Iráklion via Górtys, Phaistós and Ayía Triáda to Mátala

One km/.75mi beyond Áyii Déka are the remains of ancient Gortys (Gortyn), once the rival of Knossos and later chief town of the Roman province of Creta Cyrenaica, which survived until the coming of the Saracens in A.D. 826. In an olive-grove on the left of the road can be seen the foundations of the temple of Apollo Pythios, the palace of the Roman governor, with a bath- house (A.D. second century), a theater, an amphitheater and a 374m/1,227ft long circus. 500m/550yd farther on, on the right, at the foot of the acropolis, are the ruins of the sixth century church of Áyios Titos, an ancient theater and a building, converted into an odeum (concert hall) in Roman times, on which is inscribed the Code of Gortyn, a legal code of around 450 B.C. The code is written "boustrophedon" (i.e. as the ox ploughs, with alternate lines running left to right and right to left).

6.5km/4 mi south of the village of Áyii Déka, at Platanós, is the largest tholos tomb on Crete, with an internal diameter of 13m/43ft.

The road continues from Platanós to Léntas (27km/17mi), on the south coast.

14km/8.5mi beyond Gortys a road goes off on the left, crossing the river Leropótamos, to the remains of the town of Phaistos (Faistós), founded by King Minos and destroyed in the second millennium B.C. At the east end of the hill ridge on which the town is built is the Palace, laid out on terraces like the palace of Knossos.The present palace was built at some time after 1650 B.C. on the site of an earlier palace built about 1800 and destroyed in an earthquake about 1700, and was itself destroyed in an earthquake about 1450 B.C. (cf. the palace of Knossos).Of the palace, which was built round a central court, there survive only the remains of the north and west wings, the south and east wings having been destroyed in the earthquake. On the west and north sides of the surviving parts of the later palace can be seen remains of the first palace. The palace is entered from the west side by a monumental staircase 13.75m/45ft wide leading to a propylon. Below the steps, to the left, are the tiers of seating of a theater. From a bastion on the highest terrace there is a magnificent view of the Mesará plain, surrounded by hills.

Two km/1.25mi west of Phaistós, on the north edge of the hill ridge, can be seen the remains of the Minoan summer palace of Ayía Triáda, linked with Phaistós by a paved road. The site is named after the Byzantine chapel of Ayía Triáda on a neighboring hill; its ancient name is not known.Like Phaistós, the palace dates mainly from the 16th century B.C., but was rebuilt after the earthquake of ca. 1450 and was still occupied in the Dorian period. The frescoes and pottery found here are now mostly in the Archeological Museum in Iráklion. From the west side of the palace there are fine views of the sea, 3km/2mi away, and the south coast of Crete.Above the palace is the Venetian chapel of St George (14th C.; frescoes and inscriptions). Lower down, to the northeast, remains of a Late Minoan settlement (14th-11th century B.C.) have been excavated.At the foot of the hill is a cemetery, with a large tholos tomb.

In the village of Vóri (Boroi) is the Museum of Cretan Ethnology.The museum features items used in traditional daily life on Crete.

10km/6.25mi beyond Phaistós the road reaches the coast at Mátala, in Minoan times the port of Phaistós, in Roman times the port of Gortys. In the rock faces around the harbor are rock-cut tombs and dwellings of the early Christian period.Mátala has a beautiful sandy beach.