Wandering through this beautiful oak forest is both eerie and fascinating. Some 231 tombs were carved into the rock between 1300 and 1150 BC and their long, sunken corridors and damp chambers are open for you to explore. Head up the hill for some of the most impressive. Excavation began in 1961 and finds included pottery, bronze ornaments, weapons, jewellery and a boar’s tusk helmet, all on display at Rethymno’s Archaeological Museum, 7km to the south. Coming from the sea, watch for the turn-off to the right.
Upon entry to the cemetery, there are details in English on the site’s history, including the interesting fact that there wasn’t a sizeable town nearby to account for this number of tombs.
