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Heraklion Prefecture - Crete

Heraklion (Greek Ηράκλειο - Irákleio or Iráklio), also Heraklio is a prefecture of Greece, one of the four prefectures of Crete. The capital is the city of Heraklion.

Heraklion or Iraklion (Greek: Ηράκλειο, Irákleio, Venetian: Candia), is the largest city and capital of Crete.
It is also the fourth largest city in Greece. Its name is also spelled Herakleion, a transliteration of the ancient Greek and Katharevousa name, Iraklio, among other variants.
For centuries it was known as Candia, a Venetian adaptation of the earlier Greek name Χάνδαξ or Χάνδακας, which in turn came from the Arabic . Under the Ottoman Empire, it was called Turkish: Kandiye). In the local vernacular, it is often called Κάστρο (Kástro, castle) and its inhabitants Καστρινοί (Kastrinoí, castle dwellers).

Heraklion is the capital of Heraklion Prefecture, with an international airport named after the writer Nikos Kazantzakis. The ruins of Knossos, which were excavated and restored by Arthur Evans, are nearby.

Heraklion Port - Crete

Hersonissos (Greek: Λιμένας Χερσονήσου - Liménas Chersonísou) is a town in the north of Crete, on the Mediterranean. This community is about 25 kilometers east of Heraklion and west of Agios Nikolaos. What is usually called Hersonissos is in fact its peninsula and harbour. It is part of the Heraklion Prefecture just 25 klm from the Heraklion airport and 27 klm from the Heraklion port.

Hersonissos is oriented towards tourism industry, and popular with Dutch, British and German nationals. At the end of it there are big hotels and the Star Beach with slides, bars, pools, games, bungie jump, go-karts, like a day time club. There is also a lot to do for children. In the main street there are many souvenir shops, as well as other shops and restaurants, some of which are near the sea. There is also a small aquarium called Aquaworld Aquarium featuring local sea life and reptiles, which the children can hold. Nightlife is also important, and feature discos, clubs, bars and pubs. One can take a sight-seeing train that runs down the main street along the sea, and provides access to the surroundings of Chersonissos.

People who like to rest and sunbath on holiday can enjoy Hersonissos, for it has beautiful beaches, and excursions to other places on Crete can be made from here as well. Like many communities on Crete, the local economy is not only based on tourism, but also on agriculture. In the fall, when most of the tourists have left, many people normally employed in the tourism industry earn money with the olive harvest.

Malia or Mallia (Greek: Μάλια) is a coastal town and a municipality on the island of Crete, in Greece, 34km east of Heraklion, the Cretan capital city. The town (pop. 3,722 in 2001) is the seat of the Municipality of Mália (pop. 6,212), located in the northeast corner of Heraklion Prefecture.
The municipality also includes the villages of Mochos (1,155), Krassi (348), and Stalis (987), and has a total land area of 60.720 km². The town is a tourist attraction, primarily for its prolific archeological site and nightlife. The Minoan town ruins lie 3 km east of the site and cover an area of approximately 1km². The original name for the town is not known, but it is said that Emperor Pannos had called it Aegean Sky as early as 69 BC[citation needed].

Heraklion Prefecture (Iraklion)

Chania Prefecture (Hania)

Rethymnon Prefecture (Rethimnon)

Lasithi prefecture

Map of Heraklion prefecture

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Large detailed map of Heraklion prefecture

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