find unless you have been given strict instruction and dangerously situated across a busy road. The rest rooms have not been updated in over 25 years when I was a rep for a UK holiday company making the job of the hygiene staff difficult and often quite impossible. It is very disappointing when one realises how many people pass through its doors annually leaving large amounts of money not to even install new toilets that flush!! Is that too much to ask in the 21st century? However I have to give credit to the check in staff even under huge pressure and a sea of people they are quite efficient. As a hotelier on the island I hear comments about the two airports and neither are flattering. Food for thought for the powers to be maybe?

Heraklion is the worst airport I have been to! Arrival was ok luggage belts a mess but finally we got our things. Departure was the horror! Besides the temperature the airport was packed with people with literally not a centimeter space between each other and their luggage to walk trough. To get from one counter to the other we had to leave the airport building at one exit to enter it at another! There were no proper signs nobody to ask! Finally other passengers told us where the x-ray for the luggage is. That's a scandal I am sorry! A passenger has really to queue 4 times minimum until reaching the plane. First you queue at the check in (if you are lucky: in the building) then you queue at the x-ray (so you finally have found it and could get rid of your bags) then you queue at the passport control and then you queue at the security check. Then you reach a completely overcrowded waiting area with one duty free (where we bought some wine and oil and the cashier graciously handed us a plastic bag - not even thinking about making any extra effort to put the goods into the bag - I had to do it on my own - that's real service congratulations). We found two really friendly people helping us the rest was either arrogant bored annoyed or overstrained. This airport is a service desert! Crete was nice but our holiday mood was gone that moment entering this airport. Improving this fully underdimensioned airport would cost a fortune - true but I don't see any will for change at all reading the comments dating back to 2004. There is not enough space for everything but clear and correct signs are not expensive. More and competent personnel should also be no miracle to find as so many are working in the tourism industry.

Had no problems at all with arrivals baggage came quickly However departure was a disaster. We had my partners parents with us who are both in there eighties. Check in was bad enough but it then took 2.5 hours to get through security control. The main system keeps calling your flight but there were a couple of hundred people in front of you trying to get through passport controls. We managed to find seats for my partners parents thanks to the kindness of other passengers. This is the worst airport we have ever flown from which is a shame because Crete is lovely. Would not return until they sort it out

Having read other reviews on Heraklion Airport it was with some worry that we approached the arrivals area. No need to worry at all - the luggage arrived quickly and on the belt designated. Departure went smoothly a week later but the public address system is not efficient or loud enough to be helpful.

Arriving from London our luggage did not arrive at the carousel but was in another hall on the wrong belt. Departure was bedlam - no order queues going all over the place and security a joke. Chania airport is far more pleasant but has less flights to and from the UK. The fairly new Athens Airport is (in my experience) excellent. Why can the Greeks not improve Heraklion which is used as a gateway into the truly wonderful island of Crete.

Without a doubt the worst airport I have been to. Once through security (which is a bit of a joke given the number of people all jostling to get through) you come out into what can only be described as a huge bus terminal-style waiting room. There is one yes ONE departures screen way up high and absolutely NO airport staff available to answer questions if your flight is not shown. The facilities are dirty and food and drink is unbelievably expensive. I went into the gents and then turned around and walked out again deciding to 'hold it' until we got on the plane. Crete is a wonderful holiday destination but Heraklion airport really lets it down. It is the pits.