Overview

By far the largest of Crete's four regions, Heraklion is the seat of Crete's capital and largest city (population 127 thousand), Heraklion town. A bustling metropolitan center, with traffic-clogged streets, disturbing air pollution levels, mainly due to the proximity of the city's extremely busy international airport, and constant infrastructure construction activity, Heraklion hosted part of the soccer competition of the 2004 Olympics in its brand new Olympic Soccer Stadium.
The biggest draw of Heraklion town is the Archeological Museum, the second most important exhibition space of antiquities in Greece, next to the National Archeological Museum in Athens. Minoan finds from Knossos and all over Crete are shown here, in airy rooms under mostly natural lighting: vases, frescoes, arms, figurines, everyday decorative and household items, and other exhibits, dating back three thousand years or more.
The number, range, and level of preservation of the finds are staggering. In addition, there is a good amount of other sightseeing to be done in the city and spending a morning walking around the bustling streets of the old center is rather pleasant.