On day 5 of our Greek Odyssey Cruise, we visited the Heraklion Crete in Greece. Yesterday, we visited the historical city of Kusadasi and today is Crete. Heraklion is the largest city and the capital of the island, Crete. It also one of the fastest-growing tourist destinations in Greece because of the history that preserved in the city such as Knossos in the Minoan Era. We arrived at the Heraklion port at 6:30 in the morning, and get off the ship about 8 am. From the ship, we took a free shuttle going to the port entrance. And before you exit the port, make sure you visit the information desk. They provided maps and information about the city, in case you don’t know where to go. We decided to visit 2 locations at this time and we did not purchase any excursions at the ship.
Heraklion Archeological Museum
Our first destination is the Heraklion Archeological Museum. From the cruise port, you can just walk 15 minutes and you will reach the Archeological Museum. The tickets for the museum is 10 euros but you can buy the museum and the Knossos for only 16 euros. So make sure you grab that deal because the tickets for the Knossos Palace is 15 euros already at the gate.
In the Archeological Museum, you can see a lot of ancient artifacts from 6000 BCE to classic Greek and the Roman era. We spent about 2 hours in the museum because there is such a lot of preserve artifact in there. We enjoyed learning the history of the island where different people from all over the world conquered this place. From the Minoan era to the Venetian era and now to the Greeks, they all have part of the history of this island.
We also learned more about Greek mythology and their Gods. Rea enjoyed the greek mythology area where you can find their different Gods like Zeus, Apollo, Ares, and Athena.
Knossos Palace
Our next stop was the palace of Knossos and we took a bus to get there. We paid 1.70 euro for a bus ticket per person and our travel is about 30 minutes. When we arrived at the Knossos Palace, we skipped the line because we already bought the ticket at the museum.
We spent about 2 hours in the palace where we saw the castle of Minoans that built-in 9th century B.C. But the whole castle is gone, the only remains was a few foundation and walls.
Downtown Heraklion
After we visited the Knossos, we took the bus going back to downtown of Heraklion. In downtown, we saw a lot of shops and restaurants and most tourist gathered here too.
We got hungry so we decided to sit down and had our lunch in one of the restaurant in the area, downtown of Heraklion.
Morosini Lions Fountain
Right in front of our restaurant, you can relax and enjoy watching the water streaming to this Morosini Lions Fountain located at the heart of Heraklion, Crete.
Agios Titos Church
After we finished our lunch, we head to Agios Titos Church. This is one of the most important monument in Heraklion, Crete. The original church was built in 961 A.D and has been transfered and converted in different religion because of the occupation of the island. Today, the cathedral works as an Greek Orthodox church since 1925.
Shopping Along 25is Avgoustou (August 25th Street)
It’s one of the busiest street in Heraklion, the August 25th street. Most tourist passed by here and you can also found the Titos Church in this street. The street was known for it’s bars, cafes and local vendos in the area where you can find a lot of souvenirs.
Koules Fortress
When you walk all the way down by the 25th street, you can reach the bay. By the bay you will find the Koules Fortress. This historical fortress was possibly built by the Venetians in 16th Century and it was located at the old port in Heraklion.
Open Bus Tour
You can actually get the Hop on Hop off Open Bus tour in Heraklion for only 15 euro and they’ll bring you to different sights of the city. Remember, tickets from the museum, Knossos and other attractions are not included.
Conclusion
Heraklion was a very historical city in the island of Crete in Greece. We enjoyed visiting this place for one day and we definitely come back here and might spent a week to explore the whole island. You can visit all this places that we mentioned because we did it. You can take an open bus tour if you don’t like to walk and use their public transportation.
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