Crete and the Palace of Knossos

Crete and the Palace of Knossos present Europe’s first advanced civilization—the Minoan culture from 2700 to 1450 BC—with a labyrinthine palace of 1,300 rooms that inspired the Minotaur myth. Crete also boasts the Samaria Gorge, one of Europe’s longest at 16 kilometers, and a diet that 1950s gerontologists linked to the world’s lowest heart disease rates among Cretan men. The island is larger than the entire Cyclades archipelago of 220 islands, providing unmatched variety in a single destination.