Best Place to Exchange Money in Heraklion

Where to change money in Heraklion

Heraklion is thin on exchange shops. Onexchange, with outlets in Athens, Thessaloniki and several islands, lists nothing on Crete, and we found no other bureau backed by two sources. A bank's cash machine is the practical choice, and it shows the charge for a UK card before you commit.

• Bank cash machines around Platia Eleftherias - Eleftherias Square, a stop on city bus line 1, is an easy place to start. Use a machine set into a bank branch and cancel if the fee shown looks high.
• Hersonissos and Malia - We could confirm no exchange bureau in either resort, so withdraw before heading east or use a bank's machine once there.

Changing money at the airport

Heraklion Airport (HER) publishes no facilities list that we could open, so we rely on a 2026 travel guide, which reports two cash machines in the arrivals hall and a third airside in departures. Onexchange has no desk here: land and withdraw rather than change notes.

Astiko KTEL Irakliou, the city bus company, has a departure station at the airport. The travel guide says line 1 runs to Platia Eleftherias every 20 to 30 minutes from about 06:00 to 23:00. Taxis serve the terminal; agree the fare first, as we found no official tariff. Malia is about 34 km east of the airport.

ATMs and cards in Heraklion

Incredible Crete, the regional tourism site, suggests asking your bank before you travel about paying and withdrawing abroad. Since 11 August 2025 Greek banks have not charged their own customers for cash at any Greek bank's machine, and third-party machines may charge those customers at most EUR 1.50. A UK card gains nothing from this: Protothema and Parapolitika, the latter quoting finance ministry sources, reported that foreign-bank cards fall outside the cap. Read the on-screen charge and allow for your UK bank's own fee.

Given a choice of currency at a machine or card reader, pick euros and let your own card provider convert. Since 1 April 2024 Greek law has required taxis, kiosks, market stalls and many other trades to take cards, but keep some cash for the smallest kiosks and beach bars.

Paying for transport in Heraklion

Astiko KTEL Irakliou raised its fares on 23 March 2026. A zone A single is EUR 1.30 (EUR 0.80 for pupils and students) bought before boarding, or EUR 2.30 on the bus; zone B costs EUR 1.80, or EUR 2.80 on board. A day ticket is EUR 5. The company does not say which zone the airport is in, so ask when you buy.

Its ticket page offers an app for e-tickets but says nothing about tapping a bank card on board, so carry coins. For Hersonissos and Malia, KTEL long-distance buses leave from the city's bus stations; we found no fare published by the operator.

Good to know

• Tipping is not mandatory. Greek City Times says rounding up is enough in a city taxi, and Revolut's guide suggests a round-up or 5 to 10 per cent in cash at a casual taverna; a separate service charge is not normally added.
• A cover charge (couvert) for bread may be added to a restaurant bill. It is kept by the restaurant, so it does not count as a tip.
• Greece charges a climate resilience fee per room per night. Since January 2025 it has run from EUR 2 (1 to 2 star hotels) to EUR 15 (5 star hotels, large villas) from April to October, and from EUR 0.50 to EUR 4 in winter; a February 2026 travel site reports no change.
• The host usually collects the fee when you leave and must give you a separate receipt for it, so ask whether your booked price already includes it and keep some euros for check-out.