Frommer’s Athens and the Greek Islands, 2nd Edition

Birthplace of Zeus, cradle of Minoan civilization, site of Zorba’s feats—Crete is steeped in at least 5,000 years of myth, history, and culture. Greece’s largest island is 257km (159 miles) long and 60km (37 miles) at its widest, and, with wildly diverse landscapes and colorfully distinctive cities, seems in many ways like a separate country. In a single day, you can go from remote sandy beaches to austere ancient sites to snowy mountain heights to the Venetian harbors of the island’s port cities. For those looking for scenic beauty, cosmopolitan sophistication, simple rural villages, glimpses of the long-ago past, the hedonism of luxury resorts, and a dash of exoticism, Crete delivers in spades.

By Plane Aegean Airlines (www.aegeanair.com;

801/112-0000), Olympic Airways (www.olympicairlines.com;

210/926-9111), and Sky Express (www.skyexpress.gr) operate daily flights between Athens and Crete’s two main airports, in Iraklion and Chania. It’s 50-minute flight to either airport. Sky Express also offers at least one direct flight a week between Iraklion and Rhodes and limited summer service to and from Paros. Many carriers also operate mostly summer service between Iraklion and Chania and European hubs outside of Greece, making it possible to fly directly to Crete from London, Paris, Frankfurt, and other cities (for more information, see p. 200 and p. 346).

By Boat Boats from Piraeus regularly serve the island’s main ports in Iraklion and Chania, with daily sailings on ANEK Lines (www.anek.gr) and Minoan Lines (www.minoan.gr). While the lines offer some daytime sailings in season, most travelers opt for 9- to 10-hour overnight journeys, on well-equipped ships with berths, lounges, and dining rooms. In summer, ANEK ferries also run about twice a week between Irakilon and Rhodes (stopping en route at the islands of Karpathos, Kassos, and Khalki). Catamarans operated by Hellenic Seaways (hellenicseaways.gr), Seajets (www.seajets.gr), and other lines link Iraklion with several Cycladic islands (Santorini, Ios, Paros, Naxos, and Mykonos). In high season, occasional cruise ships from Italy, Cyprus, and Israel put into Iraklion. For ship schedules and other details, go to www.gtp.gr and www.greekferries.gr.

Most visitors prefer to tour the island by car. The five largest cities—Chania, Rethymnon, Iraklion, Agios Nikolaos, and Sitea—are all on the north coast and within easy driving distance of each other. The National Road, three lanes wide in a few places, skirts the north coast, providing a fast way for cars and buses to travel from one end of the island to the other. It’s 270km (162 miles), a 4-hour drive, between Chania in the west and Sitea in the east. It’s 72km (43 miles), about 1 hour, between Chania and Rethymnon; another 78km (47 miles), 1 hour and 15 minutes, from Rethymon to Iraklion; 69km (41 miles), 1 hour, between Iraklion and Agios Nikolaos; and 70km (42 miles) between Agios Nikolaos and Sitea. North-south distances range between 60km (37 miles) and 12km (7 miles), so sights on the south coast are rarely more than an hour’s drive from the north. Rental agencies abound at both major airports and in the larger town centers, with many along 25th Augusto street in Iraklion. Rentals begin at about 35€ a day for a small car with manual transmission. Insurance is usually included, with a 500€ deductible.

Moped and motorcycle rentals are also popular, but be careful: injuries are common among even experienced riders navigating chaotic urban traffic, and mountain roads can be dangerous, with few shoulders but lots of potholes and gravel. Helmets are required by law. Expect to pay about 20€ a day for a bike.

Buses on Crete are cheap, relatively frequent, and connect to all but the most isolated locales. The downside is that many bus schedules to remote destinations cater to locals, not tourists, with service only in the early morning and late evening. The long-distance bus system is operated by KTEL, which serves all of Greece. You can find schedules at www.e-ktel.com and www.cretetravel.com, or ask a travel agency for bus information.

Crete Travel (www.cretetravel.com;

28250/32-690) is a valuable resource when planning a trip to the island, with a helpful website full of resources.

Many visitors spend just enough time in Crete’s busy capital, the fifth largest city in Greece, to visit the remarkable Minoan relics in the Archaeological Museum and the outlying palace of Knossos. Give the city more time, however, and you’ll discover a large historic quarter, bounded by massive walls and a harbor, that’s filled with animated streets and squares and remnants of the city’s Venetian and Turkish past.

arriving Iraklion’s Kazantakis International Airport (www.heraklionairport.net) is about 5km (3 miles) east of the city along the coast. (Plans are afoot to build a long-delayed new airport at nearby Kasteli, perhaps opening in the mid-2020s.) Aegean Airlines operates six or more daily flights to and from Athens, and SkyExpress offers daily flights as well, while many European airlines fly in and out during the busy summer season, connecting Iraklion with most major European cities. Major car-rental companies have desks at the airport. A taxi into Iraklion costs about 15€; public bus no. 1 also connects the airport with the city center (fare 2€); buy a ticket from the driver.

Visitor Information A good source for maps and other material, including details on the many Minoan sites across the island, is the municipal tourist office (www.heraklion.gr) on Plateia Venizelou (also known as Lions Square, open Monday through Friday, 8:30am to 2:30pm. Among many reliable travel agencies is Creta Travel Bureau, 49B Dikeossinis (www.cretatrv.gr;

2810/300-610).

GETTING AROUND An extensive bus network connects Iraklion with Agios Nikolaos (see p. 272) and the busy resort towns to the east along the coast, as well as other towns in the east and southeast of the island. Buses to and from Rethymnon (see p. 253) and Chania (see p. 259) in the west operate as often as every half hour during the day. Iraklion has bus terminals in two locations—across from the entrance to the port (Bus Station A;

2810/245-019) for service to and from the west, east, or southeast—Chania or Rethymnon, for instance, or Ayios Nikolaos—and a terminal at Chania Gate, around 62 Martyrs (Bus Station B;

2810/255-965), on the southwest edge of the city, for buses to and from the south, serving such places as Phaestos and Matala. Go to www.ktelherlas.gr for info on routes. Line 2 buses, connecting central Heraklion with Knossos, leave about every 20 minutes from Bus Station A and from Odos Evans in the city center, near the archaeological museum; fare is 1.40€ (pay the driver). Other Iraklion sites are within easy walking distance of one another near the city center, much of which is closed to car traffic.

Capsis Astoria

A prime location across animated Plateia Eleftherias from the Archaeological Museum comes with a rooftop swimming pool and sun terrace, big perks for summertime guests who’ve spent the day visiting dusty archeological sites. Soothingly contemporary-style rooms are done with handsome wood veneers and colorful fabrics, and all have balconies. A welcoming bar/coffee shop off the lobby keeps long hours.

Plateia Eleftherias. www.capsishotels.gr.

2810/343080. 130 units. 85€–140€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free).

Hotel Galaxy

Once you get past the airport-modern aesthetic, you’ll find extremely comfortable and well-equipped guest rooms furnished with sleek international flair. (They’re popular with business folks who use the hotel’s conference facilities.) Many rooms have sea-facing balconies, while others overlook a greenery-filled courtyard and huge swimming pool, the largest in Iraklion. The two restaurants include a pastry/coffee shop that’s a popular gathering spot. The hotel is just outside the center, on the road to Knossos, but sights are an easy walk away.

Leoforos Dimokratias 75. www.galaxy-hotel.com.

2810/238812. 127 units. 85€–150€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: 2 restaurants; bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free).

Lato Hotel

Everything about this city-center refuge seems designed to soothe—from the pleasing contemporary decor to the Jacuzzi and steam room. The location above the Venetian harbor and fortress ensures sea views from many rooms (be sure to ask for one), most with balconies, as well as from the terrace of the excellent rooftop restaurant, open in summer (see Brilliant, below).

Epimenidou 15. www.lato.gr.

28102/28103. 58 units. 70€–125€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; Wi-Fi (free).

Megaron Hotel

A long-abandoned office building/warehouse high above the harbor has been revamped as Iraklion’s most stylish and luxurious getaway, with stunning results that combine splash with warmth and comfort at a very good value. Public spaces surrounding an atrium include an intimate library; a dramatic rooftop terrace and swimming pool seem to hang over the city. High-ceilinged guest rooms are large, with lots of wood and a sleek combination of contemporary and traditional style. Many have sea-facing balconies.

Beaufort 8. www.gdmmegaron.gr.

2810/305300. 46 units. 80€–150€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free).

El Greco

A basic, good-value choice comes with a plain breakfast and minimal bathrooms, but the location, just steps from Ta Liontaria, can’t be beat, nor can the price. Rooms are a bit outdated but most are good-sized, and those overlooking the interior garden are blissfully quiet—a real blessing here in the center of town, where nightlife goes on until dawn.

Odos 1821 4. www.elgrecohotel.gr.

2810/281071. 90 units. 42€–60€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Garden; Wi-Fi (free).

Marin Dream Hotel

A perch on a hillside between the center and the harbor puts these comfortable, contemporary-styled, good-sized rooms within easy reach of the port, bus station, Archaeological Museum, and other city sights, and the extremely helpful staff provides some genuine Cretan hospitality. Request one of the higher-floor rooms with a harbor-view balcony; the sunny rooftop cafe and breakfast room gets great harbor views as well.

Epimenidou 46 12. www.marinhotel.gr.

2810/300019. 50 units. 75€–80€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Cafe; bar; Wi-Fi (free).

Cretan fare is as likely to appear on menus in Iraklion’s urbane restaurants as it is in mountain-village tavernas. Among many staples are marathopita (fennel pie) and bougatsa (sugar-sprinkled cheese turnover), along with plenty of fresh seafood, homemade cheeses and yogurt, and homegrown tomatoes, strawberries, and watermelons. The common Cretan cheese is mizithra, creamy and soft.

Brilliant

Greek The excellent Lato Hotel (above) provides Iraklion’s most chic dining experience, in a sleek room accented in shiny black and vibrant colors. The ingredients are basically Greek—and often local Cretan—but they appear in some in unexpected combinations like tomato-brie puff pie and goat cheese with prosciutto. The menu changes frequently, with specials offered most nights; meals are accompanied by the best wines from the island. In summer, service moves upstairs to Herb’s Garden, a dramatic rooftop overhanging the harbor.

Epimenidou 15.

28103/34959. Entrees 20€–25€. Daily 1pm–midnight. Closed June–Oct.

Ippocampus

SEAFOOD/MEZES You’ll dine in true Greek fashion at this wildly popular mezederia, a standout in a strip of seafood restaurants facing the harbor. You can assemble a meal from a wide choice of small plates that might include zucchini fritters, delicately fried baby squid, and tzatziki and other spreads, then move on to servings of mussels in wine sauce and grilled fresh fish. A big crowd of regulars lines up to eat on the seafront terrace or clamorous room inside, so come early for dinner or late for lunch if you don’t want to wait—and bring cash, as credit cards are not accepted.

Leof. Sofokli Venizelou 3.

28102/80240. Small plates 5€–8€. Daily 12:30–11:30pm.

Peskesi

CRETAN A neoclassical mansion where a lemon tree grows from one dining room and stone walls and wooden beams embellish others has become a showcase for traditional Cretan gastronomy. Zucchini flowers stuffed with mizithra, the island’s creamy soft cheese, and cheese-topped eggplants accompany herb-infused roasts of smoked pork and other dishes that are not just memorably delicious but will take you on a culinary tour of the island. It’s best to reserve to enjoy the experience.

Kapetan Haralampi 6-8. peskesicrete.gr.

2810/288887. Entrees 9€–18€. Daily 1pm–2am.

Dozens of cafes line the narrow streets between Plateia Eleftheria and Plateia Venizelou. Many are on Korai, a narrow passage just north of Dedalou, the main passageway through the center; these are perfect if you enjoy shouting to be heard above pumping dance music and the cacophonous clatter of what must be the entire student body of the Iraklion-based University of Crete. Some quieter places surround the Lions Fountain on Plateia Venizelou. Down toward the seafront, Veneto, Epimenidou 9 (

2810/223686), affords wonderful views of the harbor and the Venetian fortress through its tall windows and from the terrace.

Start your explorations at Ta Liontaria (Lions Square, see p. 248), also known simply as “The Lions” or Fountain Square; officially it’s Plateia Eleftheriou Venizelou. At the much-cherished cafe Kir-Kor (

2810/242-705), try a bougatsa, a flaky pastry filled with sweet cream custard or soft cheese, introduced by Armenian Greeks. It’s a good spot for watching passersby hurry to and from the nearby market (p. 246) and Leoforos Kalokerinou, the main shopping street.

Agia Aikaterina

MUSEUM Northwest of Kornarou Square next to S. Minas Cathedral, this small 15th-century church named for St. Katherine houses a museum of icons, most by Cretan artists. Under the Venetians, Crete became an important center of religious art, and many islanders—including Domenikos Theotocopoulos, the future El Greco (see box above)—were sent to Venice to perfect their craft.

Karterou. iakm.gr.

2810/336316. Admission 5€. Mon–Sat 9:30am–7:30pm, Sun 10:30am–7:30pm.

el greco: CRETE’S STAR ARTIST

The most famous Cretan artist of all, Domenikos Theotocopoulos (1541–1614), best known as El Greco, allegedly studied at the Agia Aikatarina monastery school and soon became known for his skillful blending of Byzantine and Western traditions. He left the island forever in 1570 and perfected his distinctive expressionist style in Rome, Venice, and, finally, Toledo, Spain, where he died in 1614. Despite the painter’s long exile from his native land, he was forever known as El Greco (the Greek), and he continued to sign his works with the Greek letters of his given name. His only two works in Crete hang in Iraklion’s Historical Museum (see p. 246).

Agios Titos

CHURCH This beloved landmark just east of the Loggia honors Crete’s favorite saint, Titus, who appears in scripture alongside Paul in Ephesus, Corinth, and Rome; in the 1st century a.d., Paul commissioned him to convert Crete to Christianity and ordained him Bishop of Gortyna, then the Roman capital (see p. 251). Founded in the 10th century, long after his death, this church was destroyed in an earthquake in 1856 and rebuilt over the next few years as a mosque (Crete was then Turkish). The minaret was removed in the 1920s when the structure was rededicated as a church. A silver vault houses one of Crete’s most sacred artifacts, the skull of Titus, who died in a.d. 107 at age 95.

Archaeological Museum

MUSEUM The Minoans, whose civilization thrived on Crete some 4,000 years ago, come spectacularly to life in the world’s most extensive collection of the artifacts they left behind. This is a mandatory first stop on a tour of Crete’s many Minoan sites. Here you’ll see large round seal stones, inscribed with an early form of Greek known as Linear B script, that have revealed a wealth of information about the Minoans. (One of the most elaborately inscribed stones—called the Phaestos Disk, for the palace near the southern coast where it was unearthed—remains a mystery: It’s elaborately inscribed in Linear A, a script predating Linear B that has yet to be deciphered.) Beautiful frescoes portray proceedings at a Minoan court; The Prince of the Lilies depicts an athletic priest-king, wearing a crown with peacock feathers and a necklace decorated with lilies, leading an unseen animal to slaughter; other works show muscular men and trim women leaping over bulls—either a religious rite or an athletic contest. A whimsical fresco of court ladies in skirts, from the Palace of Knossos (p. 245), earned the nickname Les Parisiennes for its subjects’ resemblance to ladies on the grand boulevards of the French capital. As early as 2000 b.c., Minoan craftsmen were producing pottery known as Kamares ware; other decorative pieces are made of stone, ivory, and a glass paste known as faience. Many pieces illustrate life in Minoan towns and palaces: One vase depicts a harvest ceremony, another a boxing match. A bare-breasted faience goddess holds writhing snakes, perhaps part of a religious ritual. Rython, vases for pouring libations, are carved in the shape of bulls’ heads and other elaborate designs—yet more evidence that this ancient culture had a sophisticated flair for living.

Plateia Eleftherias. odysseus.culture.gr.

2810/224630. Admission Apr–Oct 10€, Nov–Mar 5€; combined ticket for museum and Palace of Knossos 16€. Mid-Apr–Oct Wed–Mon 8am–8pm, Tues 10–8pm; Nov–mid-Apr Wed–Mon 8:30am–3:30pm, Tues 10am–5pm.

Historical Museum of Crete

MUSEUM Fascinating artifacts from Crete’s long colorful past fill the rooms of this neoclassical mansion near the harbor. The Baptism of Christ and View of Mount Sinai and the Monastery of St. Catherine are the only works on the island by Crete-born artist Domenikos Theotocopoulo, known as El Greco (see box, p. 245). They take their place among ceramics, sculpture, icons, and artifacts from the island’s Roman, Byzantine, Venetian, and Ottoman past. Several rooms document the bloody revolutions against Turkish rule in the 18th and 19th centuries and the very brief period when Crete was an independent state in the first years of the 20th century. Especially evocative are the re-creations of the library and study of novelist Nikos Kazantzakis, and a simple farmhouse interior, still typical of the island today.

Sofokli Venizelou. www.historical-museum.gr.

28102/83219. Admission 5€. Apr–Oct Mon–Sat 9am–5pm, Sun 10:30am–5pm; Nov–Mar Mon–Sat 9am–3:30pm, Sun 10:30am–5:30pm.

Koules

LANDMARK The Venetians put up this mighty, wave-lapped fortress between 1523 and 1540 to protect Iraklion from attack by sea, and to assure safe harbor for fleets constantly making the 3-week journey between Crete and Venice. Within thick walls topped by rambling ramparts are warehouses and vaulted arsenali, workshops where ships were repaired and outfitted, as well as officers’ quarters and a prison. An inscription over the main entrance announces that the fortress stands on the remains of a fort erected by the Genoese in 1303; as you wander about, look for three plaques bearing the symbol of the Venetian republic, a lion. Crete was a prize for Venice, awarded to the republic after Constantinople was sacked in 1204 and the holdings of the Byzantine Empire disbursed. Crete provided Venice with agricultural bounty, timber for shipbuilding, and a strong presence in the Mediterranean. Venice lost control of Crete to the Ottoman Turks in the middle of the 17th century. The view from the ramparts takes in a good swath of coast, the brooding mountains behind, and the inner and outer harbors, jammed today with pleasure craft, fishing boats, and ferries going to and from the mainland and islands.

Old Harbor.

2810/246211. Admission 2€. Apr–Oct Tues–Sun 8:30am–7pm; Nov–Mar daily 8:30am–3pm.

Market

MARKET One long outdoor market stretches from Ta Liontaria to Plateia Kornarou. Stalls are piled high with fresh produce grown on the island, along with thick Cretan olive oil and raki, the fiery digestive liquor for which every Cretan household has a special recipe.

Crete’s romeo & juliet

One of Iraklion’s busy squares, Plateia Kornarou (p. 248), is named in honor of Vitsentzos Kornaros (1553–1617), a Cretan widely acclaimed as one of Greece’s greatest poets. Even though you may not be familiar with his epic work, Erotokritos—a 10,000-verse romance of love, honor, friendship, and courage that is not dissimilar to Romeo and Juliet—you may well encounter segments of the poem in your Cretan travels: The verses are often set to folk music and sung at performances of traditional music. A statue in the square depicts the poem’s eponymous hero, Erotokritos, who is on horseback bidding farewell to his beloved, Aretousa.

Palace of Knossos

ANCIENT SITE Cretan merchant and archaeologist Minos Kalokarinos discovered the remains of the largest Minoan palace complex atop Kephala Hill in 1878, and British archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans began excavating the site in earnest in 1899, soon after Crete was liberated from three and a half centuries of Turkish occupation. Employing an enormous workforce, Evans brought the complex to light in relatively short order. His work showed that the 1,300-room palace was originally built around 1900 b.c., rebuilt after an earthquake around 1700 b.c., and taken over by the Mycenaeans around 1400 b.c. The palace was the center of Minoan culture in every way—not just the court of royalty and an important religious and ceremonial center, but also an administrative headquarters and a huge warehouse where the Minoans stored everything: honey they cultivated; wheat, figs, and barley they grew; elephant tusks and saffron they imported from Africa and the Middle East. As you tour the palace, you’ll see ample evidence of these various functions: tall clay jars in which wine, oil, and grain were stored; a splendid grand staircase that ascends from a ceremonial court up four flights through a light well; and the elaborate apartments of the queen, complete with a bathtub and toilet that would have drained into the palace’s complex sewage system. What’s missing from Knossos (and other Minoan palaces and towns) are defensive walls. This culture seems to have been peace-loving and unconcerned about invasion—for better or for worse. While the decline of the Minoans remains a mystery, it has been attributed to attacks from outsiders as well as earthquakes and tsunamis after the eruption of the nearby Santorini volcano. Evidence suggests that Mycenaeans from mainland Greece took over the palace and other parts of Crete around 1400 b.c., but by 1200 b.c. they, too, had vanished. Evans rebuilt parts of the palace, reconstructing courtyards and rooms as they were under the Minoans and painting them vibrant colors—a sacrilege to purists that nonetheless richly re-creates Minoan life for today’s visitors.

Knossos Rd., 5km (3 mi) S of Iraklion. odysseus.culture.gr.

2810/231940. Admission Apr–Oct 10€, Nov–Mar 5€; combined ticket for Knossos and Archaeological Museum 16€. Apr–Oct daily 8am–8pm; Nov–Mar daily 8am–5pm. Take bus 2 from Odos Evans in Iraklion city center or from Bus Station A; fare 1.40€.

Plateia Kornarou

SQUARE This busy square south of Ta Liontaria is named for poet Vitsentzos Kornaros (see box, p. 247), although many locals refer to the square as Falte Tzami—a corruption of the Turkish Valide Camil, or Queen Mother—the name of a church-turned-mosque that once dominated the square and was demolished in the 1960s. This history is still reflected in the square’s two fountains, one Turkish and one Venetian.

Ta Liontaria

SQUARE The busy hub of Iraklion is officially listed as Plateia Eleftheriou Venizelou, for the Crete-born revolutionary and ever-popular prime minister (1910–20 and 1928–32), often considered the father of modern Greece. Any Irakliot, however, refers to the square as Ta Liontaria (the Lions), in honor of the famous Venetian-era fountain, adorned with four leonine symbols of the Venetian Republic. The water that once streamed from their mouths filled a basin ornately carved with mythological figures. The plateia has been the center of island life since the 9th century, when the Arab rulers of the island staged a large slave market here. Today cafe tables fill the square, while the handsome 13th-century Agios Marcos Church, named for the patron saint of Venice, houses art exhibitions. The adjacent 17th-century Loggia—a replica of architect Andrea Palladio’s elegant basilica in Vincenza—was once the seat of Venice’s island government and is now Iraklion’s city hall.

An Ancient tale of woe

Legend has it that the Cretan palace of Knossos was once home to King Minos, son of Zeus and Europa. Minos prayed to Poseidon to send him a white bull from the sea as a sign that he had the blessing of the gods to rule; he claimed he would sacrifice the bull in thanksgiving. The bull appeared, but Minos could not part with the beautiful creature; his wife, Pasiphae, too, was smitten, and she seduced the bull and gave birth to the Minotaur. Minos ordered the architect Daedalus to build a labyrinth to imprison this monstrous half-man, half-bull creature.

Meanwhile, after the Athenians killed Minos’s son, Androgeos, Minos demanded the city send him seven boys and seven girls every 9 years to be sacrificed to the Minotaur. Minos’ daughter Ariadne fell in love with one of these youths, Theseus, and she gave him a sword to slay the Minotaur and a ball of red fleece he could unravel to find his way out of the maze.

Minos, blaming Daedalus for Theseus’ escape, imprisoned the architect in a tower. Daedalus crafted waxen wings for himself and his son, Icarus, so the pair could make a daring airborne escape. Icarus, however, failed to heed his father’s advice and flew too close to the sun: His wings melted, and he fell into the azure waters off northern Crete, now known as the Icarian Sea, and drowned.

Nor does the unhappiness end there: Theseus and Ariadne fled Crete and the vengeful Minos, but Theseus abandoned Ariadne on the island of Naxos (p. 158) on their way to Athens. The spurned Ariadne put a curse on Theseus, and under her spell, he changed the sails of his ship to black. As he returned home to Athens, his father, Aegeus, saw the black-sailed ship approaching, assumed his son was dead, and fatally leapt from a cliff into the sea that to this day bears his name.

Walls

LANDMARK The walls that still surround much of old Iraklion are a sturdy remnant of the past amid the untidy sprawl of the modern city. Venetians began building the walls soon after they arrived in the 13th century, eventually erecting a circuit 5km (3 miles) long and up to 40m (131 ft.) high atop a network of defensive ditches dug by the city’s earlier Saracen and Byzantine inhabitants. In the middle of the 17th century the Venetian fortifications almost thwarted the vast Ottoman armies—in the longest siege in European history, Iraklion held out for 21 years after the Ottomans overran the rest of the island, finally surrendering in 1669. The Turks allegedly lost 100,000 men, the Venetians 30,000. When the Venetians finally agreed to lay down their arms, they were allowed to leave the city in ships laden with their belongings and important documents. Two elegant gates still punctuate the walls, the Chania Gate (also known as the Pantocrator Gate or Panigra Gate) in the west and the Kainouryia Gate (Gate of Gesu) in the southeast. At seven points, the walls thicken into arrowhead-shaped defenses known as bastions. The southernmost of these, Martinengo Bastion, is the final resting place of Nikos Kazantzakis (1883–1957), the Cretan author of Zorba the Greek and other modern classics who was born and died in Iraklion; he lies beneath a simple stone inscribed with his own words: “I expect nothing, I fear nothing, I am free.” Irakliots come to pay tribute and take in airy views across the straggling outskirts to the mountainous interior of the island, dominated by the craggy peak of Mount Iouktas, attributed in legend to be the head of Zeus.

Acquaplus Waterpark

AMUSEMENT PARK You might not see why the slides, tunnels, and pools of this 23-hectare (57-acre) water park outside the hideously overbuilt resort town of Hersonissos are any more appealing than Crete’s enticing seas, but your young traveling companions certainly will. At times it seems as if every youngster in Greece has converged on this popular place. Take the national highway east to Hersonissos and follow signs. For buses from Iraklion Bus Station A, go to www.ktelherlas.gr; transfer at Hersonissos to local bus to water park.

About 25km (15 mi) E of Iraklion, outside Hersonissos. www.acquaplus.gr.

28970/24950. Admission 27€ adults, 17€ ages 5 and older, kids under 5 free. May–mid-Oct 9am–sunset.

Cretaquarium

AQUARIUM Jellyfish, sharks, and 2,500 other species of Mediterranean marine life swim through beautiful re-creations of Crete’s offshore seascapes. Submersible periscopes and other high-tech gizmos make a walk past the 60 enormous tanks, designed by the Hellenic Center for Marine Research, fun as well as enlightening. For bus service from Iraklion’s Bus Station A, go to www.ktelherlas.gr.

Outside Gournes, 16km (10 mi) E of Iraklion on national hwy. www.cretaquarium.gr.

28103/37788. Admission 7€ adults, 6€ ages 17 and under. Apr–Oct 9:30am–7pm; Nov–Mar 9:30am–4pm.

East of Iraklion, Crete’s coastline is lined with resort towns, from overbuilt Hersonsissos and Malia all the way to prettier Agios Nikolaos (see p. 272). Tucked into the mountains to the southeast is the unique and beautiful Lasithi Plateau (see p. 251). As you head through the hinterlands toward the plateau, a nice stop is Krasi, a mountain village 45km (28 miles) southeast of Iraklion, that surrounds a square shaded by a plane tree said to be 2,400 years old. One of the oldest trees in Europe, it’s also one of the largest, with a trunk diameter of 24 meters (79 feet). A cooling mountain spring gurgles from two fountains opposite the tree. To the south of Iraklion, a well-traveled road crosses the mountains then drops onto the Messara Plain, some of the most fertile agricultural land in Greece, a patchwork of olive groves, vineyards, vegetable fields, and greenhouses. Vori, 63km (39 miles) southwest of Iraklion off the road to Mires, is a pleasant and unspoiled farming village that’s home to the island’s finest collection of folkcraft, the Museum of Cretan Ethnology (www.cretanethnologymuseum.gr;

28920/91110). Handsome, well-designed displays provide an intriguing look at farm equipment, basketry, pottery, weavings, and furnishings. Admission is 3€ and the museum is open daily, 11am to 5pm.

Besides the beach at Matala (see box, p. 250), there’s a long stretch of sand backed by Minoan ruins and pine groves at Kommos, 3km (2 miles) north of Matala off the road to Phaestos, and Red Beach, reached by a 20-minute hike over a headland on the south side of Matala.

Gortyna

ANCIENT SITE Layers of history overlap at this ancient site in the Messara Plain. What began as a small Minoan settlement flourished so under the Greeks that by the 5th century b.c., citizens were governed by laws they literally set into stone—the Code of Gortyna, on display in a small building at the site. A small Greek theater and other structures remain, but most of what you see at Gortyna is Roman. After the Romans conquered Crete in 69 b.c., after years of bloody warfare, they made Gortyna the administrative center of Cyrenaica, a province that included Crete as well as parts of Northern Africa. Under their jurisdiction, roads, aqueducts, and other public works soon appeared throughout Crete. A Roman bath and theater stand amid the rubble of what was once a city of 10,000. When the Roman Empire divided into East and West regions in the 4th century, Crete came under the rule of Byzantium. The most intact remains, however, belong to the 6th century, when Christianity had gained a stronghold across the island under the Byzantine Empire. The ruins of a magnificent Byzantine basilica, destroyed during 9th-century Arab raids, stand on the site of a simple church erected in the 1st century by St. Titus, dispatched by Paul to convert the Cretans. Adding to the allure of this storied place is a 3km (2-mile) network of tunnels that runs beneath the ruins. It once supplied stone for the nearby Minoan palace at Phaestos, and later served as an ammo dump for the Nazis; some scholars speculate this may even have been the labyrinth where King Minos imprisoned the Minotaur (see box, p. 248).

Outside Agii Deka, on the Iraklion–Mires Rd., 47km (29 mi) SW of Iraklion. odysseus.culture.gr.

28920/3114. Admission 6€. Daily Apr–Oct 8am–8pm; Nov–Feb 8:30am–3:30pm; Mar 8:30am–4pm.

A Beach Resort for the Ages

About 70km (43 miles) south of Iraklion, the pleasantly low-key beach resort of Matala may seem bland at first glance—but it has been popular with visitors for millennia. Legend has it that Zeus, taking the form of a white bull, wooed Europa on the beach at Matala. In classical Roman times, Brutus was said to be among the Romans who encamped in the caves that riddle a seaside bluff. These same caves housed hippies during the 1960s and now present a picturesque backdrop to a fine sandy beach. Matala is a nice place to relax, but the surrounding farm villages on the Messara Plain are more authentic—Pitsidia, Kamilari, and Sivas are geared to farming and laid-back tourism and offer nice tastes of rural Crete. They’re especially popular with German visitors, who descend in droves from the north during the summer months to bask in the sun and easygoing lifestyle.

Lasithi Plateau

NATURAL WONDER Few experiences on Crete top the sensation of making the final steep, vertiginous ascent over the crest of the Dikti Mountains and getting your first glimpse of the Lasithi Plateau, a high haven hidden some 900m (almost 3,000 feet) above sea level. At your feet, a tidy patchwork of orchards and fields dotted with windmills spreads out to the encircling hills. A road skirts the rim of the plateau, passing through small villages and the largest town, Tzermiado. Residents of the plateau are famous on Crete for their deft weaving and embroidery, executed in front of the fire on winter evenings (even summer nights can be chilly here); they sell these wares to the busloads of daytime visitors who arrive from resort towns on the north coast. You can see some especially fine examples at the Cretan Folk Museum in Agios Giorgios; admission is 3€, and it’s open May to mid-October, daily 10am to 5pm. By midafternoon, the plateau is caught up again in working the land that has been cultivated since the Minoans. Votive offerings suggest these ancient residents worshiped in the Psychro Cave, outside the village of the same name. According to some legends, the cave was the birthplace of Zeus, hidden here out of reach of his father, Kronos, who had a penchant for devouring his offspring. Though the sacred associations might be lost amid the touts and shills who crowd the entrance, the descent on ladder-steep, rock-cut staircases into the grotto, with its many stalagmites and stalactites, is quite thrilling. Admission to the cave is 6€; the cave is open June and September daily 8:30am to 3pm, and July and August daily 8am to 7pm.

About 70km (43 mi) E of Iraklion. Take national hwy. E toward Hersonissos then follow signs up to Lasithi Plateau.

Phaestos

ANCIENT SITE Italian archaeologists began unearthing the second-greatest Minoan palace about the same time Sir Arthur Evans was excavating Knossos. Unlike Evans, though, the Italian team left the ruins much as they found them, and the overall results evoke Minoan life even more effectively than reconstructed Knossos. Lavish apartments, ceremonial areas, granaries, and warehouses suggest the importance of the palace complex, probably a key center of trade with Egypt and other parts of northern Africa, just across the Libyan Sea. The Phaestos Disk—found encased in a vault of mud brick at the palace during excavations—is one of the great mysteries of archaeology. (It’s now on display at the Archaeological Museum in Iraklion, p. 256.) Elaborately inscribed on both sides in Linear A script, it is covered with concentric circles filled with four distinct symbols. Its purpose is unknown, but theories abound, ascribing the disk and its symbolism to everything from a prayer wheel to a board game.

Off Mires–Timpaki Rd., 63km (39 mi) SW of Iraklion. odysseus.culture.gr.

28920/42315. Admission 8€. Daily Apr–Oct 8:30am–8pm; Nov–Mar 8am–5pm.

Kalimera Archanes Village

The village of Archanes, about 15km (9 miles) east of Iraklion, is surrounded by miles of vineyards; it’s a good base for exploring Knossos and the other sights, as well as some of the island’s leading wineries. Fresh whitewash and lots of blooming flowerboxes give the village’s lively lanes and squares of neoclassical houses an unusually tidy appearance. Tucked away in a lush walled garden are four meticulously restored 19th-century stone houses, tastefully and traditionally furnished, with well-outfitted bathrooms and kitchens. Several are two-level; all open to terraces and are enhanced with fireplaces, beamed ceilings, and other architectural flourishes.

Theotokopoulou, Archanes. www.archanes-village.com.

2810/752999. 4 units. 165€–220€ double. Rates include breakfast. Amenities: Garden; Wi-Fi (free).

Maison Kronio/Taverna Kronio

Proprietors Vassilis and Christine welcome guests in the best lodgings and finest restaurant on the Lasithi Plateau. Spacious, well-equipped and nicely appointed apartments in the countryside outside Tzermiado sleep two to six people and surround a garden and pool, with the Dikti mountains framing the near horizon. The restaurant just down the road serves thick lamb stews, cheese-stuffed pies, and other homey Cretan fare. The friendly hosts are keen to advise their guests on how to explore the plateau.

Tzermiado, Lasithi Plateau. www.kronio.eu.

28440/22375. 8 units. 50€ double. Rates include breakfast. Restaurant: Entrees 5€–10€; daily noon–3pm and 7–10:30pm. Closed Nov–Mar.

Taverna and Studios Sigelakis

GREEK In the heart of a little farm village near the south coast, excellent meals, accompanied by friendly service and often a complimentary dessert and homemade raki, are served on a terrace or in a stone-walled dining room. Host Giorgios Sigelakis also offers attractively furnished and extremely comfortable studios down the road, with kitchens, living and sleeping areas, and terraces. Set amid well-tended gardens and olive groves, they’re a little more sophisticated than you’d expect to find in such rural surroundings, conveniently near Kommos beach and other sights in this part of southern Crete.

Sivas, 6km (4mi) NE of Matala. www.sigelakis-studios.gr.

28920/42748. 8 units. 50€ double. Restaurant: Entrees 6€–10€; daily 7pm–midnight.

Old Rethymnon, crowded onto a narrow peninsula jutting into the Sea of Crete, is an inviting warren of Venetian and Turkish houses, mosques, flowery squares, and a massive seaside fortress. The narrow lanes invite lazy wandering, and a long sandy beach runs right up to the town center. Meanwhile, magnificent mountain and valley scenery, monasteries, and other distinctly Cretan landmarks are within easy reach.

arriving Rethymnon is about 1 hour from the Chania airport and 11⁄2 hours from the Iraklion airport. Rethymnon is not served by ship from Piraeus; travelers take the boat to Chania or Iraklion and continue to Rethymnon by car or bus, an easy trip along the national highway. A couple of times a week in summer Seajets (www.seajets.gr) runs service from the Cyclades (including Santorini, Naxos, Paros, and Mykonos) to Rethymnon. Buses to and from Iraklion and Chania run as often as every half-hour from early in the morning until midevening. In high season, buses depart Rethymnon as late as 10pm. The KTEL bus station (www.e-ktel.com;

28210/93052) is at Akti Kefaloyianithon, on the seaside at the city’s western edge.

Visitor Information The Tourism Office (www.rethymno.gr;

28310/29148) is on Venizelou, the main avenue that runs along the town beach. In high season, it’s open Monday through Friday from 8am to 2:30pm; off-season, hours are unpredictable. The many private travel agencies in town include Ellotia Tours at 155 Arkadhiou (www.rethymnoatcrete.com). If you’re arriving with a car, look for the well-marked public parking lot at Plateia Plastira, at the far western edge, just outside the old harbor. Free parking is also available along the seaside road that skirts the Fortezza.

Avli Lounge Apartments

One of Crete’s most renowned restaurants (p. 255) also pampers guests in so-called Lounge Apartments that surround the restaurant garden and occupy an old house across the street. Decor combines Greek antiques, Asian pieces, and contemporary styling, all set against stone walls and wood beams, to provide surroundings that are full of design-magazine flair; they’re enormous and come with such amenities as soaking tubs and a rooftop terrace and whirlpool. So-called Candy Suites are actually small but stylish rooms in another annex and they’re priced accordingly.

22 Xanthoudidou. www.avli.gr.

28310/58250. 7 Lounge Apartments, 5 Candy Suites. Lounge Apartments 115€–180€ double. Candy Suites from 85€. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; Wi-Fi (free).

Kapsaliana Village Hotel

A rustic hamlet of honey-colored stone in hilly countryside about 18km (11 miles) above Rethymnon, once part of the holdings of the Arkadi monastery (p. 258), has been tastefully transformed into a unique country getaway. Houses along the old lanes have been redone with contemporary furnishings in terraced guest rooms offset by stone walls, arches, and wood beams. Amid well-tended gardens you’ll find lounges (one in a former olive mill), an outdoor dining terrace where Cretan specialties are served, and a sparkling pool. Beaches are a short drive away, as is Arkadi and the beautiful Amari Valley (p. 257).

Kapsaliana. www.kapsalianavillage.gr.

28310/83400. 17 units. 150€–200€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free).

Hotel Leo

A former home from 1450 is now a character-filled, intimate inn on a quiet side street. Stone walls, wood beams, fine fabrics, and a handsome blend of antiques and contemporary furnishings (including curtained beds) give off a romantic aura, making this an alternative to large resorts for honeymooners and other couples. Amenities include beautifully equipped bathrooms and a pleasant bar and sidewalk cafe, perfect for sitting and watching town life go by.

Vale & Arkadiou. www.leohotel.gr.

28310/26197. 8 units. 90€–130€ double. Rates include breakfast. Amenities: Cafe; Wi-Fi (free).

Palazzino di Corina

Several of Rethymnon’s old Venetian palaces have been converted to hotels, but few with as much panache as this one, tucked away on a quiet back street near the harbor. Rooms, named after Greek gods or goddesses, have different shapes and sizes; all are smartly decorated with a mix of traditional pieces, along with jutting beams and stone walls. Some rooms require a climb up a steep staircase, while others open off a courtyard with a small pool, perfect for a refreshing plunge followed by a cocktail.

7–9 Dambergi. www.corina.gr.

28310/21205. 21 units. 85€–130€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free).

Fortezza Hotel

Many return visitors to Rethymnon swear by this comfortable, convenient choice in a quiet part of town, only a few blocks from the inner Old Quarter and a couple of blocks from the town beach and the Venetian Harbor. Rooms are fairly standard, but nicely furnished with good beds and handsome, Cretan-style wood pieces, and most have balconies. You’ll get a better night’s sleep if you ask for a room facing the courtyard and the large pool—a rarity in the Old Quarter, where small courtyards usually accommodate only tiny plunge pools. Ample parking is nearby, making it easy to explore the surrounding coast and countryside.

10 Melisinou. www.fortezza.gr.

28310/55551. 52 units. 75€–115€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free).

Vetera Suites

No end of care has gone into creating these distinguished lodgings in a centuries-old Venetian/Turkish house, where much of the old wood and stonework remains. Rooms are painstakingly furnished with antique pieces and tasteful reproductions, while modern conveniences, such as bathrooms and kitchenettes, are tucked into alcoves and sleeping lofts are nestled beneath high ceilings. Breakfast is delicious, but costs extra.

9 Kastrinogiannaki. www.vetera.gr.

28310/23844. 4 units. 80€–100€ double. Amenities: Wi-Fi (free).

In Koumbes, a little enclave just west of Old Town past the Venetian fortress, a string of tavernas line the shore, offering drinks, coffee, and seafood meals. Among the most popular is Tabakario, 93 Stamathioudaki (

28310/29276), perched just above the surf crashing onto the rocks below.

Avli

GREEK/CRETAN This veritable temple to Cretan cuisine, part of the noted hotel (see p. 253), introduces you to the freshest island ingredients. Fish and lamb appear in many different guises, as do mountain greens and other fresh vegetables, all served in a romantic garden, an arched dining room, and the narrow lane in front of the hotel. Avli also operates an enoteca that offers a wide choice of serious Greek wines and a shop selling local foodstuffs.

Xanthoudidou 22. www.avli.gr.

28310/28310. Entrees 15€–30€. Daily noon–3pm and 7:30–11:30pm.

Kyria Maria

GREEK/CRETAN Excellent plain cooking and friendly service are the hallmarks of this old favorite, where tables are set along a narrow lane near the Rimondi Fountain, beneath a trailing grape vine. Even a simple salad, brimming with garden-fresh vegetables, is a treat, as are the array of generously sized appetizers and such taverna staples as pastitsio, lamb in lemon sauce, and octopus on a bed of orzo. A chorus of caged parakeets and canaries serenades diners.

Othonos

GREEK/CRETAN It would be easy to walk by what looks like another Old Town tourist trap, but that would mean missing out on a local institution. Regulars pour in for traditional dishes based on age-old recipes: excellent lamb dishes; pork with honey, madeira, and walnuts; or chicken roasted with garlic and lemon. An attentive staff that seems to have been around for years takes the onslaught of summer visitors in gracious stride.

Plateia Pethihaki 27.

28310/55500. Entrees 8€–15€. Daily noon–3pm and 7pm–midnight.

Prima Plora

GREEK/CRETAN It’s a 20-minute walk or short cab ride out to this seaside spot, west of the town center, beyond Koumbes. The distance doesn’t deter legions of diners from packing into the seafront terrace and lofty, whitewashed dining room, where it’s a toss-up as to what is fresher—the vegetables or the seafood. All appear in simple yet wonderful creations, such as grilled shrimp on a bed of orzo or risotto with cuttlefish.

Akrotiri 4, near west entrance to national hwy. www.primaplora.gr.

28310/56990. Entrees 10€–20€. Daily noon–1am.

Old Rethymnon is an exotic place, with Venetian palaces, wooden Ottoman houses, mosques, fountains, and a picturesque enclosed harbor. While Rethymnon was inhabited through the ages by Minoans, Mycenaeans, ancient Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines, the historic city that remains today is largely the creation of the Venetians and Turks, who were here for almost 800 years, until the late 19th century. For Venetians, the city was an important way station on the sea route between Iraklion and Chania, and they left many landmarks, including the Rimondi Fountain, where streams of water gush from the mouths of three lions, symbols of the Republic, and the loggia, once the meeting house of Venetian nobility. The Venetian Harbor, at the eastern edge of the Old Town, is surrounded by a high breakwater and overlooked by a 13th-century lighthouse. Rethymnon never became a major port for Venice, in part because this claustrophobically small harbor was not well suited to large Venetian galleys. Today, a jumble of cafe tables crowd the quayside and a fleet of colorful fishing boats are moored chockablock against one another.

Traces of the Turks, who took Rethymnon in 1646, can still be seen in the lattice-work wooden balconies on many old houses, built to ensure the privacy of Muslim women. Rising high above the tile roofs is the minaret of the Mosque of the Nerantzes, converted in the Turkish era from a monastery and church. Nerantzes now houses a music school, open only for concerts.

Archaeological Museum

MUSEUM What was once part of an ornate Venetian church dedicated to St. Francis, converted by the Turks to a poorhouse, now houses a smattering of ancient artifacts unearthed in caves and other ancient sites around Rethymnon. It lacks the Minoan frescoes and jewels that bedazzle visitors to the Archaeological Museum in Iraklion (p. 245), but prehistoric stone tools, figurines, Roman oil lamps, and other finds warrant a passing glance, if only as reminders that Crete has been inhabited for millennia.

Agiou Fragiskou 4. www.culture.gr.

28310/54668. Admission 2€. Daily Apr–Oct 10am–6pm, Nov–Mar 8am–3pm.

Fortezza

HISTORIC SITE Rethymnon’s most prominent landmark rises next to the sea on a high promontory at the northern end of the Old Town. Ancient Greeks built a Temple of Artemis and a Sanctuary of Artemis on the hill, and the Venetians erected a small fortress that proved useless in defending the city against pirates who attacked with 40 galleys in 1571. After that, the Venetians rebuilt the fortress with a labor force of more than 100,000 conscripted Cretans, but the thick walls, bastions, and embrasures were also unable to stop the Turks who overran Rethymnon in 1646. The vast rock-strewn space is now overgrown and barren. Inside the massive battlements are two simple churches, a mosque, and several former barracks (which in later years became the town brothels). Every fall, the forlorn atmosphere is enlivened by musical and theatrical performances of the Rethymnon Renaissance Festival (www.rfr.gr; contact tourist office, p. 242, for details).

Above the sea at the edge of Old Town.

28310/28101. Admission 4€. Daily 8:30am–7pm.

Historical and Folk Art Museum

MUSEUM A restored Venetian mansion is the setting for beautiful basketry and hand-woven textiles, along with farm implements, traditional costumes, and old photographs that pay homage to Cretan traditions. These well-displayed collections are not merely a repository of the past: Many items—from lyres and other musical instruments to embroidery fashioned from techniques that date back to the Byzantines—are still a widespread part of island life.

To the east of the Old Town, Rethymnon stretches along several miles of sandy beach. In recent years this asset has turned Rethymnon into a package-tourism resort, and hotels and apartments of recent vintage now line the waterfront. This strip is not terribly attractive, but the sand and water are clean and welcoming. Much of the beach is taken up by concessionaires, from whom you can rent two beach lounges and an umbrella for about 8€ a day. You can also plop yourself down on the sand for free. To the west, a patch of relatively undeveloped shoreline stretches for 30km (18 miles) to Georgioupolis, a low-key resort with miles of sandy beach and shallow waters popular with families. The national highway follows the coast west for much of the way, with many pullouts where you can find an isolated stretch to lay in the sun and swim.

While Rethymnon’s lanes are all too crowded with souvenir shops, some standouts include Nikolaos Papalasakis’s Palaiopoleiou, Souliou 40, crammed with some genuine antiques, old textiles, jewelry, and curiosities. Haroula Spridaki, Souliou 36, has a nice selection of Cretan embroidery. Avli Raw Materials, at Xanthoudidou 22 (part of the Avli hotel and restaurant fiefdom; see p. 253), is an enticing stockpile of olive oils, spices, herbs, wines, cheese, and other Cretan products.

Many travel agencies arrange tours to sights around Rethymnon. You can explore the countryside on foot with one of the excellent excursions from the Happy Walker

, Tombazi 56 (www.happywalker.com;

28310/52920), which provides in-town pickup for day hikes in the surrounding mountains and gorges, as well as multiday hikes on Crete and elsewhere in Greece.

Amari Valley

NATURAL LANDSCAPE Some of the island’s most beautiful rural scenery lies in this highland valley just south of Rethymnon. As you travel the narrow roads, you’ll pass through small villages, come upon Byzantine churches, and be surrounded by vineyard- and orchard-covered mountain slopes and the ever-present tinkling of goat bells. You’ll need your own car to see the valley, along with a good map of Crete. You’ll find tavernas and cafes in some villages, but you won’t find many English speakers.

Mount Ida: Cradle of Zeus

Among the rugged peaks defining the Amari Valley (p. 257), Mount Ida, at more than 2,600m (8,530 ft.), is the tallest mountain on Crete. (The mountain is also called Psiloritis, which means “highest” in Greek.) Zeus was allegedly raised on Mount Ida in the Idaian Cave. Rhea, Zeus’s mother, hid him in the cave out of harm’s way from Kronos, his father. Kronos had already eaten five of his offspring—Hades, Poseidon, Hera, Hestia, and Demeter—in an effort to outwit a prophecy that one of his sons would rob him of power. Zeus later gave Kronos an emetic that caused him to regurgitate the five siblings, and in turn, they appointed their brother the god of gods. From the village of Fourfouras, serious hikers can begin the ascent to Ida’s summit, a strenuous climb that takes about 8 hours.

From Rethymnon, take the beach road east 2km (1 mile) to Perivolos, veer south on the Prasies road and follow it for about half an hour to Apostoli, then east to the village of Thronos. Stop in to the little village church, decorated with 14th-century frescoes and, on the exterior, a mosaic from a 4th-century Byzantine church that originally stood on the spot. A path from the village center leads to Sivrita, an early Greek settlement that is now being excavated; rough and unpolished, the site gives you the sense that you’re stumbling upon an ancient town in its original state. The monastery of Moni Asomaton, about 5km (3 miles) southeast of Thronos, was founded in the 10th century; its present building dates from the Venetian period. Walled and fortified, it’s a remnant of the fierce resistance to Turkish occupation. Many objects from its 15th-century church are in the Historical Museum of Crete in Iraklion (p. 246). In Amari, about 2.5km (11⁄2 miles) southwest of the monastery, a Venetian clock tower looms over the main square, and the Church of Agia Anna is decorated with some of the oldest church frescoes in Crete, from 1225.

Arkadi Monastery

HISTORIC SITE The ornate Italianate-Renaissance facade of this monastery, built on a high plateau under Venetian rule in 1587, rises out of pretty pastureland in a high valley at the base of Mount Ida. As serene as the setting is, Arkadi is a place of pilgrimage for many Cretans, for it was the seat of Cretan revolutionary fervor. By 1866, rebellious zeal against the occupying Turks was at fever pitch across Crete. Arkadi and many other monasteries across the island supported the rebels, and hundreds of men, women, and children took refuge there. A Turkish force of some 15,000 men besieged the monastery, but the Cretans refused to surrender. In November 8, just as the Turks broke through the gate and swarmed the compound, the abbot ordered that the gunpowder store be ignited. The explosion killed hundreds of Cretans and Turks, and the event has become synonymous with Crete’s long struggle for independence. (November 8 is celebrated as a holiday in Crete.) Arranged around the vast rectangular inner courtyard, behind fortresslike walls, are a large church, monks’ quarters, and the former refectory, now filled with vestments and other belongings of the community from over the centuries.

25km (15 mi) SE of Rethymnon; take national hwy. E to Platanes, then marked road to Arkadi. www.arkadimonastery.gr.

28310/83135. Admission 2€. Daily June–Aug 9am–8pm; Apr–May and Sept–Oct 9am–7pm; Nov 9am–5pm; Dec–Mar 9am–4pm. Bus service from KTEL station in Rethymnon (about every 4 hrs); trip time 1 hr, fare 4€.

Moni Preveli

HISTORIC SITE One of Crete’s most beautiful and beloved monasteries is perched in isolation high above the south coast, due south of Rethymnon. More than a thousand years old, the Preveli monastic community long enjoyed the direct patronage of the Patriarch of Constantinople, and its history is commemorated in a small on-site museum. The main attractions, though, are the peaceful terraces that look across olive-studded hillsides to the Libyan Sea. This remote monastery’s fame mostly arises from the role it played in 19th- and 20th-century resistance movements—first against the Turks, as early as 1821, when the abbot organized and outfitted rebels to defy the Ottoman occupiers, and then against the Germans who invaded the island in 1941. During those long World War II years, the monastery became a rallying point for the Allies, sheltering British, Australian, and New Zealand soldiers left behind when Germans occupied the island in the aftermath of the Battle of Crete. Many of these men were saved by the monks and by residents of neighboring villages, who hid them until they could be picked up by submarines from the beach below. A memorial on the hillside just outside the monastery gates commemorates the Allied soldiers, Cretan resistance fighters, and others who lost their lives in the war. Palm Beach, reached by a steep path from the monastery grounds, is one of the most beautiful stretches of sand on Crete, enclosed within rocky cliffs and shaded by palms that grow along the Potamas River as it flows into the sea.

To get there from Rethymnon, follow the Agia Galinas highway south through Armeni, veer off just past Pale and follow signs through the Kourtaliatiko Gorge to Moni Prevelis.

35km (22 mi) S of Rethymnon. www.preveli.org.

28320/31246. Admission 2.50€. Daily Jun–Oct 9am–1:30pm and 3:30–7pm, Nov–May 9am–5pm.

One of the most beautiful cities in Greece, Chania has been settled for nearly 4,000 years. While power changed hands many times over those centuries, much of today’s city is Venetian and Turkish. Minarets rise above tile roofs and bell towers, and life still centers around a remarkable harbor built to foster Venice’s power here in the southern Mediterranean. Old Chania is cosmopolitan and vibrant, and it makes a handy jumping-off point for excursions into the White Mountains, the west and south coasts, and the Samaria Gorge—some of the most spectacular scenery in Greece.

ARRIVING The Chania airport (www.chq-airport.gr;

28210/83800) is 15km (10 miles) out of town on the Akrotiri Peninsula. Olympic and Aegean Air operate 6 or 7 flights a day between Athens and Chania, and the airport is also served by Ryanair, with flights to and from hubs around Europe. In summer many European charters fly in and out. Public buses meet all flights except those arriving late at night; the trip to the bus station in the city center takes 30 minutes and tickets (2.50€) can be purchased from the driver. A taxi in to Chania cost about 20€. The ferry port is at Souda, 7km (4 miles) east of the city; in season at least two boats a day arrive from Piraeus, a Minoan Lines at about 10:30pm and an overnight boat operated by Anek at around 7am. Public buses meet the boats for the 20-minute ride into Chania, and tickets, purchased at a kiosk outside the port terminal entrance, are 1.50€. A taxi into town costs about 15€.

GETTING AROUND The main bus station in Chania is south of the Old Town, off Plateia 1866 at Kidonias 25 (e-ktel.com;

28210/93052). Buses run to and from Rethymnon and Iraklion as often as every half-hour during the day, and the station is also a hub for service to Falasarna, Kissamos, Paleochora and other towns in the west. You may want to rent a car to explore the surrounding mountains and coastlines. Free parking is available along the sea to the west of the harbor; follow signs as you enter town. One lot is for visitors and one is reserved for residents with permits, as is most street parking; observe signs carefully. You can get anywhere you want to go in town on foot.

Visitor Information The tourist office at Kriari 40, off Plateia 1866 (www.west-crete.com;

28210/92-943) keeps unreliable hours but is usually open 9am to 1pm and 4pm to 7pm.

Casa Delfino

Owner Manthos Markantonakis has transformed his family’s 17th-century Venetian palazzo into a remarkable place to stay, combining luxury with character and lots of genuine hospitality. Many rooms are enormous and all are distinctive, filled with art work, Cretan antiques, and specially designed contemporary pieces; many are two-level, with sleeping lofts above living areas (make it known upon booking if steps are a problem). Guest enjoy a quiet haven amid the Old Town bustle in the mosaic-floored courtyard or a roof terrace overlooking the harbor.

Theofanous 9. www.casadelfino.com.

28210/87400. 20 units. 195€–210€ double. Rates include breakfast. Amenities: Cafe; bar; roof terrace; Jacuzzi; room service; Wi-Fi (free).

Villa Andromeda

A seaside estate that housed the German High Command during World War II is now a luxurious enclave of eight suites surrounding a garden and swimming pool. Several units spread over two levels, and some face the sea; all are comfortably and tastefully furnished with fine carpets, original art, and excellent beds. You can dip your toes into a small pool in the garden in which it’s said German general Rommel, a.k.a. the Desert Fox, once cooled off; there’s also a larger pool that’s more conducive to doing laps.

Venizelou 150. www.villandromeda.gr.

28210/28300. 8 units. 145€–240€ double. Amenities: Bar; pool; Wi-Fi (free). Closed mid-Nov–mid-Apr.

Amphora

Plenty of old-world ambience is on hand at this beautiful 14th-century Venetian mansion just above the outer harbor. The sprawling rooftop terrace and many rooms look across the water and the Old Town to the mountains beyond. Many rooms have balconies, as well as kitchenettes. Guests receive a discount at the hotel restaurant, one of the best on the waterfront—in fact, one of the few in town that maintain old-fashioned standards of service and honest home cooking (one taste of the lemon soup, the house specialty, will convince you). Breakfast, served in a stone-walled room down the lane from the hotel entrance, is not included in room rates.

Theotokopoulou. www.amphora.gr.

28210/93224. 20 units. 50€–130€ double. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; roof terrace; Wi-Fi (free).

Doma

One of the most gracious hotels on Crete, Doma offers simple yet elegant accommodations in a seaside mansion that once served as a consulate. Antiques, historic photos, and a museum-quality collection of Asian headdresses fill the lounges and top-floor breakfast room, and a garden is accented with architectural bits and pieces. Traditional Cretan furnishings decorate the plain, handsome guest rooms; some face the sea, but the quietest overlook the garden. The airy penthouse suite, tastefully furnished with old Cretan pieces and kilims, opens to view-filled terraces.

Venizelou 124, along waterfront E of town center. www.hotel-doma.gr.

28210/51772. 25 units. 100€–160€ double; special rates for long-term stays. Rates include breakfast. Amenities: Bar; garden; Wi-Fi (free). Closed Nov–Mar.

Porto Veneziano

On the harbor at edge of the Old Town, these newer and extremely attractive premises may not have the historic pedigree of the surrounding Venetian landmarks, but old-fashioned Cretan hospitality still abounds. Most of the large and pleasantly decorated, contemporary-style rooms face the sea and have airy balconies. Blue color palettes and sea views through large expanses of glass give the impression you’re on a ship. Service is deft and personal; coffee, drinks, and snacks are served in a pleasant little garden and on a quayside terrace.

Akti Enosseos. www.portoveneziano.gr.

28210/27100. 57 units. 90€–140€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: Cafe; bar; room service; Wi-Fi (free).

Vamos Traditional Village

Restored houses scattered around Vamos and nearby hamlets in the Apokoronos district west of Chania provide a homelike perch from which to experience traditional Greek village life, as well as making a fine base for exploring the towns, beaches, and gorges of western Crete. Houses vary considerably in size, sleeping from two to 10 people; all have been well restored but not overdone, usually with unfussy traditional furnishings, wood and tile floors, and exposed stone and beams. All have terraces and/or balconies and some have shared or private pools. Vamos has many shops and a choice of good restaurants.

Vamos, 25km (15 mi) east of Chania, 35km (23 mi) east of Rethymnon. www.vamosvillage.gr.

28250/22190. 40 units. 50€–70€ double. Amenities: Fully equipped kitchens; some pools; Wi-Fi (free).

Apostolis

SEAFOOD Chania locals have definite opinions about who serves the freshest fish in town, and this brightly lit place next to the harbor is inevitably near the top of the list (Karnagio on nearby Plateia Katehaki is another top choice). No need to consult the menu: the waiters will show you the fresh catch, displayed on a bed of ice, then recommend the best way for it to be prepared. Kalitsounia (sweet cheese pie), dakos (rusk topped with feta and tomato), and other Cretan specialties accompany a meal.

Portes

GREEK Owner-chef Susanna Koutloulaki is Irish by birth, but her takes on such traditional staples as moussaka, shrimp saganaki, and grilled chops would pass muster with any Greek cook, as would her innovations such as roasted vegetable salad and spicy chicken livers. The friendly environs spill onto a quiet backstreet along the walls in an out-of-the-way corner of Old Town.

Tamam

GREEK/MEDITERRANEAN Set in a former Turkish bath (the name refers to hamam), this tall, tiled room that once housed the cold pools serves pan-Mediterranean offerings, many from Turkey. Peppers grilled with feta, salads made with mountain greens, vegetable croquettes, and savory kebabs are served in a lane out front in good weather.

Zambeliou 49. www.tamamrestaurant.com.

28210/96080. Entrees 5€–14€. Daily noon–3pm and 7:30pm–1am.

Well of the Turk

MIDDLE EASTERN You can find your way to this all-but-hidden restaurant at the heart of the old Turkish quarter, south of the Venetian Harbor, by keeping your eye on the minaret and asking for directions as you go. An enticing selection of Greek and Middle Eastern appetizers, juicy lamb dishes, meatballs mixed with eggplant, laxma bi azeen (a pita-style bread with a spicy topping), and other specialties are served on the ground floor of a Turkish house and in a lovely courtyard.

Kalinikou Sarpaki 1–3 (on small st. off Daskaloyiannis). welloftheturk.gr.

28210/54547. Entrees 7€–20€. Daily 6–11:30pm.

Thick fortifications once surrounded the landward side of the Old Town. These walls did not ultimately repel the Turks who invaded in 1645, but the Venetian defenses proved so hard to topple that the invaders lost 40,000 men, an indignity for which the Turkish commander lost his head upon returning to Constantinople. The Turks subsequently fortified the walls. No amount of brick and mortar, however, could withstand the German bombs that rained down upon the city during the Battle of Crete in 1941, sparing only the western and eastern flanks that still separate the Old Town from Chania’s ever-sprawling newer sections. In the Old Town the Venetian Firkas fortress (now the Maritime Museum of Crete, p. 265) guards the narrow entrance into the harbor, protected from the open sea by long sea walls, and the palaces of the city’s most prominent 15th- and 16th-century Venetian families line narrow stepped lanes.

Archaeological Museum

MUSEUM Over the ages, Chania and the surrounding lands of western Crete have passed through the hands of the Minoans, Greeks, Romans, Genoese, Venetians, and Turks. Relics of this often-tumultuous past are on display in the former 16th-century Church of San Francesco. The artifacts here are more likely to charm than to overwhelm: a stone carved with Minoan houses standing next to the sea; a toy dog found in the tomb of a Greek boy; several colorful mosaics that once carpeted the floor of a Roman town house. A small garden, embellished with a 10-sided Turkish fountain and a Venetian doorway, is one of the most soothing spots in town. Just across the street is a remarkable-looking assemblage of 12 domes sitting atop a stone box. Under the Turks, this was Chania’s largest hamam (baths). The city’s Muslim inhabitants built their facility on the site of Roman baths, fed by a fresh supply of spring water; the hamam in turn became part of the Venetian Monastery of Saint Clara and is now a bronze foundry.

Halidon 28. chaniamuseum.culture.gr.

28210/90334. Admission 4€; combined ticket w/ Aptera and the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Collection 6€. June–Oct Tues–Sun 8am–8pm, Nov–May 8am–3pm.

Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Collection

MUSEUM Christianity took root as early as the 1st century in Crete, and the Franciscan Monastery of San Salvatore, established by the Venetians next to the Firkas, houses many religious works from all the centuries that followed. Many pieces—mosaics from early basilicas, fragments of wall paintings of saints, bronze lamps used during services, and icons—were fashioned when Crete was under Venetian rule, when Byzantine art continued to thrive on the island.

Theotokopoulou 82.

28210/96046. Admission 2€; combined ticket w/ Aptera and Archaeological Museum 6€. Wed–Mon 8:30am–4pm.

Etz Hayyim Synagogue

RELIGIOUS SITE Beginning in the 17th century, Evraiki, the neighborhood of tall houses and narrow lanes just south of the Firkas, was Chania’s sizable Jewish ghetto. German authorities arrested and deported the residents in May 1944, and all but a few drowned when the ship carrying them to Athens for transport to Auschwitz was torpedoed by the British. The Chania community was the last bastion of a Jewish population that had lived in Crete for more than 2,500 years—they are mentioned in the Bible—intermingling successfully over the millennia with the various cultures that occupied the island. Under Venetian rule, many emigrated to Venice and from there to other parts of Europe. This rich legacy is captured in Chania’s one remaining synagogue, formerly the Venetian Church of St. Catherine, beautifully restored and reopened in 2000 for the first time since it was destroyed during World War II. During visiting hours the staff guides guests around the synagogue and discusses the surrounding neighborhood and Jewish Crete.

Parodos Kondylaki.

28210/96046. Free admission. May–Oct Mon–Thurs 10am–6pm and Fri 10am–3pm (July–Aug also Sun 10am–3pm); Nov–Apr Mon–Fri 10am–3pm.

Folklore Museum

MUSEUM Crete’s rich folk traditions are captured here in artifact-filled re-creations of farm and domestic scenes. You’ll find more orderly presentations of folk heritage elsewhere on Crete, but the casual, overstuffed feel of this cramped space—filled to bursting with furniture, farm implements, looms, and traditional clothing—imparts a strong appreciation for a way of life quickly disappearing.

Historical Museum

MUSEUM A walk through the elegant turn-of-the-20th-century residential enclave south of the public gardens leads to this town house filled with mementos of the island’s 19th- and 20th-century history. This was a tumultuous period for Cretans, as you’ll learn from exhibits about the freedom fighters who finally won independence from the Turks and grisly World War II photographs documenting the armed resistance against the German occupation. More peaceful times are evoked in charming rooms furnished with beautiful island textiles and domestic belongings. One room is devoted to Eleftherios Venizelos, born near Chania in 1864, the two-time prime minister of Greece who was instrumental in gaining independence for Crete. His influence during the nation’s formative years has earned him the moniker “maker of modern Greece.” He and his son, Sophocles, prime minister in the early 1950s, are buried on a hilltop just east of the city.

Maritime Museum

MUSEUM The Firkas—the waterside fortress the Venetians built to keep a watchful eye on the sea lanes and their harbor—is the setting for models of prehistoric and Minoan boats and riveting renderings of the great naval battles of the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. The quirky and intriguing collections go well beyond the long history of Cretan and Greek shipping: Attention is paid to Crete’s struggle for independence and unification with Greece, celebrated here when King Constantine hoisted the Greek flag above the Firkas on December 1, 1913. Photographs and artifacts also chronicle the Battle of Crete during World War II. A scale model re-creates the 17th-century Venetian city, and a step outside onto the ramparts reveals that palaces, sea walls, churches, and other landmarks remain remarkably intact.

Akti Kountourioti. mar-mus-crete.gr.

28210/26437. Admission 3€. May–Oct Mon–Sat 9am–5pm, Sun 10:30am–5pm; Nov–Mar Mon–Sat 9am–3:40pm.

Market

MARKET Chania’s handsome, cross-shaped covered market opened in 1913 as part of the celebrations surrounding the island’s unification with Greece. Dozens of stalls are enticingly packed with typically Cretan products—olive oil, raki, honey, wild herbs and teas, gravouria and other mountain cheeses. Several small cafes serve spinach pie and other snacks, or you can satisfy your market-induced cravings by taking a seat in cramped, decidedly unstylish Enomayirio (at the “arm” with the fish vendors), where freshness is guaranteed—all the fish, seafood, vegetables and other ingredients served come from the surrounding stalls. Just outside the west entrance, an outdoor extension of the market along Odos Skirdlof has dozens of jam-packed little shops selling Cretan leather goods.

SE edge of Old Town, behind harbor. Mon, Wed, Sat 8am–5pm; Tues, Thurs, Fri 8am–9pm.

Venetian Harbor

LANDMARK The Venetians, accustomed to the beauty of their native city, lavished considerable care when they set about rebuilding the Byzantine town of Chania—renamed Canea—to their needs and tastes. First and foremost, they fortified the outer and inner harbors, enclosing the natural inlet with thick walls that could be entered only through one well-protected, narrow slip at the foot of a sturdy lighthouse. Around the outer harbor rose the palaces of well-to-do officials who reaped considerable profits from the timber for shipbuilding and other raw materials the island supplied, as well as from the lucrative trade routes to which Crete provided easy access. The inner harbor, lined with wharves, was a place of business where goods were stored and ships outfitted in massive arsenali (warehouses). The Turks added their own impossibly picturesque element to the east side of the harbor—a mosque with a large central dome surrounded by 12 smaller domes. It was intended as a place of worship for the Janissaries, an elite corps of 277 young Christian men whom the Ottoman Turks conscripted from throughout their holdings, converted to Islam, and trained as soldiers. (It’s open occasionally for temporary exhibitions.) Kastelli Hill rises above the mosque; excavations at the top of the hill (closed but observable through a fence) reveal the remains of the Minoan city that early Greeks called Kydonia. Wharves along the harbor at the northern foot of the hill are lined with Venetian arsenali. One has been converted to a dramatic exhibition space, and another houses a replica of a Minoan ship.

Among Chania’s endless parade of shops, two stand out, and they happen to be side by side. At Carmela, 7 Anghelou (

28210/90487), owner-artist Carmela Latropoulou shows the work of jewelers and sculptors from throughout Greece. The pieces are extraordinary, often inspired by ancient works and made according to traditional techniques. Carmela is often on hand to discuss her wares and Greek craftsmanship. Cretan Rugs and Blankets, 3 Anghelou (

28210/98571), is enticingly filled with fine examples of top-quality local textile work, much of it antique and hand-woven.

The broad Akrotiri Peninsula, east of Chania, encloses the deep waters of Souda Bay, one of the largest and deepest natural harbors in the Mediterranean. This fact was lost on neither the ancient Greek residents of Aptera (p. 268), who built a port on the shores of the bay as early as the 7th century b. c., nor on the waves of invaders and pirates who followed them. NATO now operates a large naval base on the peninsula, and Chania’s airport is here. At the base of the peninsula is the Souda Bay War Cemetery, where some 1,500 Commonwealth soldiers who died in the Battle of Crete and other conflicts on the island are buried amid beautiful plantings.

The Akrotiri Monasteries

At the northern tip of the Akrotiri Peninsula, which juts into the Cretan Sea east and north of Chania, stand three adjacent monasteries. Only a half-hour’s drive from Chania, they preserve an aura of sanctity amid huge swaths of olive groves next to the sea. Admission is free, and they’re open daily 7:30am to 7pm, with a midday break from noon to 3pm. A cypress-lined drive leads to the beautiful Venetian Gate of Agia Triada, beyond which are flower-filled courtyards and cloisters, a church, and a small museum of icons. A shop sells the monastery’s excellent olive oil, some of Crete’s best. The Venetian Renaissance Moni Gouverneto monastery at the northern tip of the peninsula is near the even more remarkable 11th-century Monastery of Katholiko, the oldest in Crete. The primitive complex was founded by John the Hermit, one of the island’s most popular saints. Tradition has it that John, fleeing Muslim persecution in Asia Minor, sailed across the Aegean on his cloak and came ashore on these lands, where he and 98 followers lived in the caves that riddle a wild, rocky ravine. These caves, accessible via a 30-minute walk on a path from the Gouverneto courtyard, have long been associated with worship. The Cave of the Bear, named for the ursine shape of a stalagmite in the cavern, is believed to have been a place of ritual for the Minoans and a sanctuary of Artemis for the ancient Greeks. John spent his last days in a cave-hermitage farther along the path, near the old Katholiko monastery he founded, partially cut out of the rock face and embellished with a Venetian facade. The steep path ends at a little cove. You’ll be tempted to dive in, though a monk may be keeping watch to remind you that swimming is not allowed on monastery grounds.

Ancient Polyrinia

ANCIENT SITE One of the most important Greek city-states of western Crete tops a remote hillside, a half-hour walk from the modern village of Polyrinia through meadows ablaze with wildflowers in spring. Legend has it that Agamemnon stopped at Polyrinia on his way back to Mycenae from Troy. He entered the city to make a sacrifice at the city’s famous Temple to Artemis, but the proceedings were cut short when the king saw that his prisoners of war had set fire to his ships, anchored far below. The city still commands a view of much of the northwestern coastline; stone from the temple was used to construct the sturdy 19th-century Church of the Holy Fathers, incongruously still standing amid the ruins.

Take national hwy. from Chania 40km (25 miles) W to Kastelli, then 5km (3 miles) S toward modern Polyrinia. Take path from village to ancient Polyrinia. Free admission. Daily dawn-dusk; site is unattended.

Aptera

ANCIENT SITE Founded in the foothills of the White Mountains around 1200 b.c., at the end of the Minoan civilization, Aptera became an important Cretan settlement for 7th- to 4th-century-b.c. Greeks. In that era, Aptera had some 20,000 inhabitants and sent soldiers to aid the Spartans in their war against Athens. Aptera then became an important outpost for the Romans, a trading center that minted more than 75 different denominations of coins. You can still see traces of the Romans’ elaborate vaulted cisterns and the ruins of their villas and temples, as well as a small chapel left by the Byzantines who followed them. Aptera fell into permanent ruin sometime after the 15th century, while the Turks built the 19th-century fortress of lzzedin on a promontory at the far northeastern tip of the site. In recent years, the Roman theater has been restored, and is once again hosting occasional performances, mostly Greek classics (check with the tourist office in Chania, p. 260, for schedules).

5km (3 mi) SE of Souda. odysseus.culture.gr.

28210/40095. Admission 2€; combined ticket w/ Archaeological Museum and Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Collection 6€. Tues–Sun 8am–3pm.

Stavros

TOWN The sandy beach at this scrappy little village on the north coast of the Akrotiri Peninsula is a pleasant place for a swim before heading back to Chania. It was the setting for an iconic scene in the film Zorba the Greek—on this beach, backed by a barren promontory, Zorba teaches the young intellectual, Basil, to dance.

Vrisses and the Gorges

TOWN/NATURAL WONDER This pretty village just off the north coast 35km (21 miles) southeast of Chania rests its fame on thick, creamy yogurt, topped with local honey and savored at a cafe table beneath the shade of plane trees alongside a rushing stream. Two of Crete’s most beautiful churches are in the countryside just outside of Vrisses. The 11th-century, honey-colored church at Samonas rests atop a knoll in a green valley, with some well-preserved frescoes of the Virgin and Child inside; the Church of the Panagia in Alikambos, surrounded by orange groves, houses one of the finest fresco cycles in Crete, a vivid telling of the Bible story from Adam and Eve to the Crucifixion, painted in 1315. Both churches are usually open daily 8am to 5pm and admission is free, though donations are welcome. From Vrisses, a road heads south across the White Mountains to the south coast, following the fertile Kare Gorge into the rugged landscapes of the Imbros Gorge. The road follows the cliffs atop the gorges, providing some hair-raising views, and you can hike into the narrow canyon from the village of Imbros. On even a short scramble, you can experience the drama of the gorges, flanked by steep cliffs and forested with oak and cypress. If you traverse the entire 11km (7-mile) length of the gorges, you’ll emerge on the south coast at Hora Sfakion (see p. 269) after a few hours of fairly easy walking.

One of the most photographed beaches in Greece, Balos

is a remote strip of pinkish sand skirting a turquoise lagoon along the Gramvousa Peninsula, at Crete’s northwestern tip. The isolated surroundings are home to falcons, sea turtles, and other creatures that are scarce elsewhere, and colorful fish schooling along the rocky coastline are a snorkeler’s delight. The only land access to Balos is on a dirt track so rugged that car rental companies will not cover damages incurred on the drive. Instead, most visitors arrive by excursion boats from Kissamos, 38km (23 miles) west of Chania, with a stop for a swim on Imeri Gramvousa islet, overlooking the lagoon and topped with the ruins of a Venetian fortress. As idyllic as Balos might seem, keep in mind that once tour boats start pulling into the lagoon, paradise can quickly become a mob scene. Excursion boats operated by Crete Daily Cruises (www.cretandailycruises.com) and other companies depart mornings from the port in Kissamos with late afternoon returns and charge about 30€. You can purchase tickets from offices along the port.

Farther down the west coast, about 60km (37 miles) directly west of Chania, past the end of the national highway, the long white-sand beach of Falasarna

is washed by crystal-clear waters and interspersed with boulders. Just behind the beach are the scant remains of an ancient Greek harbor, once protected within thick walls. Due to sea level shifts over the past 2,500 years, the old stones are now scattered across dry, rugged terrain several hundred feet from shore.

Some 35km (21 miles) south of Falasarna along the west coast road, the beautiful whitewashed monastery of Moni Chrysoskalitissa

appears like a mirage atop an outcropping above the rugged coast. The name means “golden stair,” and legend has it that one of the 90 stairs ascending to the monastery is made of gold, but only those without sin can see it—which may explain why the stair has never been sighted in the 600 or so years since the hermitage was established. As many as 200 monks and nuns once lived at Chrysoskalitissa, but today only two remain. Admission is free; it’s open daily 9am to 7pm.

Another 5km (3 miles) south of Moni Chrysosokalitissa, at the southwestern corner of the island, is Elafonisi

. The remote location does not deter legions of summertime beachgoers from seeking out this string of little inlets, lined with tamarisk-shaded sands and washed by shallow turquoise waters. Many avoid the long overland journey and arrive by boat from Paleochora (p. 271). A sandbar, sometimes submerged, links the shoreline to a narrow islet, where another, less frequented, tree-shaded beach faces the open sea.

The most efficient way to hop from town to town along the southwest coast is on one of the boats operated by Anendyk (anendyk.gr) that run from May through October between Hora Sfakion and Loutro, Paleochora, Sougia, and other ports.

Hora Sfakion and Frangokastello

TOWNS A rather forlorn-looking little port and fishing village, Hora Sfakion is enlivened in summer by hikers, who emerge here from the Imbros Gorge or pass through en route to the Samaria Gorge (p. 271), as well as daytrippers on the ferries that ply the south coast. The small harbor was the stage for a massive evacuation of Allied troops after Germans took the island in the Battle of Crete; a memorial commemorates the operation, in which Cretan civilians played a large part. You can keep an eye on the harbor’s comings and goings from a seat in one of the many cafes, where the dish to order is Sfakian cheese pie, a crêpe filled with sweet, creamy mizithra cheese and drizzled with mountain honey. Frangokastello, 10 km (6 miles) east of Hora Sfakion on the coast road, surrounds a mighty Venetian fortress, erected on the flat coastal plain in 1371 as a defense against pirate raids and the rebellious local populace. Admission is 2€ and the fortress is usually open daily 9am to 4pm (hours vary). The surrounding landscape has not been altered much in the intervening centuries, and the sandy beach and shallow waters in front of the fortress are especially popular with families.

Hora Sfakion is 72km (47 mi) S of Chania on a well-marked road off the national road.

Loutro

TOWN One of the most scenic, and remote, villages in Crete sits above a perfect semicircle of a bay and is accessible only on foot or by boat (a 3-hour hike or 45-minute ferry ride from Hora Sfakion). A blessing for travelers in search of a getaway, this isolation was hardly a hindrance to the Romans, Venetians, and 19th-century Cretan freedom fighters who made use of Loutro’s well-protected anchorage. Loutro’s shady taverna terraces and clear waters are the biggest draws, but the village is also the starting point for some rewarding hikes. A half-hour coastal walk leads east to Sweetwater Beach, named for the springs that bubble forth from the rocks. A more strenuous half-day hike leads from Marmara Beach, east of Loutro, into the Aradena Gorge, a deep, oleander-scented cleft in the White Mountains. The walk ends at the abandoned village of Aradena, where half-ruined houses surround a sturdy 14th-century Byzantine chapel.

Crete’s rebel Hero

Frangokastello is most famously associated with one of Crete’s favorite folk heroes, Ioannis Daskalogiannis. He is largely credited as the father of the movement to free Crete from the Turks, leading an uprising against the island’s Ottoman administrators in 1770. Turkish troops suppressed the insurrection in fairly short order, and Daskalogiannis gave himself up outside the Frangokastello fortress, saving the lives of most of his 1,300 followers. He was taken to Iraklion and skinned alive, suffering the ordeal in dignified silence.

Paleochora

TOWN/BEACH It’s been a long time since hippies wandering through southern Europe discovered this once-isolated fishing village, but Paleochora’s quiet, out-of-the-way setting is as appealing as ever—a rambling collection of whitewashed houses tucked into the end of a stubby peninsula, with a pebbly beach on one flank, a carpet of soft sand on the other, and a picturesquely ruined 13th-century Venetian fortress at the end. Some of Greece’s most beautiful and unspoiled coastline scenery can be easily explored from Paleochora by foot and ferry boat. A pleasant walk of about 5km (3 miles) into the hills north of Paleochora ends at Anidri, where a simple little chapel is beautifully frescoed with images of St. George. From there, you can scramble down the steep hillside for a swim in one of several idyllic coves.

Hiking the samaria gorge

Although tucked away on the remote southwestern coast, the longest gorge in Europe is one of the most traveled places in Crete. Every morning from spring through fall, eager trekkers get off the bus at the head of the gorge on the Omalos Plateau and descend the Xyloskaka, the wooden steps, to begin a 15km (9-mile) walk to the sea at Agia Roumeli. While other gorges on the southern coast offer more solitude, none can match the Samaria for spectacle—the canyon is only 3m (10 ft.) wide at the narrowest passage, the so-called Iron Gates, and the sheer walls reach as high as 600m (1,969 ft.). Copses of pine and cedar and a profusion of springtime wildflowers carpet the canyon floor, where a river courses through a rocky bed, fed by little streams and springs. Kri-kri, the shy endangered Cretan wild goat, can sometimes be sighted on the flanks of the gorge, and eagles and other raptors soar overhead. Samaria has been a national park since 1962 (www.samaria.gr), and the only sign of habitation is the now-deserted village of Samaria and a church dedicated to namesake St. Maria. You will, of course, be partaking of this natural paradise with hundreds of other enthusiasts, but the experience will be no less memorable.

Many trekkers set off on organized gorge tours from Chania and Rethymnon. Most tour operators provide a bus trip to the drop-off at the Xyloskaka entrance; transfer by boat at the end of the hike from Agia Roumeli to Hora Sfakion, Paleochora, or Sougia; and a return trip from there by bus. Fees begin at about 30€, though at that price you’ll be part of a large group.

If you decide to hike the gorge on your own, you can take the morning bus from Chania or Rethymnon to Xyloskala. At the end of the hike, from the mouth of the gorge at Agia Roumeli boats will take you to Hora Sfakion, Sougia, or Paleochora, and from there you can catch a bus back to Chania or Rethymnon, with connections to other towns on the island.

The gorge is open from May through mid-October, depending on weather conditions; rains raise the risk of flash floods, and winds have been known to send rocks careening from great heights toward hikers. Entry is allowed from 7am to 4pm, and the entrance fee is 5€; you will be asked to show your ticket as you leave the gorge. (This way, park personnel can keep track of numbers entering and leaving and launch a search for errant hikers if necessary.) The trek takes 5 or 6 hours; boulders can make for some rough going in places. Mandatory gear includes sturdy hiking shoes, sunscreen, and a hat, plus a bathing suit for a well-deserved swim in the sea at the end of the hike. You’ll want to bring a snack, but don’t load yourself down with too much water—you’ll come upon several freshwater springs along the way. Any tourist office on Crete can provide additional information on this phenomenal attraction.

Sougia

TOWN/BEACH The ancient Greeks established the city of Elyros to the north of Sougia, as well as the port at Lissos, just to the west. Today Sougia is home to no more than a few dozen families, and the attractive little village is best known for a long, wide, and uncrowded beach backed by cave-etched cliffs. Sougia is a popular outing from Chania, especially with hikers trekking through the surrounding mountain gorges and beachgoers looking for a laidback getaway. The scant, largely unexcavated ruins of Elyros are about 10m (6 miles) north of Sougia, marked off the main route through the mountains. The temple at Lissos, a 3km (2-mile) walk west from Sougia along a seaside path (or a round-about drive of more than an hour back through the mountains), was dedicated to Asklepios, god of healing; a spring that bubbled into a fountain was reputedly therapeutic. Romans sought cures from the waters as well, and their small settlement, of which a few ruined houses remain, catered to ill legionnaires and colonists who made the sea journey to Lissos from throughout Crete.

Attractive and animated, this busy resort town climbs steep hills above a natural curiosity, small but deep Lake Voulismeni. Just outside of town, the shores of the Elounda Peninsula are lined with some of Greece’s most luxurious hotels.

arriving Agios Nikolaos can be reached in about 1 hour by taxi or bus (11⁄2 hr.) from the Iraklion airport. Bus service almost every half-hour of the day (in high season) links Agios Nikolaos to Iraklion; almost as many buses go to and from Sitia, and buses serves other towns in eastern Crete as well. The terminal of the KTEL bus line (e-ktel.com;

28410/22-234) is in the Lagos neighborhood, behind the city hospital.

Visitor Information The municipal information office, the heart of town at Koziri 1 (

28410/22357), is staffed by an enthusiastic staff who can provide maps and brochures and help arrange accommodations and excursions. The office is open mid-April to October daily, 8am to 9:30pm. Among many travel agencies in town is Nostos Tours, 30 R. Koundourou, along the right arm of the harbor (www.nostoscruises.com;

28410/26-383); Nostos and other agencies arrange boat tours to the island of Spinalonga (p. 277), or you can book directly with tour boats in the harbor.

Free parking is available along the sea, but observe parking signs carefully. A safe bet is to use one of the private parking lots (about 5€ for a day), including one at the corner of Kyprou and Koziri, just off the square (signed) at the top of Koundourou, the main street leading up from the harbor.

Agios Nikolaos is surrounded by some of the most luxurious resorts in the world.

Elounda Beach

One of the first and most famous of the large Greek resorts is a legend, an icon of the good life for generations of international travelers. After half a century, new ways to pamper guests keep emerging. Accommodations come in dozens of variations, from standard-but-luxurious doubles to garden villas with private pools to contemporary-chic bungalows with high-tech gadgetry that would make James Bond feel at home. Some of Crete’s most memorable lodgings are the terraced units hanging over the water off to one side of the property. The many amenities include water sports, spa treatments, and a variety of dining experiences, even a fake Greek village, and service that is never less than top-notch.

3km (2 mi) S of Elounda village. www.eloundabeach.gr.

28410/63000. 240 units. 300€–700€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: 5 restaurants; 4 bars; 2 beaches; multiple pools; tennis courts; watersports; spa; Wi-Fi (free). Closed Nov–Mar.

Elounda Mare

Most of the guests at this idyllic retreat, one of Europe’s truly great getaways, come back year after year, and it is easy to see why. Bungalows, many with private pools, are tucked into verdant seaside gardens, and rooms and suites furnished elegantly in traditional Cretan style afford expansive views over the Gulf of Elounda. A sandy beach and all sorts of shady seaside nooks are among the many, many amenities. What most sets this luxurious lair apart is a sense of intimacy and a staff that make guests feel they’re on a private seaside estate.

3km (2 mi) S of Elounda village. www.eloundamare.com.

28410/68200. 88 units. 275€–500€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: 3 restaurants; 2 bars; beach; pool; tennis courts; watersports; spa; Wi-Fi (free). Closed Nov–Mar.

St. Nicolas Bay

Within walking distance of Agios Nikolaos, this wonderful resort is a world removed, tucked away in gardens above a sandy beach. On hand are many of the same amenities for which the resorts farther out on the Elounda Peninsula are famed. Marble-floored rooms and suites, all with balconies or terraces, are awash in comfort, and low-key Cretan-style hospitality prevails. The final word in luxury here is a seafront bungalow with private pool, but you certainly won’t feel deprived in any of these soothing accommodations.

Thessi Nissi. www.stnicolasbay.gr.

28410/25041. 90 units. 280€–500€ double. Rates include buffet breakfast. Amenities: 2 restaurants; 2 bars; beach; pool; watersports; spa; Wi-Fi (free).

Akti Olous

A sandy beach and rooftop pool make this waterfront, adults-only spot near the sunken city of Olus just outside Elounda village a good-value alternative to the luxurious resorts nearby. All of the small but bright and well-furnished rooms are decorated in soothing aqua blues and greens, most overlook the sea, and all open to balconies. A restaurant and bar are on a waterside terrace just above the beach, a perfect spot for a sunset cocktail.

Waterfront, Elounda. www.eloundaaktiolous.gr.

28410/41270. 70 units. 55€–120€ double. Rates include breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; pool; beach; Wi-Fi (free).

Hotel du Lac

Though the name conjures up a getaway in the Italian Lakes, the ambiance here is typically Cretan, and half of the clean, airy, no-frills accommodations hang right over Lake Voulismeni. All of the crisply contemporary units have balconies; some are double-size studio suites with kitchenettes. A dining room terrace is tucked right onto the lakeshore.

Octobriou 28. www.dulachotel.gr.

28410/22711. 18 units. 45€–80€ double. Rates include breakfast. Amenities: Restaurant; bar; Wi-Fi (free).

Marilena

GREEK/MIDDLE EASTERN The Elounda waterfront is a cluster of garish restaurants, none of which match the excellent cuisine and attentive service offered in this large room and even larger back garden. Grilled fish is a specialty, but you can dine very well on one of the house appetizer platters, a delicious array of spreads and small portions of meat and seafood.

Elounda Harbor. www.marilenarestaurant.gr.

28410/41322. Entrees 6€–20€. Daily noon–11pm. Closed Nov–Mar.

Migomis

GREEK/MEDITERRANEAN The brick arches and wood-beamed ceilings in the cliff-edge, open-air dining room might remind you of Italy, as will the many pastas and grilled Tuscan steaks. Views over the lake, town, and harbor are decidedly Greek, however, as are many of the seafood creations and Cretan salads. The gentle tinkling of ivories in the background, along with polished service, put even more shine on a meal here. A cafe next door serves coffee and light meals throughout the day.

Plastira 20, Agios Nikolaos. migomis.gr.

28410/24353. Entrees 10€–25€. Daily 8am–2am.

Pelagos

SEAFOOD What many locals consider the freshest fish in town is served in the handsome, simply furnished rooms and garden of this neoclassical mansion near the sea in the heart of town. A good selection of Cretan wines lends another flourish to the reliably memorable meals here.

Stratigou Koraka 10 (1 block from waterfront), Agios Nikolaos.

28410/82019. Entrees 6€–20€; some fish by the kilo. Daily noon–1am. Closed Nov–Feb.

Sarris

GREEK It’s worth wandering through the back streets of town to find this simple little taverna, where only a few dishes are prepared daily. Offerings often include rich stews of game and seafood. In warm months, service is across the street under a shady arbor overlooking a small church.

15 Kyprou, Agios Nikolaos.

28410/28059. Entrees 5€–8€. No credit cards. Daily 9am–3pm and 6–11:30pm. Closed Nov–Mar.

Taverna Stavrakakis

GREEK When visiting Krista (p. 276), do yourself a favor and drive the few extra miles to this delightful little village taverna. Many of the ingredients that find their way into salads, dolmades, and other dishes are homegrown, served in memorably friendly surroundings.

Exo Laconia, 8km (5 mi) W of Agios Nikolaos.

28410/22478. Entrees 4€–8€. Daily noon–11pm.

Wedged between the Gulf of Mirabella and the Sitia Mountains, Agios Nikolaos picturesquely climbs the hills that surround Lake Voulismeni. There’s a cheerful, holiday mood to the crowded waterfront and little lanes of this town, which is small enough that you can walk anywhere you want to go. In high season the streets around the port vibrate with visitors; the main street up from the harbor, Koundourou, is a good orientation point. You can swim right in town, from crowded but pleasant strips of sand at Kitroplatia and Ammos.

Byzantine Art on Crete

Byzantine art flourished on Crete in the 15th century, as artists fled to the island just before and after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Crete became the center of the Byzantine art world, and hundreds of artists studied and worked in Iraklion (then known as Candia) and elsewhere around the island. As a Venetian possession, Crete met the Republic’s need for a steady stream of Byzantine-influenced paintings and icons, but Cretan art was shipped throughout Greece and other parts of Europe as well. Cretan artists also painted frescoes on the walls of churches and monasteries across the island; it’s estimated that more than 800 of these beautiful wall paintings remain in place. Some of the most elaborate and best-preserved are those in the Panagia Kera in Krista (p. 276). The art of icon painting is kept alive at Petrakis Workshop for Icons in Elounda (p. 275), which supplies churches throughout Europe and North America.

Folklore Museum

MUSEUM Colorful everyday items and local crafts pieces, from carved walking sticks to musical instruments, are displayed here alongside Cretan textiles and embroidery. A re-creation of a typical village house, furnished with traditional wooden pieces and kitchen equipment, is especially appealing.

Lake Voulismeni

NATURAL SIGHT Agios Nikolaos surrounds this tiny, deep lake, lying just inland next to the harbor and ringed with waterside cafes. Legend has it that the lake was a favorite bathing spot for the goddess Athena, and that the waters are bottomless (in fact the depth has been definitively measured at 65m/213 ft.).

At Atelier Ceramica, Paleologou 28 (

28410/24075), you can visit the workshop of master ceramicist Nikolaos Gabriel, who creates authentic and vivid vases. He also carries a line of fine jewelry, made by others to his designs. Across the street, at no. 1A, Xeiropoito sells handmade rugs. Pegasus, 5 Sfakianakis, on the corner of Koundourou (

28410/24-347), offers a selection of jewelry, knives, icons, and trinkets—some old, some not. Elixir, Koundourou 15 (

28410/82593) is piled high with Cretan olive oil, spices, wines, and other local products.

In Elounda, icon tradition is kept alive at the studio/store Petrakis Workshop for Icons, A. Papendreou 22 (www.greek-icons.com;

28410/41669), on the left as you come down the incline from Agios Nikolaos, just before the town square. Georgia and Ioannis Petrakis work seriously at maintaining this art—Orthodox churches in North America as well as in Greece buy icons from them.

Agios Nikolaos is the jumping-off point for the Elounda Peninsula, with its beaches and resorts, and also, continuing along the coastal highway, to the far reaches of eastern Crete.

Elounda

TOWN A dramatic hillside road follows the Gulf of Mirabello along the flanks of the Elounda Peninsula to this once quiet fishing village, 11km (7 miles) north of Agios Nikolaos. Some of Greece’s most sybaritic resorts (see above) now surround Elounda, providing the world-weary with many luxuries—none of which can top the views of the crystal-clear gulf waters and the landscape’s stark beauty. Ancient Greeks established the city of Olus on these shores, though a noted temple to the mountain goddess Britomartis and other structures were submerged more than 2,000 years ago. Scant remains are now visible beneath the waves off a causeway just east of the village; the waters above the ruins are popular with snorkelers.

Gournia

ANCIENT SITE Often called the Minoan Pompeii, this small town’s well-preserved ruins richly evoke everyday life in ancient times. Harriet Boyd-Hawes, an American archaeologist, began to excavate the site in 1901, and her work unearthed olive presses, carpenter’s tools, a coppersmith’s forge, and other artifacts that yield clues to the enterprises that once kept its 4,000 inhabitants busy. Stepped streets climb hilly terrain and cross two major avenues, running at right angles to each other, that are lined by stone houses with workrooms or shops open to the street. Ladders inside lead to storage rooms below and living quarters above ground level. Gournia is near a narrow neck where Crete is only 12km (7 miles) wide, so the fishermen-trader inhabitants could either embark from the town’s harbor or make their way to the south shore and set sail from there.

Just off the national hwy. odysseus.culture.gr. 

28410/22462. Admission 2€. Wed–Mon 8:30am–4pm.

Krista

TOWN Beautiful woven goods are strung in front of shops surrounding the beautiful plateia of this mountain village, 9km (6 miles) southwest of Agios Nikolaos. More artistry fills the small 14th-century Panagia Kera, where some of Crete’s most accomplished Byzantine frescoes cover the walls of the three naves: Scenes depict the life of Christ, the Second Coming, some fearsome views of damnation, and several lesser known biblical tales, including the prayer of Saint Anna. Childless Anna, who prayed fervently, promising to bring a child up in God’s ways, eventually gave birth to Mary, mother of Christ; accordingly, the colorful little church is popular with women seeking to bear children. The church is in countryside about 1km (less than a mile) north of the town center; it’s open Monday through Saturday 9am to 3pm, Sunday 9am to 2pm; admission is 3€.

Palace of Malia

ANCIENT SITE Three kilometers (2 miles) east of the atrociously overdeveloped resort town of the same name, this ruined palace was once a beachhead of Minoan administration. The third-largest Minoan palace on Crete, it’s not as overwhelming as Knossos or Phaestos, yet it richly evokes a Minoan settlement. As you walk through the ruins, you’ll get a good sense of how the Minoans were both practical and highly ceremonial. Granaries and storerooms surround large courtyards that were probably used for public gatherings and religious ceremonies; a limestone kernos, a large table etched with hollows in which seeds and other offerings were placed, stands near the central court, once lined with porticos; from there a large staircase ascends to terraces and more ceremonial spaces. Domestic apartments were located off the northern court. The sea laps against the northern side of the settlement, and the brooding Lasithi Mountains loom just a mile or so to the south—a natural setting that lends Malia a sense of timelessness despite the clutter of nearby resorts.

30km (19 mi) W of Agios Nikolaos. odysseus.culture.gr.

2897/31597. Admission 4€. Open Tues–Sun Apr–Oct 8am–8pm; Nov–Feb 8:30am–3:30pm; Mar 8:30am–4pm.

Spinalonga

HISTORIC SITE When the ancient Greeks inhabited nearby Olus, this island in the Gulf of Mirabello was still a peninsula, its seaward flanks fortified to protect the busy shipping channels. These bastions did not thwart Arabic pirates, however, who laid waste to the gulf shores around the 7th century. The region was not inhabited again until the 15th century, when the Venetians came to mine salt in the shallows of the gulf. They cut a channel to create an island, which they named Spina Longa (Long Thorn) and turned into a virtually impregnable fortress. Over the centuries, this barren outcropping became a refuge time and again. When the Turks overran Crete in the late 17th century, Spinalonga was one of the last spots to be conquered, remaining in Venetian hands until 1715; it became a place of refuge for Christians fearing persecution from the Ottoman occupiers. In turn, 200 years later it sheltered Turkish families after the Ottomans were overthrown in the war for Greek Independence in 1866. Another wave of outcasts arrived in 1903–1952, when Spinalonga became a leper colony. (The entrance lepers used is known as Dante’s Gate, so fearsome was its reputation.) Once there, the ill received decent treatment, though they were condemned to isolation.

Today the island’s spooky ruins and pebbly beaches are popular with day-trippers. Tour boats sail from Agios Nikolaos, Elounda, and Plaka (a fishing village just north of Elounda); the trip from Agios Nikolaos takes an hour and costs about 15€ a person, from Elounda or Plaka it’s 15 minutes and 7€. Simply walk along the docks in any of these towns and you’ll practically be pulled aboard one of the excursion boats. As boats approach the island, they cruise slowly past the tiny, uninhabited nearby islet of Agioi Pantes to catch a glimpse of the agrimi, also known as the kri-kri, a species of long-horned wild goat endemic to Crete and now endangered; this little island and the Samaria Gorge (p. 271) are among the last refuges for the shy animals. Try to go early in the morning, leaving no later than l0am, to avoid the midday sun and the crowds that converge on the otherwise deserted island. Back on shore, stop by a newsstand to pick up a copy of The Island, a novel by Victoria Hislop set in Plaka and Spinalonga.

Vai

BEACH Despite the relative isolation at the far eastern edge of Crete, 100km (62 miles) southeast of Agios Nikolaos, this white-sand crescent backed by Europe’s largest palm grove is one of Crete’s most popular attractions. Vai attracts beachgoers by the busload, but a cove just over a small headland to the south is slightly less crowded, and the beach and ruins of an ancient settlement at Itanos, 3km (2 miles) north, seem like a world removed. Itanos (

28430/23917; admission 3€; daily 8am–3pm) was a thriving settlement for the Minoans and ancient Greeks and Romans, with a harbor for trade with Egypt and the Middle East; it was inhabited until the 15th century, when pirate raids forced inhabitants to move inland. Among the scant ruins of the mostly unexcavated site are the stony outlines of sanctuaries and temples. You can see vestiges of the harbor on the seabed while swimming or snorkeling from the beach.