Athens to Heraklion is 309 km, about 48 min in the air on a light jet. Heraklion is the practical Crete arrival and, unlike Mykonos or Santorini, it will usually park the aircraft - which is why a Crete trip often prices better than a Cyclades one of the same length. A written quotation follows inside 30 minutes; +357 95 119759 answers at any hour.
Under an hour from the mainland, flown all summer. Crete behaves differently from the Cyclades, and in your favour. Tell us the dates and the party and we will say what the island will actually allow on them.
REQUEST A QUOTEA short mainland-to-island sector where the airport rather than the aeroplane decides how the trip is flown.
One easy end and one that sets the terms in high summer.
| Field | Code | Role on this route | What decides it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athens Eleftherios Venizelos | ATH / LGAV | Departure | Full business aviation handling around the clock, and the base most island trips start from |
| Heraklion | HER / LGIR | Arrival | Crete main field, shared with military use and busy with scheduled traffic all summer. It takes larger aircraft than the Cyclades fields and, unlike them, will usually park an aircraft - which changes the economics of the whole trip |
| Chania | CHQ / LGSA | Western Crete | The better field for Chania and the west of the island, about 2 h 30 by road from Heraklion |
| Sitia | JSH / LGST | Situational | Small eastern field, useful for the far end of the island, subject to type and handling |
Slot and ground-time conditions at the island fields are published operating rules and change from season to season. We confirm them against your dates rather than against a general rule.
Under an hour with holiday luggage. The hold is the limit that surprises people, not the seats.
Up to seven seats and the aircraft most often placed on short Mediterranean sectors. The usual first answer.
Phenom 300 →Four to six with luggage, easier to place at short notice in the season, and cheaper to run on a short leg.
Citation CJ2 →The older light jet on the same sectors. Less cabin, lower cost, and worth asking about when the schedule is flexible.
Citation Bravo →We do not publish a starting price for this pairing. On a sector under an hour the flying is the smallest item and the repositioning is often the largest. Below are hourly rates other people publish for light jets in Europe.
| Reference | Applies to | Published figure | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whole aircraft, this route | Athens to Heraklion | not published | We hold no route price for this pairing and will not invent one. The written quotation against your dates is the only price |
| Hourly rate, light jets | Europe | 4,600 – 7,300 EUR per hour | Broker published range, undated, retrieved 2026 |
| Hourly rate, from | Europe | from 2,900 EUR per hour | Broker published range, 19.02.2026 |
| Hourly rate, quoted in dollars | Light jets | 3,750 – 4,200 USD per hour | Broker published range, August 2026 |
| Empty leg | varies with the day | brokers publish discounts of 50 – 75% | Broker price pages, retrieved 2026 |
The item that decides this quotation is the ground rule at the island end. In season the aircraft is not parked: it sets you down, leaves, and returns for you, and those two extra sectors are yours to pay for. Slot requests are filed against a short window and granted after scheduled traffic, so nobody can promise you an August arrival in June. Ask any quotation you are comparing whether the repositioning is inside the figure and what the plan is if the slot is refused. Ours answers both.
The figures above are third-party published rates, quoted so you can sanity-check a quotation. They are not our prices and they are not a quotation. The only price we stand behind is the written one against your dates.
Summer route with a real shoulder either side, and the shoulder is where the value is.
| Period | What happens | What to do about it |
|---|---|---|
| June to September | Peak both ends. Slots and parking are the constraints, not aircraft availability | Ask about the slot and whether the aircraft can wait, before choosing the type |
| August Saturdays | The hardest days of the year on this pairing | Fly midweek where the plan allows |
| May and October | Shoulder. Good availability, everything still open | The best value weeks on this route |
| November to April | Thin. Reduced handling and services at the island end | Confirm with us what is open before planning around it |
What usually follows, and the alternatives worth knowing before you need them.
If the destination is Chania or the west coast, fly there rather than drive two and a half hours from Heraklion.
Short hops north to Santorini and Mykonos, with the slot discipline those fields impose.
Athens to Santorini →Crete to Larnaca is a short sector and a common second leg for eastern Mediterranean trips.
Larnaca to Athens →Tell us your dates and how many of you there are. Your dedicated flight advisor will come back with aircraft options and a firm price.