Knossos visitor guide — everything you need to know before visiting

At a glance

Address

Knossos, 714 09, Heraklion, Crete, Greece

Hours

Open daily; summer (approx. Apr–Oct) ~08:00–20:00, winter shorter (~08:30–17:00); last entry −30 min. Confirm seasonally.

Civilisation

Minoan — Europe's first advanced civilisation, Bronze Age Crete

First palace

Around 1900 BC; rebuilt and flourished c. 1700–1450 BC

Excavated by

Sir Arthur Evans, from 1900, with partial concrete reconstruction

Location

Kephala hill, about 5 km south of Heraklion

Ticket validity

Dated — reserved for the single day you choose

The palace of the Minoans

Knossos was the largest and most important centre of the Minoan civilisation, the Bronze Age culture that flourished on Crete and is reckoned the first advanced civilisation in Europe. A first palace rose on the Kephala hill around 1900 BC; after an earthquake it was rebuilt on a grander scale, and from roughly 1700 to 1450 BC it was a sprawling administrative, religious and economic capital of courts, storerooms, workshops and frescoed state apartments before its final destruction.

The labyrinth and the Minotaur

Later Greeks knew Knossos as the seat of King Minos and the labyrinth — the maze built by Daedalus to hold the Minotaur, half man and half bull, where the hero Theseus found his way out with Ariadne's thread. The legend almost certainly grew from the palace itself: its vast, winding, multi-storey plan, with hundreds of interconnected rooms, would have felt like a maze to anyone who entered, and the bull was central to Minoan ritual and art.

Arthur Evans and the reconstructions

Sir Arthur Evans began excavating Knossos in 1900 and spent decades uncovering it, naming the civilisation 'Minoan' after the legendary king. Controversially, he rebuilt parts of the palace in reinforced concrete — the tapering red-and-black columns, sections of the upper floors and the frescoes — to show how he believed it had looked. The result is unlike any other Greek ruin: vivid and three-dimensional rather than a field of foundations, though scholars still debate how accurate the reconstructions are.

The Throne Room

Off the central court, the Throne Room holds a carved gypsum throne — often called the oldest throne in Europe — flanked by benches and walls painted with griffins, set beside a sunken lustral basin. It is one of the most atmospheric spaces on the site and a highlight of any visit; the frescoes here, like others on site, are faithful reproductions of the originals now in Heraklion.

The Grand Staircase and royal apartments

On the east side, the Grand Staircase descends through several storeys to the royal apartments — the Hall of the Double Axes (the 'King's Megaron') and the Queen's Megaron with its celebrated dolphin fresco and an early drainage system. This wing shows the engineering sophistication of the Minoans: light wells, columns, and water management built into a multi-level palace more than three and a half thousand years ago.

The West Court, storerooms and giant pithoi

You enter across the West Court, an open paved space crossed by raised 'processional' causeways, past the theatral area. Along the west wing run the magazines — long corridors lined with enormous storage jars, or pithoi, that once held the palace's oil, grain and wine. Their scale is a vivid reminder that Knossos was not only a royal residence but the economic engine of Minoan Crete.

Knossos and the Heraklion museum

The original frescoes and the great Minoan finds — the Bull-Leaping fresco, the Prince of the Lilies, the faience figures and the snake goddesses — are kept in the Heraklion Archaeological Museum, about 5 km away in the city. The site shows reconstructions in their place; the museum shows the real things. Seeing both, in either order, gives the fullest sense of the Minoan world, and they make a natural half-day pairing.

Getting there and visiting

Knossos is about 5 km south of Heraklion. Local bus line 2 runs frequently from the city centre and the port to the Knossos terminus by the entrance in around 20 minutes; a taxi takes about 15. There is paid parking if you drive. It is an open site with uneven ground, gravel, gypsum steps and wooden walkways and very little shade, so bring sturdy shoes, a hat, sunscreen and water, especially in summer.

Read the full guide: How to Get to Knossos from Heraklion →

Frequently asked questions