Ferry from Heraklion (Crete) to Milos (Adamas)

Minoan Lines runs the crossing from Heraklio to Milos in around four and a half hours, heading north from Crete into the western Cyclades. Fares start around €44. It is a useful link for anyone combining Crete with the Cyclades without doubling back through Piraeus, and it saves a considerable amount of time compared with the older conventional routeings.

Milos is a volcanic island in the southwest Cyclades, best known as the place where the Venus de Milo was found. Ferries dock at Adamas, a working harbour town on a large natural bay where most of the hire cars, boat trips and accommodation are based. The island's appeal is largely geological: the white rock shelves at Sarakiniko, the coloured cliffs at Firiplaka and Tsigrado, the catacombs, and the painted syrmata boathouses at Klima.

The route runs most days through the season, which makes it easy to fit into a longer itinerary. The current timetable and fares are shown in the table below. From Adamas there are frequent onward links to Sifnos, Serifos, Kimolos, Folegandros and Santorini.

Heraklion to Milos Ferry Fares

Tickets from €44.00.

Weekly Heraklion to Milos Ferry Schedule

The repeating pattern behind the dated timetable, without dates. Each row is one scheduled departure and the days it runs.

Hiring a car

Do you need a car in Milos?

Yes, a car is genuinely useful on Milos. The ferry docks at Adamas, the island's main town and bus hub, so pickup is easy and buses cover Plaka and Pollonia, but the schedule is thin and most of the striking beaches, Sarakiniko, Firiplaka, Tsigrado, sit well outside it. Some access roads are unpaved, where standard insurance is void, so compare 4x4 options at Discover Cars.

Can you rent a car in Heraklion?

Yes. Heraklion's ferry port sits about 1km from the centre, an easy walk or short taxi ride, and several rental firms have desks right at the harbour or nearby in town. The city itself is compact enough on foot, but a car pays off once you want to reach Knossos, the south coast or the Lasithi plateau, where buses run less often. Check rates at Discover Cars.

Next 14 days

Every scheduled departure from Heraklion to Milos between 24 August 2026 and 6 September 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Tips for the Heraklion to Milos ferry

• Arrive at Heraklion port at least 45 minutes before departure if you already hold an e-ticket – if you are travelling with a car, allow 60 to 90 minutes, as vehicles queue and board separately from foot passengers.
• Buy your ferry ticket online in advance rather than at the port – ticket kiosks at Heraklion only open a few hours before each departure, and Santorini's high-speed services sell out in summer.
• For the Santorini day-boats, SeaJets asks passengers to be at the terminal 30 minutes before sailing – expect heavy congestion and longer check-in queues on summer mornings.
• The sirocco (southerly warm wind from North Africa) brings haze and uncomfortable heat to Greek ports in late spring and early summer; it rarely lasts more than a day or two.
• Once you arrive in Milos, the volcanic island's extraordinary coastline reveals sea caves, coloured rock formations, and beaches of every kind, from the famous white pumice shores of Sarakiniko to the fishing village of Klima with its boathouses built into the rock. Milos is also the island where the Venus de Milo was discovered in 1820.

Plan a journey

Search for a connection between any two Greek ports, including journeys that need a change.