City Walls

Iraklio

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Iraklio burst out of its walls long ago, but these massive fortifications, with seven bastions and four gates, are still very conspicuous, dwarfing the concrete 20th-century structures around them. The Venetians built the defences between 1462 and 1562. You can follow the walls around the heart of the city, though it’s not a particularly scenic trip.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • June 10, 2017: Visitors at the ancient ruins of the Minoan Palace of Knossos. 1033165021 ancient, antique, archaeological, archeology, architecture, art, building, civilization, columns, crete, culture, destination, europe, famous, fresco, greece, greek, heraklion, historic, historical, knossos, labyrinth, landmark, mediterranean, minoan, minos, minotaur, monument, mythology, old, painting, palace, people, pillars, place, reconstruction, relief, ruins, sightseeign, site, sky, stone, structure, summer, tourism, travel, visit, wall

    Palace of Knossos

    3.48 MILES

    Crete’s most famous historical attraction is the Palace of Knossos, the grand capital of Minoan Crete, located 5km south of the city of Iraklio. The…

  • the ancient city of Gortyna or Gortys, to the south of Heraklion prefecture.; Shutterstock ID 2228390937; your: Barbara Di Castro; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi 2228390937 aerial photography, amphitheater, ancient, ancient greece, ancient site of tylissos, antiquity, archaeological, archaeological site, archeology, architectural, architecture, attraction, bronze, building, city, civilization, cretan, crete, culture, destination, details from the air, documentary tylissos, educational photography, famous, gortyna, gortys, greece, greek, history, island, king minos, mediterranean, minoan, minoan culture, minoans, old, outdoors, past, picturesque, ruin, sightseeing, site, stone, summer, theater, tourism, touristic, traditional, travel, vacations

    Gortyna

    21.46 MILES

    Gortyna (also Gortyn or Gortys) has been inhabited since Neolithic times but reached its pinnacle after becoming the capital of Roman Crete from around 67…

  • Ruins of the ancient Minoan Palace of Phaistos (Festos) with the Messara mountains in the background. 354488120 aegean, age, ancient, archaeological, architecture, backdrop, background, blue, bronze, building, city, civilization, cretan, crete, culture, faistos, famous, festos, greece, greek, history, horizontal, island, landscape, legacy, mediterranean, messara, minoan, mountain, old, outdoors, palace, past, phaestos, phaistos, place, plain, plateau, remains, romantic, ruin, scenic, site, sky, stone, summer, temple, tourism, travel, tree, view, wall

    Phaestos

    26.41 MILES

    Phaestos was the second-most-important Minoan palace-city after Knossos and enjoys an awe-inspiring setting with panoramic views of the Messara Plain and…

  • Aerial view of the ruins of the Minoan palace in Malia, Crete, Greece 1253264969 aerial, historical, malia crete, excavation, stone, building, tour, wall, landscape, archeology, greek, mediterranean, antiquity, sight, touristic, destination, famous, cretan, archaeological, site, hellenic, ruin, historic, heritage

    Palace of Malia

    20.99 MILES

    The Palace of Malia, 3km east of Malia, was built at about the same time as the great Minoan palaces of Phaestos and Knossos. The First Palace dates back…

  • The main church of Arkadi Monastery, symbol of the struggle of Cretans against the Ottoman Empire , Rethymno, Crete, Greece.; Shutterstock ID 586702175; your: Barbara Di Castro; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi 586702175

    Moni Arkadiou

    28.01 MILES

    The 16th-century Arkadi Monastery, 23km southeast of Rethymno, has deep significance for Cretans. As the site where hundreds of cornered locals massacred…

  • Historical Museum of Crete

    Historical Museum of Crete

    0.49 MILES

    If you’re wondering what Crete’s been up to for the past, say, 1700 years, a spin around this engagingly curated museum is in order. Exhibits hopscotch…

  • Tourists looking at the Phaistos Disc inside the archaeological museum of Heraklion in Crete that hold the most important and complete collection of the Minoan civilisation of Crete on the 28th of August 2022 in Crete, Greece. Many of the artefacts in the museum come from Knossos, the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on the Greek island of Crete. (photo by Andrew Aitchison / In pictures via Getty Images) 1245671474 aitchison, greek, heraklion, neolithic, phaistos disc, archaeological, artefacts, ceremonial, civilization, culture, explore, holiday, remains, statues, tourists, viewing

    Heraklion Archaeological Museum

    0.75 MILES

    This state-of-the-art museum is one of the largest and most important in Greece. The two-storey revamped 1930s Bauhaus building makes a gleaming showcase…

  • The path to the cave of Zeus; Shutterstock ID 1827561248; your: Barbara Di Castro; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi 1827561248

    Ideon Cave

    18.91 MILES

    Although just a huge and fairly featureless hole in the ground, Ideon has sacred importance in mythology as the place where Zeus was reared by his mother,…

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Nearby Iraklio attractions

1. Natural History Museum

0.35 MILES

In an imaginatively recycled power station, a 10-minute walk west from 25 Avgoustou along the waterfront, this museum uses huge dioramas and a terrarium…

2. Agios Minas Cathedral

0.38 MILES

One of Greece’s largest cathedrals, with space for 8000 worshippers, Agios Minas was constructed (with interruptions) between 1862 and 1895 and dedicated…

3. Museum of Christian Art

0.39 MILES

Housed in a 13th-century monastery that was later a mosque, this tiny but fascinating museum features well-displayed historic religious artworks from…

4. Historical Museum of Crete

0.49 MILES

If you’re wondering what Crete’s been up to for the past, say, 1700 years, a spin around this engagingly curated museum is in order. Exhibits hopscotch…

5. Grave of Nikos Kazantzakis

0.5 MILES

A simple tomb in the well-preserved Martinengo Bastion south of the city centre honours Nikos Kazantzakis (1883–1957), Crete’s most acclaimed 20th-century…

6. Morosini Fountain

0.52 MILES

Four water-spouting lions make up this charming fountain, the town's most beloved Venetian vestige. Built in 1628 by Francesco Morosini, it once supplied…

7. Turkish Sebil

0.52 MILES

Iraklio's only remaining Turkish-era pump house once supplied drinking water to the local population.

8. Bembo Fountain

0.54 MILES

Iraklio's first fountain was cobbled together in the 1550s from antique materials, including Venetian coats of arms and a statue of a Roman official found…

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