Crete: Europes First Civilization

Arrive in Athens and transfer to Piraeus to embark Callisto.

After a morning at sea, land in Crete, the island that was home of the Minoan civilization, Europe’s first. In the afternoon, tour the town of Rethymnon, with its unmistakable Venetian character.

Today, journey ashore to explore Chania, perhaps Crete’s most picturesque town. The historic quarter is filled with sunny squares and old neighborhoods where Venetians, Turks, and Sephardic Jews once lived. Housed in the Venetian Monastery of San Francesco is the Archaeological Museum containing artifacts from western Crete, including coins, mosaics, sculpture, and pottery that date from the Neolithic to Roman eras. On a walking tour, view the 17th-century Mosque of the Janissaries and the palaces of Venetian and noblemen.

Today Callisto calls at the small port of Aghia Galini to visit the beautifully situated Minoan palace of Phaestos known for its breathtaking view of Mount Dikti and the Plain of Messara. The remains are actually two distinct palaces built one on top of the other. Continue to the archaeological site at Gortyn, the Roman capital of Crete, where the Gortyn Law Code was written.

The coast around Ierapetra provides the most sunshine and the least amount of rainfall in all of Greece, affording an excellent climate for our visit. Drive to the charming village of Myrtos. Two Minoan archaeological sites are close by – Fournou Korifi and Pyrgos. After spending time at each site, enjoy exploring Myrtos’s impressive countryside.

This morning visit the Archaeological Museum in Aghia Nicolaos, which houses relics from sites throughout the Lasithi province from as early as the Neolithic period and ending with the Greco-Roman period. The museum’s collection of Bronze Age objects is especially impressive, particularly a libation vase known as the Goddess of Myrtos. This afternoon, an excursion leads to the scenic village of Kritsa, built on a hill and surrounded by olive groves. Explore the town as well as its 13th-century Church of the Panayia Kera. The church is filled with notable frescoes and fabrics, most of which have been carefully restored. Alternatively, for those interested in a more active excursion, enjoy a walk through the Lasithi Plain, a pristine landscape filled with wildflowers, bird life, and several mountain villages.

Today visit the excavations at Knossos, where the brilliance and refinement of the Minoans are revealed in the excavations found here. The largest palace of the period on Crete, Knossos is a labyrinth of corridors, stairways, and chambers decorated with frescoes illustrating life as it was 4,000 years ago.

From the sea, enjoy a beautiful view of the village of Phira on Santorini. In the second millennium B.C., volcanic eruptions shrouded the island in a blanket of pumice and ash, preserving many buildings in the town of Akrotiri. At the time of the eruptions, Akrotiri was inhabited by a sophisticated Bronze Age society. Visit the Nomikos Exhibition, where excellent reproductions of the frescoes at Akrotiri are on display, and the Prehistoric Museum of Thira. Then visit the unspoiled town of Oia and enjoy time at leisure.

Disembark in Piraeus and transfer to the airport in Athens for your independent return flights home.