Herat Airport
Lasting Impressions....
Memorable comments left by travellers:
FEATURED REVIEWS
by ?
I used to live in Herat, and traveled to - from the airport several times. I was fortunate enough not to have to sleep there, but I figured I would review the airport to let anyone who doesn't speak Dari know what to expect. Any place else, and this would be a dreadful experience. But this is Afghanistan, so you have to keep a certain amount of flexibility and good humor.
If you are a UN employee, you get the red carpert service. You will get dropped off at the main entrance to the terminal, pass through the security patdown/baggage screening, and wait in a special waiting room where you check in and they collect your baggage.
The rest of us (those of us traveling via Kam Air or Ariana) will start off in the ticketing / baggage collection area off the main city road directly to the left of the road that leads to the airport (coming from Herat city). You show the guard at the gate your ticket, and head to one of the buildings straight ahead on the left side. There are no signs, but there will usually be other people milling around inside the building with luggage. Ariana usually checks people in on the left side of the building. Kam Air checks people in on the right side. You wait in line, tell the guy who gives you your boarding pass how much luggage you have, and then go outside to have someone give you a checked baggage tag (if you are going to check your luggage). Then you head toward the baggage security area. There is no sign, but usually there will be a bunch of people trying to get into an unmarked building with their bags. (Women may have to go in advance to another building to be patted down. The woman there will give you a slip of paper acknowledging that you have been searched. You will give that slip to the guard at the baggage screening room. Your bags will be hand inspected by security. This is actually pretty painless; the men were usually very uncomfortable with having to search female luggage. When you get outside, there will be a truck collecting the checked luggage. Then you walk toward the airport road and make a left and head toward the terminal. Pass security and there will be a poorly lit waiting room. If you are a woman, there is a separate waiting area in front of the door that heads to the tarmac. Go ahead and sit there; you will be led to the plane first and you will be able to choose seats for your male companions (if any). You do not have to be a part of the typical male pushing and shoving. If you look confused, don't be alarmed if one of the airport guards tries to direct you to the woman's waiting area. He is just being polite.
One final note: CALL AHEAD. Flights from Herat do not leave on time especially in the winter, so when you get your ticket, get a telephone number that you can call to check when you should be at the airport (and when your plane will leave). This is not foolproof. But well, what else are you going to do? Travel by road through Kandahar?
by Gunes
"A small airport and air base which you can see a huge -once upon a time aircraft park- and Russian signs and writings on the walls. Ariana, Afghan Airlines is not capable of making scheduled flights to Kabul due to fuel shortage in the country so the Afghan people uses Military transport planes. These planes have no definite departure time and can take off for Kabul anytime. So I slept in the airport together with 30 soldiers whom were extremely friendly, and caught a plane next day. The plane, an old Russian AN12 was a hybrid. Two of it's engines were taken from another plane and had different colour."
Airport Guide
Here is some information that we've picked out of from your reviews. Be sure to read the review pages for the most up-to-date experiences:
- you may get to meet some soldiers
Discount Travel Links
- Hostels and Budget Accommodation - I've booked my own accommodation on this site. If you are too old for hostels and too cheap for hotels, like me, you'll find some good properties. They offer dorms, private rooms, B&Bs, Apartments.
