Phaistos TO Heraklion Town

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Phaistos

TransferPlan will transfer you from and to Phaistos as quickly, safely and comfortably as possible. Phaistos is a municipality in south-central Crete 62 km south of Heraklion town.

Phaistos was one of the most significant forums of Minoan civilization and one of the most powerful cities in Crete. Here you can visit the Palace of Phaistos which is located on the east-end of Kastri hill at the end of the Mesara plain in central-southern Crete. The palace was built at the beginning of the second Millennium, referred to as the Protopalatial Period (1900-1700 BC). The task to build the palace was a hard and tedious one, as it used to be one of the biggest complexes in Crete at the time. The palace is also the site where Phaistos disk was discovered. The Phaistos disk is about 15 cm in diameter and covered on both sides with a spiral of stamped symbols. Its origins and meanings remain an object of dispute among archaeologists, thus putting it on the same pedestal with some of the greatest mysteries of the ancient world.

Some inscriptions were recovered by archaeologists, they could not be deciphered as they are all written in Linear A code, which is to this day uncodified. All information we have about the site is based on some ancient texts and findings from Knossos.

Legend has it that Phaistos was the seat of King Radamanthis, brother of the king Minos. It was also the city that gave birth to the great wise man and soothsayer Epimenides, one of the seven wise men of the ancient world. Excavations by archaeologists have unearthed ruins of the Neolithic times (3.000 B.C.).

Phaistos was also a very influential city-state at the geopolitical scene of the time. The city was one of the participant parties to the Trojan war and send its own mission alongside with the other Greek cities and its influence was even more widespread by the time of the Dorian Period. Phaistos continued to prosper through the Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic period. It was eventually taken down by the invasion of Gortynians during the 3d century B.C. Despite all damage, Phaistos continued to exist as a city throughout the Roman period.

In the ancient palace, you will discover the royal family's apartments, the temple of Juno (Hera), the headquarters and the ancient theatre. This will be a memorable visit that will take you through time and history.

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Heraklion Town

TransferPlan will transfer you from and to Heraklion town as quickly, safely and comfortably as possible. Heraklion boasts the title of the largest urban entity in Crete and is also the administrative capital of the island. Heraklion has an immense historical and cultural heritage, as in close proximity to the city visitors can find the Palace of Knossos, which has served as the centre of Minoan civilisation. Throughout the city, you can also find a number of constructions dating back to the Venetian occupation such as Koules Fortress in the old port.

Heraklion is home to some world class monuments and cultural landmarks. Among the most outstanding man-made structures is the Heraklion Fortress that contains the 'old town'. Originally built by Arab merchants and later on reinforced by Venetians, the Fortress included seven bastions, of which only the Martinego bastion survives the passing of time. Moreover, visitors will be delighted to find one of the gates to the city, named Chanioporta, which is ornate with the winged lion of Saint Marc. Visitors can also pay pilgrimage to the grave of one of Greece's most important writers and Nobel recipient, N. Kazantzakis. The sight that marks his resting place also offers some mesmerising views of the city.

Throughout the city, one can spot statues and monuments commemorating prolific figures that have been important for Greece's course through history and have contributed to Crete's immense cultural heritage. Some of the names include renaissance painter El Greco, Poet Vicenzo Kornaros and Politician Eleftherios Venizelos.

Moreover, the Archaeological museum should be on the top of every visitor's list; a splendid space that boasts a massive collection of ancient artefacts from all over the island and covers more than 5,500 years of history. Special emphasis is given to the spoils of Minoan civilisation, which has been one of the first to spring in the Southern European cost and was almost entirely wiped out by a volcanic eruption and a subsequent tsunami. The museum is home to the most important collection of surviving Minoan antiquities in the world and awaits its visitors to explore the mysteries of this extinguished civilisation.

Nowadays, Heraklion represents a beacon of Greek modernization and has been subjected to an extensive urban sprawl, that gives it a truly unique character. Despite the expansion of concrete residential blocs and the immense traffic, a short walk through the bustling streets and alleys will travel you through thousand years of history and will reveal to you the hip side of Greece with its rich coffee culture and culinary delights that can be found in every corner.

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