Knossos Archaeological Site
- Ancient Landmarks, UNESCO World Heritage Sites
- Geo Area: Crete
Knossos is the largest Minoan palace of Crete. It stands on a low hill about 5 kilometres south of the centre of Heraklion. People lived on this hill from about 7000 BC. The first palace was built around 1900 BC, a larger one replaced it around 1700 BC, and a fire destroyed that one around 1350 BC. In Greek myth this was the palace of King Minos, and its many rooms and corridors are linked with the story of the Labyrinth.
The palace has four wings around the Central Court. On the west side are the long storerooms, where rows of large clay jars still stand, and the Throne Room, with a stone seat against the wall and painted griffins on each side of it. On the east side, the Grand Staircase leads down to the rooms known as the royal apartments. One of them, the Queen's Hall, has a wall painting of dolphins. At the north entrance, a restored porch carries the painting of a charging bull. Outside the north-west corner are a paved ancient road and a small stepped area that is called the theatre.
Much of what stands today was rebuilt. The British archaeologist Arthur Evans excavated the palace from 1900 and restored parts of it with reinforced concrete. Archaeologists still discuss how close his work is to the original building. The wall paintings on the site are copies. The originals and most of the finds from Knossos are in the Heraklion Archaeological Museum, in the centre of the city, so the two visits belong together. In 2025 UNESCO added Knossos to the World Heritage List, together with five other Minoan palace sites of Crete.
Where to Stay
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Practical information
Tickets and hours
Tickets are sold online and at the entrance, and no time slot is needed. The site is open every day. It stays open until the evening in summer and closes earlier in winter, so check the official ticket site of the Ministry of Culture before you go. It is closed on the main public holidays. Entry is free on certain days of the year, among them the first and third Sundays from November to March. Young visitors from the European Union enter free with an identity document.
How to visit
Allow one and a half to two hours. The site has almost no explanation signs, so the visit means much more with a licensed guide, an audio guide or a printed guide. Audio guides are offered at the entrance. The main points are the Central Court, the Throne Room, the Grand Staircase and the north entrance. Visit the Heraklion Archaeological Museum on the same day or the next one, because the original wall paintings and the finds are shown there.
Getting there
A city bus runs from the centre of the city to the entrance of the site. Line 2 leaves from the centre of Heraklion every 15 to 20 minutes and takes about 20 minutes, because of the traffic. By car or taxi the drive takes 10 to 15 minutes, and there is a car park beside the entrance. Visitors who stay in other parts of Crete usually come on an organised day trip or drive to Heraklion first.
When to go
Arrive at opening time or late in the afternoon. Tour buses start to arrive from the middle of the morning, and from about 11:00 to 14:00 in summer the site is at its hottest and most crowded. April to early June and September to October are the most comfortable months. In winter there are few visitors, but the site closes earlier in the day.
Good to know
Almost all of the site is in the open, with very little shade. Bring a hat and water in the warm months. Wear closed shoes, because the route has uneven stone paving, ramps and worn steps. A café, a shop and toilets stand at the entrance, and there is no place to leave bags. Parts of the route are accessible to wheelchair users, so ask at the entrance which parts.
