I have just returned from my last proper holiday this year. A wonderful week in sunny Crete.
Our arrival at Heraklion airport was in the very early hours of the morning, never a particularly good time to arrive anywhere. Tired uncomfortable and glad to get off the aeroplane the best one can hope for is a rapid transit from the plane and a quick baggage collection.
Upon arrival we didn't have to wait long to disembark from the plane before we had a short walk across the tarmac to the terminal buildings.
The baggage collection hall was quite small, but as there were only passengers from two flights waiting for their luggage this was not a problem. We only waited about 10 minutes before our luggage arrived, all in good condition unfortunately we had no strong men to help us to lift our huge cases from the carousel and as we are no longer young and nubile there were no offers of help forthcoming either.
We of course needed to use the toilets which we did with some trepidation having had previous experiences of airport toilets around the world. These were amazingly clean and sweet smelling. Those of you that have been lucky enough to visit Greece will be aware of the hazards of their sanitation (No loo roll down the toilet - you put it in a bin beside the bowl) The bin had obviously been recently emptied or the travellers who had used it previously had not obeyed the very obvious signs to put their loo roll in the bin.
The rest of the transit through the airport was rapid, no problems with customs or with passport control and no queues for either.
Our difficulties came outside the airport where all the tour companies have little sheds, seemingly hundreds of them, and finding the right one when you are half asleep is a tricky business. This of course would be no problem if your holiday was not arranged through a holiday company.
Once we had found the right shed we were directed to our coach and again there seemed to be hundreds of these too but eventually we found it and were on our way.
There is ample parking space for cars at the airport and the facility to order or collect a hire car upon arrival.
Taxis were also available a few yards from the entrance to the airport.
Those of you who are adventurous will be pleased to know that there is a regular bus service from the airport to the bus station and from here there is an excellent service that will take you all over the island.
Being very tired we did not investigate the other facilities.
On our return we were rather worried as previous visitors told tales of huge queues and almost missing flights as they had waited so long, so we were pleasantly surprised when on our arrival we were at the front of one of two queues. Prior to checking in our luggage we had to put the luggage that was going into the hold through a scanner(lift your case on yourself). We then proceeded very quickly to the check in desk where we were processed quickly and efficiently although unfortunately although we were almost at the front of the queue we were not given seats next to each other and being rather dozy we did not realise until too late.
The speed of the check in left us with plenty of time before our flight so we made the most of the last two hours of our holiday by sitting outside on fairly comfortable seats enjoying the sun and the 28 degree temperature (And mixing up our bacardi and coke in cola bottles to take on the plane)
Like most airports there are a variety of shops selling local goods, gifts, snacks sweets etc. You can also change currency here too, the exchange rate isn't too bad either.
Passing through passport control was much the same as at other airports,hand luggage through a scanner, you through a scanner show your passport and wait for the call to board your plane.
Announcements about flights are in both Greek and English although they are inaudible in parts of the departure lounge. The screens that let you know where to board your plane are clear but not always updated to tell you when to go to the departure gate.
The departure lounge for Gates 1 -4 is small but there was ample seating for all passengers.I cannot comment on the facilities for gates 5 -10 as I did not use this section.
Within the lounge is a snack bar serving light snacks and drinks which is strangely positioned by the smoking section of the lounge. Prices were very reasonable although the choice was somewhat limited mostly pies and pastries if you wanted something to eat.
The duty free shop is upstairs and carries a wide range of the usual duty free goods. The perfume section is staffed by very helpful young ladies who are happy to help you to spend your money. Prices compare favourably with UK airports. Because tobacco is so cheap in Greece smokers can stock up with their favourite brands at local prices and still make a considerable saving on UK prices.
Transit from the lounge to the plane was by the usual packed coach with steps from the tarmac to the door.
If being in any airport can be described as such I would say that this was a pleasant experience overall BUT we were travelling at the very end of the season when the resorts on the island were almost completely deserted (lovely) I can only imagine how awful this would be in the height of season in July and August when the island is packed with tourists
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