Wahrzeichen & Altstadtviertel

Venetian Loggia

Heraklion, Heraklion · Free

Highlights & amenities

Entry: Free

About

An elegant Venetian building, now the town hall.

The Venetian loggia in Heraklion was built between 1626 and 1628 by Francesco Morosini, the same governor who built the Lions fountain. It served as a meeting place for the Venetian nobility, a kind of gentlemen's club where they discussed business and politics. It is considered one of the most beautiful Venetian buildings in Crete.

The building has two storeys with elegant arches, Doric columns on the ground floor and Ionic ones above, decorated with reliefs and coats of arms. It was badly damaged over the centuries and during WWII, and was carefully rebuilt in the following decades. Today it is the town hall of Heraklion.

The loggia is right next to the Lions square and the basilica of San Marco, with the church of Agios Titos just behind. It is worth admiring from outside, and you can sometimes step into the courtyard.

Around Heraklion

Nearest town: Heraklion, about 1 km by road
Nearest airport: Heraklion airport (HER), about 5 km by road

Heraklion is the heart of Minoan Crete and the island’s busiest region. Knossos and the Heraklion Archaeological Museum are the two places almost everyone visits, and they work well together on one day. In the south, the wide Messara plain holds the palace of Phaistos, the Roman ruins of Gortyna and the famous caves above the bay of Matala. More about Heraklion