Minoan Crete & the Cycladic Islands

(B)=Breakfast, (L)=Lunch, (R)=Reception, (D)=Dinner 

Sunday, September 24, 2023: Depart home for Heraklion, Crete, Greece

Monday, September 25: Arrive Heraklion | Transfer to hotel | PM at leisure | Welcome reception
Upon arrival at Heraklion’s Nikos Kazantzakis International Airport (HER), you are met for a private transfer to our hotel. Enjoy some time to relax and settle in. Gather this evening for a welcome reception with your lecturer. Dinner is on your own. Overnight at the 5-star Megaron Hotel (or similar) for four nights. (R)

Tuesday, September 26: Heraklion: AM walking tour, PM Archaeological Museum | Welcome dinner
After an introductory lecture, we take a morning walking tour through Heraklion’s “old city,” surrounded by fortification walls initially built by the Arabs and later reinforced in the 15^th century by the Venetians. Along the way, enjoy a tasting of bougatsa (a Greek breakfast pastry) and Greek coffee. After lunch, tour the celebrated Heraklion Archaeological Museum, which houses the world’s finest collection of Minoan art and artifacts. Return to our hotel and gather this evening for a short walk to a local restaurant for our welcome dinner. (B,L,D)

Wednesday, September 27: Phaistos | Agia Triada | Voroi: Museum of Cretan Ethnology | Heraklion
Begin the day with a visit to the ruins of the Minoan palace at Phaistos, a center of Minoan civilization that was destroyed in the 15^th century B.C. and one of four recognized major Minoan palaces in eastern Crete. (We will also visit the others—Knossos, Malia, and Zakros—over the next few days.) Continue on to the nearby Minoan “royal villa” of Agia Triada. After lunch we tour the Museum of Cretan Ethnology in Voroi to learn more about the people who have called this island home. Return to Heraklion, where we gather this evening for dinner at a local restaurant. (B,L,D)

Thursday, September 28: Tylissos | Prinias Sanctuary | Gortyn | Heraklion
This morning we drive to the archaeological site at Tylissos, where we find the ruins of three luxurious Minoan houses decorated with frescoes and tablets, and outfitted with a water supply system that attests to the city’s importance at one time. We then continue on to the peak sanctuary of Prinias, whose 7^th-century B.C. Temple A is the earliest known sculpture-decorated building in ancient Greece. After lunch in Zaros we visit the famous Greco-Roman site of Gortyn, which became the dominant city in the region after Phaistos fell, later became Roman and was the first city on Crete to accept Christianity, and persisted into the 9^th century A.D. Return to our hotel in Heraklion, where the evening is at leisure. (B,L)

Friday, September 29: Knossos | Malia | Agios Nikolaos
Set out this morning for a visit to the legendary, partially-reconstructed Minoan palace at Knossos, rich in imagination thanks not only to its associated myth of the Minotaur and labyrinth but also to the excavation and reconstruction efforts of Sir Arthur Evans in the early 20^th century. We drive east along Crete’s northern coast, stopping to explore the ruins of the Minoan palace at Malia, before stopping for lunch in the village of Limnes. Continue on to Agios Nikolaos and check-in to our hotel before enjoying dinner at a local restaurant. Overnight at the 5-star Wyndham Grand Crete Mirabello Bay hotel for five nights. (B,L,D)

Saturday, September 30: Archaeological Museum of Sitia | Zakros | Palaikastro | Toplou Monastery | Agios Nikolaos
Drive to Sitia to explore its little-visited archaeological museum, whose most impressive artifacts are from the Minoan palace at Zakros and the Minoan city of Palaikastro, both of which we visit after the museum. End the day at the imposing, 15^th-century Toplou Monastery, which houses important frescoes, icons, and a museum of religious objects. Return to Agios Nikolaos for an evening at leisure. (B,L)

Sunday, October 1: Panagia Kera | Lato | Kritsa | Agios Nikolaos
Start the day with a drive to Kritsa to visit the tiny Church of Panagia Kera, which houses Crete’s best-preserved Byzantine frescoes, some as old as the 13^th century. Next, explore the ancient, fortified, hilltop city of Lato, one of the best-preserved sites on Crete that postdates the Minoan era. In fact, this Dorian Greek site dates back to the 7^th century B.C., and was in use until approximately the 2^nd century A.D. Drive back to Kritsa for lunch and some free time to explore. Return to Agios Nikolaos, where the evening is at leisure. (B,L)

Monday, October 2: Gournia | Mochlos | Vasiliki | Agios Nikolaos
This morning we drive to the well-excavated and -preserved Minoan town of Gournia, where we may best envision life in a Late Bronze Age (c. 1500 B.C.) town as we stroll cobbled streets among the ruins of some 50 houses, a small Minoan palace, and a cemetery. We then take a short boat ride to the island of Mochlos, where complex archaeological remains ranging from 3000 B.C. to the 10^th century A.D. have been found, including a Minoan town (c. 1700-1430 B.C.) and a Mycenaean village and cemetery (c. 1400-1250 B.C.). We return by boat to Crete proper and, after lunch, we explore the ruins of Vasiliki, one of the first Minoan settlements with town planning. Return to Agios Nikolaos, where we take a walking tour and then have dinner at a local restaurant. (B,L,D)

Tuesday, October 3: Areti Monastery | Spinalonga | Agios Nikolaos
Begin the day with a visit to Areti Monastery, which was established in the 16^th century and re-established and restored in the 20^th century. Afterward, we take a short boat ride from Plaka to the picturesque island of Spinalonga, which is home to a 16^th-century Venetian fortress and was a leper colony for the first half of the 20^th century. Return by boat to Plaka, where we have some time on our own to explore. We return to Agios Nikolaos for the balance of the day at leisure. (B,L)

Wednesday, October 4: Heraklion | Ferry to Santorini | PM at leisure
This morning we return to Heraklion to catch a high-speed ferry to Santorini (a.k.a. Thera), one of the world’s most breathtaking islands, dotted with whitewashed houses and churches perched on cliffs nearly 1,000 feet above the sea and its huge, drowned volcanic crater (caldera). After arriving at our hotel on the outskirts of the capital, Fira, lunch and the afternoon are at leisure; explore independently the nearby town center’s narrow cobbled streets lined with shops and/or enjoy our hotel’s amenities and views. We dine together at a local restaurant this evening. Overnight at the 5-star Orama Hotel & Spa for two nights. (B,D)

Thursday, October 5: Akrotiri | Fira: Museum of Prehistoric Thera
Spend the morning exploring Santorini’s “Pompeii,” the haunting Minoan town of Akrotiri, preserved for millennia under volcanic ash, now excavated and protected with a roof. Navigate the town via wooden walkways among three-storey buildings and traces of life from before the eruption. Drive to Fira for lunch and to explore the superb Museum of Prehistoric Thera, which displays striking frescoes and various artifacts from Akrotiri. The balance of the day is at leisure to enjoy Fira and/or our hotel’s amenities. (B,L)

Friday, October 6: Ferry to Mykonos | PM at leisure
After a relaxed morning (pending the ferry schedule) at our hotel, we take a high-speed ferry from Santorini to the island of Mykonos. Our hotel is located in the center of the island’s capital of Chora. The balance of the day is at leisure to enjoy our hotel’s amenities and/or explore independently Chora’s many upscale shops, art galleries, and seaside cafés. Overnight at the 5-star Semeli Hotel for two nights. (B)

Saturday, October 7: Delos | Mykonos: PM at leisure | Farewell dinner
Take a short ferry ride to the nearby sacred island of Delos, legendary birthplace of the twin gods Apollo and Artemis and today a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Delos was considered the most sacred island in the ancient Aegean, and the entire, albeit small, island is an archaeological site. After a thorough walk around the ruins of the sanctuary of Apollo and the town, as well as a visit to the small site museum, we return to Mykonos by ferry. Enjoy lunch and the afternoon at leisure. In the evening, we gather one last time for a farewell dinner. (B,D)

Sunday, October 8: Transfer to Mykonos Airport | Fly home
You are met at the hotel for a private transfer to Mykonos Airport (JMK) for your flights homeward. (B)