Holiday on Crete: Tips for trips to mythology and historical sites

Summer is already halfway through, so it's time to think: isn't it the perfect moment to head into the unknown, experience some adventure, or maybe just get some well-deserved rest?

But where should you go this year? Cinemas are currently dominated by Nolan's Odyssey, bookstores are shining with beautiful editions of Homer… it's time to turn your gaze to Greece. And where else to start discovering Greek beauty than on the island that, according to myths, hides the cave where Zeus himself was born? Crete is just waiting for brave adventurers who aren't afraid to uncover its secrets.

If you're tired of searching for travel challenges and are at an age where you need to take a breather, my tip is a travel agency. After years of traveling on our own, we paid for an all-inclusive stay for the first time in our lives. We let ourselves be transported from point A to point B and didn't have to deal with anything. No arranging flights, hotels, or food—everything was served right under our noses, especially the food. And what could satisfy your inner hobbit more than stuffing your face several times a day without having to cook even once? Simply paradise on Earth!

Our temporary home on Crete was the village of Analipsi, which turned out to be a well-chosen strategic point.

It is located on the northern coast, roughly in the middle of the island. I won't lie, it's just one of many holiday resorts, and there wasn't much to see besides beautiful beaches and the sea. Even so, we enjoyed the first few days of acclimatizing to the slight time difference and the night flight—wandering through local streets, picking through tons of bizarre souvenirs, and hunting for good coffee (which really isn't one of Greece's strong suits, but those who seek shall find!).

What couldn't be missing, of course, were the cats

They live quite freely on the Greek islands and are everywhere, which we were prepared for by friends. Equipped with cat treats that our spoiled domestic demons at home turned their noses up at, we set off on our travels. The local cats were far less picky—they ate everything we had, and as a reward, we could even pet them (and then, of course, disinfect ourselves; you never know here…).

From Analipsi, it was only about a half-hour bus ride to Heraklion, the island's capital. That was the first destination for our thirst for knowledge—just arrive at the bus station and hike up the rather steep hill to the center. You'll immediately run into the local Archaeological Museum, one of the oldest in Greece, offering visitors a rich collection of Minoan culture.

If you don't remember from history class, I'll remind you that this is the oldest advanced European culture from the Bronze Age, which dominated Crete roughly between 2700 BC and 1450 BC. It was characterized by rich palace complexes like Malia and Knossos. The latter is directly connected to the legend of the Minotaur and his labyrinth, which I surely don't need to introduce—we all read the classic Greek myths in elementary school as part of our mandatory reading.

Archaeological Museum in Heraklion

We set aside the whole morning for the museum, and after just three hours, you're completely overwhelmed by information and history—so many interesting things and beautiful historical artifacts! Definitely worth mentioning are the golden bees of Malia—golden earrings of two symmetrical bees holding a drop of honey together (vain ladies can find replicas in almost every souvenir shop), the Phaistos Disc full of mysterious symbols that no one has managed to reliably decipher to this day, everyday pottery, an ancient board game, or the faience statuette of the Snake Goddess. All this and more in one place—you just want it, provided you're interested in history and archaeology like we are.

Since one doesn't live by culture and history alone, we subsequently dove into exploring the modern city, which still has plenty to offer today—plenty of cafes and restaurants, shops full of temptations (yes, we even found something like a comic book shop), or perhaps an earthquake simulator if you want to shake up your reality. Our walk led us to the majestic harbor fortress of Koules, built by the Venetians in the 16th century, which defended the city from sea attacks with its walls up to nine meters thick.

However, the Historical Museum of Heraklion is definitely worth considering if you want to explore history newer than ancient times, or if you're interested in what the study of the author of the novel Zorba the Greek, Nikos Kazantzakis, looked like. The city streets also offer a chance to peek into local Orthodox churches, which, in terms of art and icons, differ quite a bit from the churches we have in our neck of the woods.

My vacation plan, however, wasn't just about the aforementioned exploring, but also about resting. And so, after every day with thousands of steps walked, came a relaxation day, which was all about swimming in the sea and reading books.

Book tips

Circe by Madeline Miller and The Song of Achilles, both books by the same author. I chose them intentionally because they are Greek myths transformed into novels, ideal for complementing my Greek vacation.

Both books are clear proof of the author's knowledge of mythology and history—the atmosphere of ancient Greece breathes right on you, and both main characters are masterfully described. As someone knowledgeable about mythology, the plot didn't bring me any surprises, as I already knew how Circe's meeting with Odysseus would end or what Achilles' end would be. Nevertheless, both were very enjoyable to read; the pages flew by at the speed of Zeus's lightning, and I enjoyed the lyrical poetics of the stories, which even made me shed a tear at certain moments.

Circe was also good preparation for the Odyssey in the cinema—the exiled daughter of Helios, a witch on a deserted island, whose intermezzo is just one of the stops in the film—but here she has much more space, and we can learn much more about her, her motives, and her relationship with Odysseus.

After a lazy day with a book, we head back out on the road! Since we had already seen various exhibits from Cretan palaces in the archaeological museum, we had to visit some of them. First, we took a bus that dropped us off at the site in Malia—the original home of the golden pendant with the aforementioned bees. Here, we downloaded a very well-made app with an audio guide that led us through the entire complex. Unfortunately, only excavations with the remains of walls forming the floor plan of the objects that were once there remain for visitors to see today—despite this, the place has an unrepeatable atmosphere that makes it worth the trip.

We had to visit Knossos too

Even though it's one big tourist attraction that every guidebook will warn you about. Rumor has it that it's bursting at the seams in the morning hours, but it's such a significant place for its mythology that we visited it despite the warnings from friends. Fortunately, we went in the afternoon (yes, even though it was hot, at the beginning of the season it wasn't quite deadly yet), and to our surprise, around four or five o'clock, there were only a few enthusiasts like us, so we could walk through the palace in peace without unpleasant crowds.

Compared to the palace in Malia, they didn't have as good an audio guide app at Knossos (if I remember correctly, the QR code for it didn't work very well), but even without it, there were at least some information boards with texts everywhere, so we learned a little something. Here, a partially reconstructed palace awaits curious visitors, not just ruins, so it's much easier to visualize what it looked like in its heyday. For me, it's definitely a place that no one should miss on their visit to Crete—walking through the old palace with peacocks and listening to their cries has its own charm.

Spinalonga Island

On this island, you'll find the remains of a leper colony that operated on the islet during the 20th century. We set off for Spinalonga as part of a trip organized by our travel agency, so they arranged the boat trip to the destination, and we didn't have to plan anything ourselves.

Another advantage was that we had a knowledgeable guide who gave us a detailed picture of how the lepers, outcasts of society, had to cope with life from the beginning of their stay. This chapter of Cretan history was quite a tough pill to swallow, and it's hard to believe that the leper colony operated until about the 1950s and that people lived there ostracized by society, often without even suffering from the disease. It was enough to be born to someone with leprosy, and due to a lack of knowledge about the disease and the fact that it is not hereditary but of bacterial origin, that was enough for a permanent residence permit on the island.

If this topic interests you, there is also a novel adaptation of the theme—the book The Island by Victoria Hislop and a Greek series from 2010. Both are unfortunately older, requiring a visit to the library and searching the depths of the internet.

And if you're not tempted by history, Crete offers other activities—you can visit the pottery village of Margarites, in Melidoni they have an olive oil factory where you can watch the producers at work and learn about the production processes. Every village seems to have some local tavern if you want to see a traditional Cretan music evening and dance a little. If you're looking for adrenaline, you can go bungee jumping from a road bridge near Aradena, and there are countless opportunities for diving. And as I announced at the beginning—on the Lassithi Plateau, there is the Dikteon Andron cave above the village of Psychro, where, according to legends, little Zeus and his goat nannies thrived.

There's nothing to wait for, so pick a date—I recommend September so it's not inhumanly hot—stock up on some reading for the road at imago—e.g., the new complete edition of Percy Jackson if you're in the mood for some action-packed reading spiced with Greek mythology, and off you go to plan. Tailor your own Greek journey!