Crete Tourist Information

Crete Travel Guide

The most popular of Greece's many islands, Crete is rich in history, culture, sandy beaches and a gorgeous coastline. With an incredibly varied landscape, Crete gives travellers the chance to find peace and quiet on remote mountain peaks or bask in the sun alongside fellow tourists.

As the former centre of the Minoan civilisation, Crete has a wealth of ancient ruins including those still standing and those on display in museums, often included in Crete tours. Knossos was an important city for the ancient Minoans and has an impressive archaeological site and palace to show for it. Phaistos is another good area to visit for viewing Minoan ruins. There is a monastery at Prevelli that also makes for an interesting stop, as does the accompanying museum which has many icons and religious objects on display.

Crete Tourist Attractions

Heraklion, also known as Iraklio, is often bypassed by tourists heading for the beach. However, it has two charming city squares, Plateia Eleftherias and Plateia Venizelou with the Morosini Fountain. The Historical Museum of Crete and the Archaeological Museum here are highly recommended as well. Nearby Archanes has been remarkably well restored, boasting four archaeological sites, a museum and some fine eateries.

On the western side of the island, Hania has an elegant harbour with beautiful buildings and a lovely Venetian quarter. The main city square, Plateia, leads to the popular beach of Nea Hora and the northern Venetian port. Sitia is a popular resort full of different hotels, restaurants and bars. Agios Nikolaos is another well-known resort situated on the scenic Gulf of Mirambello with its pleasant beaches.

The gorge of Samaria in Agia Roumeli is an eight mile long gorge that offers magnificent scenery and good hiking terrain. Farther south, tourists can visit the villages of Hora Sfakion and Loutro. The Dikteon Cave is located on Lasithi plateau, which is full of almond trees and apple and pear orchards.

On the southeast side of Crete, in Xerokambos, is a series of caves and mountains with two beautiful beaches tucked among them. Few accommodations are available here, which makes it a tranquil area to stay.