Bus to the University of Crete, PAGNI, FORTH and HMU in Heraklion

The bus to the University of Crete in Heraklion, for the Voutes campus and the University General Hospital (PAGNI), is line 11 “PAGNI - University”, with 70 departures every weekday from about 06:25 to 22:38. FORTH is on nine of those weekday trips only, and the Hellenic Mediterranean University (HMU) at Estavromenos is on line 12. A single ticket bought before you board costs €1.30 in zone A or €1.80 in zone B, and a 30-day card costs €70, or €45 for students who qualify.

Last checked: 28 September 2026.

We run thirteen furnished homes a short walk from the HMU gate, and getting around by bus matters to anyone living there. This guide collects what the operator, Astiko KTEL Heraklion (in English, “Heraklion Urban Bus”), publishes for the timetables valid from 1 August 2026. Times and fares change, so treat the numbers below as a snapshot and check the official timetables before you rely on a particular departure.

Which line serves which campus

Where you study or work	Line	Weekday service
University of Crete, Voutes campus	11 “PAGNI - University”	70 departures, about 06:25 to 22:38
PAGNI (University General Hospital)	11 “PAGNI - University”	as above
FORTH, Vassilika Vouton	11, trips shown as “8 I.T.E.”	9 departures, 07:19 to 21:20
HMU, Estavromenos	12 “EL.ME.PA”	78 departures, 06:00 to 00:40

Line 21 “Knossos - Mastabas - PAGNI” also reaches the hospital, on weekdays only.

Line 11: the bus to the University of Crete and PAGNI

The University of Crete has its official seat in Rethymno, but in Heraklion it sits on the Voutes campus (Vassilika Vouton), about 10 km from the city centre. The Schools of Sciences & Engineering and of Medicine are there, next to PAGNI, and line 11 is named after both the hospital and the university.

On weekdays line 11 has 70 departures, the first at about 06:25 and the last at about 22:38. In the morning a bus leaves roughly every 10 minutes; in the afternoon, about every 15. Most trips start at the Port (Limani). Saturdays and Sundays run to separate timetables, so do not assume the weekday rhythm holds at the weekend.

The university itself puts the ride from the centre at 35 to 40 minutes, with buses about every 15 minutes, and a taxi at about 20 minutes. Build that into any lab slot or ward shift that starts early.

Term dates matter too. UoC’s School of Sciences & Engineering started winter lectures on 21 September 2026 (UoC academic calendar). That calendar covers one school only, so students in Medicine and elsewhere should check their own school’s dates.

FORTH: nine weekday trips, so plan around them

FORTH, the Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas, has its headquarters at N. Plastira 100, Vassilika Vouton, in the same Voutes area as the university. Its Heraklion institutes include IESL, IMBB, ICS and IACM.

Not every line 11 bus goes via FORTH. In the timetable the trips that do are marked “8 I.T.E.”, and on weekdays there are nine of them:

Morning	Afternoon	Evening
07:19	14:30	19:30
08:30	15:30	21:20
09:30	16:30
	17:30

There is no Sunday service via FORTH. The gaps are long: after the 09:30 the next FORTH trip is at 14:30, so check in the app which of these trips actually gets you to the institute in time, and what the next one is if you miss it. Researchers who keep irregular hours in the lab should look hard at this table before choosing where to live.

Line 12 to HMU

The Hellenic Mediterranean University, the former TEI of Crete (renamed in 2019), has its central campus at Estavromenos. Its Heraklion schools are Agriculture, Management & Economics, Health Sciences, and Engineering. HMU’s winter teaching runs from 28 September 2026 to 15 January 2027 (HMU academic calendar).

Line 12 “EL.ME.PA” serves HMU. It has more weekday departures than line 11: 78, from 06:00 until 00:40, every 15 to 17 minutes. Trips start at the airport terminal, and many continue to Amnissos. That 00:40 last departure is later than anything on line 11.

Fares, passes and the monthly card

These are the published fares. Zone A is the city, within 5 km; zone B is beyond 5 km. We do not know which zone your own journey falls in, so check that with Astiko before you buy.

Ticket	Zone A	Zone B
Bought before boarding	€1.30	€1.80
Bought on board	€2.30	€2.80
Student fare	€0.80	€1.00

Buying on board costs €1 more per trip, every time. If you ride twice a day, that adds up fast, so buy before you get on.

Pass	Price
All-day	€5
24-hour	€6
3-day	€15
7-day	€30
30-day card	€70
30-day card, student	€45

For a daily commute the 30-day card is the one to look at. At €70 it pays for itself once you make more than about 53 zone A trips a month at €1.30; at €45 for students, it beats single student tickets after about 56 trips at €0.80. Five days a week, there and back, is around 44 trips, so whether it is worth it depends on how often you also ride in the evenings and at weekends. Do your own count for the month ahead.

For a first few days, while you work out your routine, the 3-day or 7-day pass saves you from doing arithmetic at the stop. For more on the monthly budget, see our guide to the cost of living in Heraklion for students.

The student fare: the honest caveat

The operator publishes student prices, but it does not publish whether Erasmus students or other foreign students qualify for them. We do not know the answer, and we would rather say so than let you budget on €45 a month and find out when you buy that you need €70.

Ask before you count on it. You can ask Astiko directly, or ask the ESN section at your university: ESN UoC, which has its office in the Student Union building at Voutes, or ESN Hellenic Mediterranean University at Estavromenos.

The app, timetables and the QR codes

The official app is called “Heraklion Urban Bus”. It sells e-tickets and shows buses’ live positions, which is the fastest way to know whether to run for the stop or finish your coffee. Stops also carry QR codes.

The app is also where you should plan any journey this guide does not cover, including between Estavromenos and Voutes. We do not describe that route here, because the app shows the current answer better than we can.

Where our homes fit in

Our two buildings are both a short walk from the HMU gate: 4 minutes from Agathangelou Papadaki 2 and 5 minutes from Profiti Ilia 7. Each has a bus stop outside. For an HMU student, that means walking to class, and the bus is for the rest of the city.

If you study at Voutes, work at PAGNI, or have a post at FORTH, be honest with yourself about the commute. We cannot tell you how long it takes from our door to your campus, and we will not guess. Open the app, put in the building address and your campus, and look at the actual trips at the hours you will travel. For FORTH especially, with nine weekday buses and none on Sunday, you may well be better off living nearer Voutes, and we would rather you chose right than chose us.

If you are still weighing up neighbourhoods, our guide to student accommodation near HMU covers the area around the buildings in more detail. You can read more about us, or look at a home such as the wide studio to see what is included: bills are included, with the detail on each home’s page.

Before you arrive

Check the timetable for your line in the week you land, since weekend service differs, and settle the student-fare question with Astiko or ESN before you buy a monthly card.

If a home near HMU suits your commute, you can send us a request and we will answer with what is free for your dates.