Iraklio, also known as Heraklion or Herakleion is the largest city in Crete, and also one of the major ferry ports on the island.
Despite the many ways to spell the city with the Latin alphabet, I’ve settled on ‘Iraklio’ since it seemed to be the closest to how the locals pronounced the name.
I have to admit, I did not do enough research before visiting this island- I‘d had half an idea to take a day trip to the Samaria Gorge and Elafoniss beach (famously pink colored), only to realize that these trips would take nearly four hours by car in each direction- not exactly the type of day trips we were looking for, especially with a long hike in the middle!!
After realizing that we definitely should have based out trip in Chania, we decide pivot and make the most of exploring Iraklio.
We first walked the length of the Venetian Port- it’s pretty unmissable,jutting into the clear blue water and capped with the Koules Fortress. Visitors could pay 4 Euro to enter the fortress, but the view of the city is pretty good from this area, regardless of your location!
The main street in town is the 25th of August Street up through 1866 Street, which is a paved pedestrian walkway, lined with shops selling souvenirs and other goods.
Definitely make sure to stop by Phyllosophies- their spanakopita is the best Ive had to date, and it’s a wonderful central location by the Morosini Fountain- perfect for people watching.
The Morosini Fountain is both a popular landmark, and a crucial source of fresh water for locals in the 1600s.
We were lucky to stumble across what seemed to be a traditional dancing demonstration outside of the Saint Titus Cathedral during our visit. It was cool to see the dancers in their traditional outfits, and there was live music playing which gave the whole thing an air of celebration.
After watching for a while, we were invited to join in. We did, of course, but I can’t say I was very good! Still, it was a super fun experience!
Further from city center, the Agios Minas Cathedral is a beautiful double-towered church that seemed to be gathering point during our visit. There were so many kids playing football in its shadow!
Despite being one of the largest churches in all of Greece, the close buildings and narrow streets of Iraklio made the building nearly useless as a landmark,- we’d never know we were near it until we turned a corner and there it was!
These narrow streets and our own lack of internal GPS were to our detriment.
We spent nearly an hour trying to walk over to Knossos Palace, only to find ourselves at the Venetian Old City Wall. There is a pretty excellent view of the city from the top of the Bastion, but it was definitely a surprise that we ended up there!
For those interested in classical Greek Mythology, Knossos Palace is an unmissable stop!
The myth of the Minotaur originate in Greece- King Minas of Crete is said to have lived in the Knossos Palace and commissioned Daedalus to build a labyrinth to contain his son- the half man, half bull Minotaur. Eventually, the hero Theseus fought and killed the Minotaur, with the help of a ball o thread gifted to him by King Mino’s daughter Ariadne, to help him navigate the Labyrinth.
These days, visitors can pay 15 Euro to explore the remnants of the Royal Palace, walk through the courtyards, and experience the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion. One of the highlights of the museum is the Phaistos Disc- a Minoan aged artifact with a mysterious script on it.
Since we were staying at Pantanassa Port, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that we had probably the best meal of our whole trip at To Limanaki. It’s about a 20 minute drive from town, but totally worth it.
The wait staff did not seem to speak English, so we were provided with a menu (no pictures) and instructed to write how many of each order we wanted. I had the best dolmades of my life here and can’t recommend it enough. After our very filling meal, we were just saying that we couldn’t eat another bite when our server walked over carrying a full plate of loukoumades, a whole platter of fresh fruit and a serving of Raki. Needless to say, we rallied and cleaned our plates.
The port area has a tiny rocky beach area across the parking lot from the restaurant, and it was lovely to hang out there while we digested our enormous meal.
To get to this location from Iraklio, you would need to take a taxi. There is typically a line of taxis to be found near the water at Eighteen Englishman Square, and the drivers are happy to give you a business card so you can WhatsApp them for any future trips.
I did find that the drivers were very quick to rip us off after hearing our American accents, though. If you’re planning to do a lot of exploring around Crete, I’d highly recommend renting a car. There are public buses, but we found that the stops were not very conveniently located for our purposes.
Despite having planned our visit so poorly, I felt like we had the most unique experiences on this island- how often do you get to participate in a spontaneous group dance lesson?
The food here was also spectacular. Even if I’ll be planning to stay in Chania for any returning visits to the island, I’d honestly consider taking a day trip to Iraklio just to eat!
Leave a Reply