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Knossos Palace Exploration: Small Group Shared Tour with Licensed Tourist Guide
4.8
274 Ratings
Knossos
Join our small group tour of Knossos Palace in Crete. Skip the ticket line and explore the ancient palace with a licensed tourist guide. Discover the Minoan civilization and marvel at the colorful wall paintings in the House of the Frescoes.
Join our small group tour of Knossos Palace in Crete. Skip the ticket line and explore the ancient palace with a licensed tourist guide. Discover the Minoan civilization and marvel at the colorful wall paintings in the House of the Frescoes.
Duration:
1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
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The Palace of Knossos - Knossos! What an enchanting place! This is simply a must visit site in Crete if history, culture, and myth are of any interest to you at all. Hire a guide to help bring the place to life. It is harder to get a true sense of the place without the guidance and knowledge of experienced guides.
There is signage but it is…
-
The Palace of Knossos - Knossos! What an enchanting place! This is simply a must visit site in Crete if history, culture, and myth are of any interest to you at all. Hire a guide to help bring the place to life. It is harder to get a true sense of the place without the guidance and knowledge of experienced guides.
There is signage but it is simplistic and limited only sharing a fraction of what you’re actually seeing and why.
Knossos, a complex of more than 1500 interlocking rooms, was an astonishing palace, built for a mighty king of the Bronze Age. As you wander through the labyrinthine ruins, you will have the chance to see the original throne of “Minos”, the mystifying sanctuaries, the luxurious domestic quarters of the royal family, the once upon a time bursting with Creteâs treasures pantries and the astonishing water-management systems!
Skip-the-ticket-line service !
Licensed tour guide for a 90-minutes guided tour in a small group.
What's Included
- Original reseller of service - Authorized travel agent.
- GST (Goods and Services Tax)
- Headset to hear the guide better, if group size is over 6 participants (7-16 pax).
- Entry ticket for the Knossos Palace, general admission fee (20 EUR).
- Licensed tour guide for a guided tour in a small group at Knossos palace.
- Skip-the-ticket-line service, to avoid the queue at the ticket counter.
- Original reseller of service - Authorized travel agent.
- GST (Goods and Services Tax)
- Headset to hear the guide better, if group size is over 6 participants (7-16 pax).
- Entry ticket for the Knossos Palace, general admission fee (20 EUR).
- Licensed tour guide for a guided tour in a small group at Knossos palace.
- Skip-the-ticket-line service, to avoid the queue at the ticket counter.
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Gratuities
Additional Information
Join our intimate group tour and explore Knossos, now recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where history and mythology converge. The palace’s maze-like structure brings the legend of the Minotaur to life, while the restored frescoes, such as the Prince of the Lilies and the exciting bull-leaping scenes, capture moments suspended in time.
With a…
Join our intimate group tour and explore Knossos, now recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where history and mythology converge. The palace’s maze-like structure brings the legend of the Minotaur to life, while the restored frescoes, such as the Prince of the Lilies and the exciting bull-leaping scenes, capture moments suspended in time.
With a licensed guide, the ruins transform from silent stones into a vibrant narrative. Gain insight into the symbolism in the art, the purpose behind the palace’s architecture, and the lifestyle of the Minoans over 4,000 years ago. It’s like walking in the footsteps of Minoan royalty.
For a comprehensive Minoan experience, consider upgrading to include the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion walking tour, even at the last minute. Knossos reveals the ancient city, while the museum unveils its treasures, from intricate artifacts to original frescoes discovered on-site. Together, they complete the story of Europe’s first civilization.
- During the summer months (June-July-August), Visit Knossos and avoid the crowds and the heat! Unravel the myth of the labyrinth and experience Knossos at its most serene, with the best time being at 17:00 (5:00 PM). Join us for a truly memorable experience!
- Knossos Palace – Meeting Information Our check-in operator will be waiting for you by the ticket booth at Knossos, holding a sign with our “Meeting Point” logo. Check-in begins 20 minutes before the tour start time. This is a shared group tour with strict entry time slots. Late arrivals cannot be admitted. If you arrive after your scheduled time, your reserved entry tickets will have already expired and the tour will be considered a no-show. Subject to availability, we will do our very best to assist you in purchasing new entry tickets; however, once the guided tour has started, it may not be possible to join. Arriving by car? Please allow extra time to find parking. We strongly recommend arriving at least 30 minutes before the tour start time, especially for the 10:00–11:00 AM slots, when parking and site entry are busiest. Summer Tip (June–August): The most comfortable time to explore Knossos is 17:00 (5:00 PM), when the crowds and heat are at their lowest. Join us then for a more serene experience as you unravel the myths of the Labyrinth and the grandeur of Minoan Crete.
- Please check your location before booking! Knossos Palace is just 5 km (20 min) from Heraklion port/airport — very convenient. It’s not convenient from Chania (Souda port or CHQ airport) — it’s 140 km away (2.5 hrs by car). We are based in Heraklion
- How to Redeem : Your Guide will redeem this ticket for your entry ticket.
Location
WeGuide.gr - Meeting point for guided tours
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.8
(274 Ratings)
5 stars
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1 star
Maria
Aug 21, 2025
Magnificent - Good communication with the responsible Enterprise. It was easy to locate the meeting point. Punctuality to start the tour. Guia ótima. He explained everything. He talked about mythology and reality.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shalini_n
Aug 12, 2025
Worth it to get a great history of Greece and Crete - Great way to understand the history of the Minoans and how it all comes together. Good to combine this with the museum ideally.
Review provided by Viator
Alexey_f
Jul 29, 2025
Guided tour > solo - I feel that without a guide the labyrinth of Knossos would be a boring walk around dead stones. In this tour the guide was awesome and made the place feel alive with her stories. Also I learned a few interesting historical facts. Can only recommend this vs going solo.
Review provided by Viator
Nigelco7585qi
Jul 18, 2025
A very worth while tour but a guide is absolutely essential. Our guide was terrific! - Not a big Palace, not really like Egypt but very worth while. We all thoroughly enjoyed our visit but would have missed out without our guide who was knowledgable and amusing. We would all recommend this tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Konstantinosc565
Jul 16, 2025
Fantastic! - We had a fantastic private tour of Knossos with a transfer from Heraklion – from start to finish, everything was smooth and professional. Our driver, Giannis, was punctual, courteous, and made the short ride to the site very comfortable.
At Knossos, we were met by our guide, Akrivi, who was not only incredibly friendly but also very knowledgeable. Akrivi brought the ancient ruins to life with fascinating stories and insights, making the history of the Minoan civilization both accessible and engaging.
Highly recommended for anyone looking to explore Knossos in a relaxed and informative way! Thank you very much once again!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Pauljt55ls
Jul 10, 2025
Great morning tour! - I did the small group starting at 9:00 am, which is perfect to beat the crowds and the heat, and well worth the package, including pre-paid ticket. Our tour guide was friendly and very knowledgeable, making sure to find shady places to stop along the way and giving time for pictures. She shared fascinating background history about the site, culture, and surrounding region. She also pointed out specific locations and facts you would otherwise miss. It's really worth it to have a guide for a large site like the Knossos Palace, especially if it's your first visit, and it's nicely paced at 1.5 hrs. She welcomed all questions at the end of the tour, really enjoyable.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Adam_g
Jul 8, 2025
Great tour! Amazing guide! Profound! - We had a great tour of the Knossos palace - our guide was a very knowledgable lady who told us an updated history of what archaeologists now know about it - and gave a profound interpretation of the site and about what it means that we will never forget.
Review provided by Viator
Trek402245
Jun 28, 2025
Magnificent tour - We absolutely loved the tour. It is a must see if you are visiting Crete. It is mind boggling how old and important this place actually is. I would recommend taking the 9 am tour as the crowds really appeared as the day went on. The guide was very informative.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Petrina_l
Jun 27, 2025
Best tour to learn the history behind the myth - The site came to life as Katherine explained what went on during ancient Minoan times and what is being done to learn more and preserve the site. Katherine was extremely knowledgeable since she and her husband have actively worked to excavate the site as archeologists. She shared theories that have been proven and disproved. This wasn’t your average tour with videos to watch. She told the history in exciting tidbits that kept everyone interested.
Review provided by Viator
C6037cxstepheng
Aug 14, 2025
A totally criminal scam - We booked the family skip-the-line guided tour for the best part of €300
We were advised to get there from 20 minutes before the start time.
We certainly did that only to discover that there was no space at all in the public car park, where did did several circuits looking for a space. There is no attendant of any kind in the car park giving information or directions, just nothing.
I sent the family on ahead to secure our entry while I looked for a parking space along the road near Knossos. I finally found one at some distance which appeared legal as there was certainly no sign saying no parking.
Meantime my family had been informed that we were late, had missed our entry slot, and even though the tour was still waiting for us we would need to pay our entry again to the tune of €80.
When I protested about this the attendant (there's plenty of them in this part of the site collecting money!) told me that it was clear from the small print of the booking that we had to arrive early to make our time slot. The fact that there was nowhere to park was of no concern to her.
So think about the blackmail of this: if I was angry enough to walk away I'd have forfeited the other €220 or so which was the cost of the tour guide.
So I had to allow myself to be walked over to the main cashier where the same attendant explained our circumstances in Greek to the lady at the booking desk who, in was is clearly a well-rehearsed scam which they must repeat multiple times a day, pretended not to speak English.
Having parted with my money the attendant then walked us through the ticket barrier and the whole of 30 yards to where our tour group was assembled. The tour guide is plainly instructed to spend a good 15-20 minutes of her introduction at this point to enable this fleecing of customers to take place.
If I thought it would do any good I would write in outraged terms to the Greek Ministry of Culture. It is a huge stain on their image and reputation of their country, which I other wise love, that they should allow this to happen and for such a prestigious site to be managed by such ruthless profiteers.
Aside form this, on a subjective basis, Knossos is a monumental disappointment. The very little that is left above ground is not original and had been reconstructed to give an idea of what it looked like. Nearly everything is below ground and much of that cordoned off. Nearly all the artefacts found at Knossos have been removed to other locations, notably the Archaeological Museum in Heraklion which really is worth visiting.
I would strongly advise your customers to avoid Knossos at all costs, at least until professional management and customer service at the site has been established.
When I mentioned our experience to the Greek owner of the car hire company in Heraklion that we used, he was astonished that we didn't call the police.
Regrettable your review does not permit to give zero or negative stars!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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