May 2025 at Heraklion Airport wasn’t a month for the timid. If you fancied a quiet stroll through a half-empty terminal, you arrived forty years too late. Official stats from the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority confirmed the crowds: 556,495 passengers—yes, that many elbows and suitcases—passed through the airport between the first and last day of May. With 7,056 flights, even the birds looked twice before crossing the runway.
- Passenger traffic grew by 2.5% compared to May 2024;
- Total: 556,495 passengers, with 498,721 departures and 1,808 passing through;
- Domestic passengers: 81,321 (arrivals plus departures);
- Foreign arrivals: 474,489, most of them staying long enough to sample at least one bottle of raki;
- 1,094 domestic flights by Greek carriers;
- 5,027 international flights, with an even split between scheduled and impromptu getaways;
- 26,935 kilos of goods (luggage mountains not included) and 8,477 kilos of mail delivered;
- All this was made possible by the collective patience of staff, pilots, and the occasional lost tourist.
Military flights clocked in with 27 arrivals and 25 departures, suggesting that even the armed forces couldn’t resist a visit. Helicopters flitted about with 12 movements, and local flying schools racked up 76 training sessions, producing future pilots determined never to work a summer at Heraklion’s check-in desk. Charter flights, air taxis, and the mysterious technical repositioning flights rounded out the chaos, keeping the airport’s staff on their toes.
Arrival Wars: Germany, France, and the UK Throw Down
Now, for the real competition—countries outdoing each other in arrivals. Germany took the gold medal with an impressive 1,905 flights, 162,870 arrivals, and 144,627 departures. As if that weren’t enough, it also managed to send 1,568 kilos of cargo and 2,084 kilos of mail. Coffee? Maybe, but more likely holiday postcards.
Hot on Germany’s heels came France and the United Kingdom. France sweet-talked its way to 670 flights, dropping off 56,177 new arrivals and seeing off 54,635 back home, with a few bags of letters in tow. Britain, not to be outdone, sent 989 planes, 95,426 arrivals, and 79,098 sunburns in reverse—all armed with the usual beach towels and unyielding optimism.
Not to be left out, the Netherlands tallied 337 flights with 29,171 arrivals, Poland joined the party with 232 flights and 22,057 arrivals, and Austria, ever efficient, chalked up 142 flights with 12,139 arrivals. Israel showed a modest but determined presence with 179 flights delivering 13,380 people eager for Cretan hospitality.