Location: Heraklion Prefecture
Top Things to do in Heraklion Prefecture
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5 Shopping Tours in Heraklion Prefecture That You Shouldn't Miss
Heraklion (Greek: Περιφερειακή ενότητα Ηρακλείου) is one of the four regional units of Crete. The capital is the city of Heraklion.
Restaurants in Heraklion Prefecture
1. Pottery Classes
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 4 reviews
Creating each pot is a unique moment. The ability that clay gives you from a piece of amorphous matter to create objects that will make everyday life more beautiful give it invaluable value. The hours I go to the atelier are for me a source of energy and relaxation, and that’s what I’m looking for those who visit my atelier. The workshop is located 16 kilometres from Heraklion ( acces only with car ), in a unique location in the nature, with a spectacular view of Cretan mountains. The area around offers many opportunities for walking and visiting the nearby villages.
Inclusions: Aprons to keep your clothes clean. Cretan clay, as well as the necessary equipment for the experience , Coffee and/or Tea
Exclusions:
2. Spinalonga- Beach of Kolokitha island- Agios Nikolaos
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2 reviews
Driving along the North East coast through the gorge of St George we reach the picturesque town of Elounda. Here we board a boat and Spinalonga Cruise starts. We reach the small sandy bay of Kolokitha, where the boat will be anchored. Here you have plenty of time for swimming at the crystal clear water. We proceed to the small island of Spinalonga. Spinalonga has had a very chequered history and today, although uninhabited, still echoes with ghostly reminders of the past. The Venetians constructed a very impressive fortress with 40 cannons which has been guarding the bay since the 15th century. At the beginning of 19th century human pain and sorrow was scattered around this islet. It became a leper colony, the last active leper colony in Europe, and it remained so until 1957. We then return to Agios Nikolaos where you have time to look at the shop windows and visit the bottomless lake, where the “Lotus Eaters” the well-known film was shot.
Inclusions: Air-conditioned vehicle
Exclusions: boat round trip and BBQ - 6 euro per adult, child 5-12 - 50% red, Entrance ticket to Spinalonga - 8 euro per adult, child up 18 yrs old -free
Reviewed By CarolineJ820
This gorge is worth taking ones time walking down rather than a race to the coast as it seems to many and hard not to get caught up in. The sheer depth and fascinating tree growth is truly awe inspiring. It took up 4 hours of moderate walking on an initial narrowness winding path with later widens to the river bottom. Good sold footwear really is a must. The restaurants at the bottom are a welcome celebration before the half hour ferry ride to nearby motor collection harbours.
3. The most interesting sites of Elounda and Mirabello gulf!
Overall Ratings
3.0 based on 1 reviews
We stroll through the village roads. We are listening – along with our guide’s narration- to the cries and sighs of the diseased exiles. They seem like having been curved on the rocks and the walls of the houses and admiring the exquisite beauty of the area. Our firt stop in the morning will be in Agios Nikolaos. There we can drink morning coffee, to have a shopping or to walk around making beautiful pictures. Then, we are going to a small village of Plaka, where we will take a boat to Spinalonga. Sailing to the Island we will see beautiful crystal sea waters of Elounda gulf , mountains around. We will stay approximately 1 hr on the island, walking inside the fortress and making pictures. When we will return to Plaka, we can take a lunch in some local fish taverns or to swim. There is a nice pebble beach. Afterwords we leave to Elounda for afternoon coffee, walk, or swimming. After one hour of stay in Eounda we will take way back to hotels.
Inclusions: Air-conditioned vehicle
Exclusions: Lunch, Entrance fee to Spinalonga island - 8 euro per person, children up 18 yrs old -free, Boat from Plaka to Spinalonga - 6 euro per adult round trip, children 4-12 -50% red.
Reviewed By Lynn C
This was a nice tour that combined different activities to make a full day of sights, swimming, eating, history of Spinalonga, shoppiing etc. We had great weather and visited beautiful places!
4. Saturday noisy market, Heraklion and Cretaquarium
This tour will give us a possibility to visit the most interesting historical monuments of Heraklion, noisy Saturday flea market with many aromatic herbs, different goods and souvenirs. We will have a lot of time for shopping there. Afterwords we are going to visit the biggest Aquarium in Greece - Cretaquarium.
Inclusions: Air-conditioned vehicle
Exclusions:
Reviewed By Lynn C
This was a nice tour that combined different activities to make a full day of sights, swimming, eating, history of Spinalonga, shoppiing etc. We had great weather and visited beautiful places!
5. Heraklion City Tour - Aquarium
A different excursion for those who want to experience the island’s everyday life. You start to get to know the city of Heraklion. The Byzantium, the Ottoman Empire, the Venetian Rule have all left their marks on Heraklion. You can admire the imposing fortress of Koules at the harbor, the Venetian walls that surround the old city, you can sit at one of the many restaurants or coffee shops in the Lions’ Square to enjoy your coffee or your lunch, or if you wish to, you will be able to visit one of the many city museums, the Municipal Library and the Art Gallery or one of the numerous byzantine churches. Grab your cameras and take shots of whatever you like most! Just a few kilometers away from Heraklion, you can visit optional the Cretaquarium or have a swim on a sandy beach
Inclusions: Air-conditioned vehicle, WiFi on board
Exclusions: 10 € Archeological Museum of Heraklion optional (children - 18 y.o. free), Crete Aquarium optional 10€ adult, 5-17 y.o.6€
Reviewed By Tania L
I did the Gramvousa and Balos tour with my family on may 31st and we had a terrible and stressful experience. We waited for almost 25 mins to be picked up in the morning and the boat was overcrowded. These things I could set aside and forget given it was maybe beyond the control of the bus driver to pick us up at scheduled time, or that it is tourist season and the boats might be overcrowded. What I have a problem with, is that it WASN’T ADVERTISED that on both Gramvousa and Balos in order to get to the beach, visitors need to walk over treacherous and dangerous volcanic rocks and there would be no designated walking path. We were also not warned that we need hiking boots to get off the boat as the rocks are absolutely not suitable for beach footwear. It only says for visitors who want to hike up to the fortress to wear walking shoes. It doesnt say the volcanic rocks aren't appropriate for small children and older individuals. The free time we had on Gramvousa island was 1 hour and in Balos 2 hours which was 2 hours LESS THAN ADVERTISED. I travelled with a 2 year old child who fell twice on the rocks in Balos and could've seriously injured himself had he hit his head. My other 2 family members who are women close to 70 year old couldn't even see the Balos lagoon because it was dangerous to walk 200m over the dangerous rocks. One of them nearly twisted her ankle and the other hurt her back while trying to balance on the rocks so they had to go back to the boat and wait over 2 hours for the boat to leave Balos. The tour was not as advertised and actually not disclosing crucial information about the volcanic rocks visitors have to walk over in order to reach Gramvousa and Balos beach is not only misleading but dangerous for the health of visitors. The tour guide by the name Sergio was rude when I expressed my concerns about the safety of the tour and that there was even a man who got seriously injured and was bleeding down his leg. Sergio told me how I wasn't climbing the Himalayas and that I didn't need hiking shoes. As a matter of fact, I did trekking in the Himalayas and I felt safer trekking there than walking 200m to Balos beach. And why I felt safer? Because I had proper footwear. The tour was terrible and my family members could not even access the highlighted parts of the tour, such as the lagoon. I will take this matter to the Greek ministry of tourism. I sent an email to the tour organizer, Viola, after the incident expressing my concerns, and I also asked for a refund. I got NO reply. Just shows how sketchy and unprofessional these people are.
