Crete

Introduction

Saxophonist

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Crete is more than just an island of Greece. It's more of a country with its own music, culture, dance and dialect. It is the largest island of the country and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean Sea, at 8336 square kilometres. Apart from a few rocks south of the island, Crete is also the southernmost island of Greece and the weather can be warm even during winter. Its landscape and culture are very diverse. Add to that an unmistakable party culture in parts of the island, like Chersonisos, and it is clear why this is a favourite destination for so many people.

Cities

• Heraklion is the island's capital.
• Chania
• Rethymno

Sights and Activities

• Ruins of the Minoan palace of Knossos.
• Venetian fortresses of Rethymo.
• Amari Valley.
• Monasteries (Arkadi, Triada, Preveli) with interesting histories
• Lasithi Plateau
• Palekastro area in Eastern Crete
• The White Mountains, Crete's largest mountain range, with more than 100 gorges, and peaks of over 2,500 metres.
• Paleochora
• Bali village close to Sises

• The Roman archaeological site of Gortys
• Samaria Gorge.
• Frangokastello - A haunted castle by the sea.
• Elafonisi - turquoise waters surrounding a stunning islet reached by a sandy peninsula.
• Old mosques and Byzantine monasteries.
• The cave that is the legendary birthplace of Zeus.
• The Venetian port of Chania, with also Turkish architecture.

Weather

Crete has a pleasant Mediterranean climate. Summers from May to September are warm, sunny and very dry. Temperatures are mostly around 30 degrees Celsius though can be well over 40 during some days. Nights are well above 20 degrees Celsius. Winters last from December to February when it's around 15 degrees Celsius during the day and around 10 degrees at night. Mountainous areas are both cooler and wetter, though rain is scarce throughout the year, with a total of around 500mm a year. The wintermonths are the wettest though regional variations exist.

Getting There

By Plane

Heraklion International Airport (HER) has many flights. Thomas Cook Airlines and Thomson Airways mainly serve the British market, while Hamburg International Airlines, TuiFly, Air Berlin and Condor serve the German market. Easyjet has flights to/from Berlin, London and Manchester. Eurocypria has many flights as well including to Polish cities like Poznan, Krakow and Warsaw.
Other destinations include Helsinki, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Tel Aviv, Malta, Paris, Prague, Brussels, Tallinn, Geneva, Amsterdam, Belgrade, Budapest, Saint Petersburg, Moscow, Yekaterinenburg and many Greek Islands and of course Athens and Thessaloniki.

By Boat

Crete has ports at Heraklion, Souda (for Chania), Rethymno, Agios Nikolaos, Sitia and Kissamos.
Ferry services go to/from Athens (Piraeus) to Heraklion, Rethymno and Chania and from Thessaloniki and the Cyclades to Heraklion.

Check the Greek Travel Pages for an impression about companies, schedules and prices, as the choice is very wide. Or check the Greek Ferries website or another one about Ferries between islands in Greece.

Sleep