Crete Island Vacations, Cities of Crete, Heraklion, Rethymnon, Chania & Ag. Nikolaos - Joss Travel

Crete is an island with an exquisite 1,000 kilometer-long coastline dotted with numerous coves, bays and peninsulas, which afford a multitude of soft, sandy beaches along the beautifully blue Mediterranean Sea. After all, it's among the finest in the world and has established Crete as one of Europe's most popular holiday destinations.

If you haven’t visited Crete yet, this summer may be the time to come and discover this fascinating Greek island. In the following pages you can find some more info about this gorgeous island as well as some tour suggestions.

The City of Heraklion

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Iraklion is the biggest city in Crete (and fifth in Greece) with a population in excess of 120000. It concentrates most of the economical activity of the island, and is the main port of entry to Crete for the majority of visitors. The Iraklion airport receives approximately 15% of the total tourist traffic of Greece.

The Iraklion airport (HER), named after the Cretan writer Nikos Kazantzakis, is one of the biggest in Greece. There are many airlines currently operating flights from Athens and Thessaloniki to Iraklion, Olympic Airways, Aegean Airlines, Cronus and others while during the high season there are flights from/to Rhodes, Mykonos and Santorini. There are also two main ferry companies that connect Iraklion to mainland Greece, Minoan Lines and ANEK. During the winter months there are two daily trips from Athens to Iraklion. The trip takes approximately 10 hours (it can be 8 even 6 hours with new Super Ferries) by ferry boat.

History is very much alive in Iraklion just like in most Greek cities. The central square while surrounded by cafes, stores and restaurants, is dominated by the fountain of the Lions, built by Morozini the venetian governor in 1628. The Town Hall, is today housed in the Venetian Loggia, a building from the same era. At the end of the central market is a coffee house, housed at the "Koubes" a fountain built by the Turks when they converted the nearby church of the Saviour to the Valide mosque. All around the old part of the city ,a visitor can walk following the old Venetian walls that meet at a bastion, called "Koules", that dominates the old harbour of the city .

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The visitor to Iraklion should definitely visit the archaeological site at Knossos and the Archaelogical Museum of Iraklion that houses most of the Minoan findings in Crete. Special attention should also be paid to the Historical museum of Iraklion that houses findings from the early Christian era to today and the Museum of Natural History

Iraklion today, has extensive facilities that cater for all needs of its visitors.There are numerous hotels ranging from Luxury class to small rent-a-room and youth hostels.

Greeks are a people that enjoy going out a lot, either for lunch or a drink or both (the weather helps a lot..). So Iraklion has numerous restaurants and tavernas that cater for all tastes (and pockets). As far as night life goes there is a big number of bars and nightclubs, open throughout the year, with the number doubling during the high season.
The schedule kept by every shop is fairly flexible, but generally cafes are open from around 10 in the morning to late evening (11-12 p.m.) , restaurants open at noon for lunch and ,after a small break, open again around 8 p.m. and stay open untill late at night, and bars and pubs open around 10 p.m (although the action really starts after 11 p.m.)

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