In a site dominating the Messara plain, on a spur of the Mount Ida massif, stand the remains of the Minoan palace of Phaestos, built by Rhadamanthus. Excavations by Italian archaeologists revealed two sequential buildings, the first dating to 2000-16..

On the shores of the Libyan Sea, Kommos beach to the north of Matala is one of the area’s best. It is a listed archaeological site and as such is protected from development. 7km away, Kalamaki is a little resort, popular on account of its fine be..