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02/06/2024

Visit us and explore the beauties of the island!

Agia Pelagia (Greek: Αγία Πελαγία, "Saint Pelagia") is a popular seaside resort in the municipality of Malevizi, 23 km northwest of Crete's capital city of Heraklion. In former times, Agia Pelagia was a tiny fishing village and a place for the residents of nearby Achlada village to grow their crops. Today, the village built at the center of a picturesque amphitheatric bay has been transformed into a bustling tourist resort featuring five-star hotels, traditional seaside tavernas, cafes, bars, internet cafés, ATMs, and souvenir shops.

The village takes its name from the homonymous church, in the Monastery of the Sebbathians, ruins of which are found at a distance of 1 km west of the village. The beaches of the village are popular with locals and tourists because they are sheltered by the rock outcroppings that almost encircle Agia Pelagia Bay.

29/06/2019

Preveli is located about 35km south of Rethymno and 10km east of Plakias. Beach of Preveli, also known as Lake Preveli or Phoenix, is located at the exit of the imposing Kourtaliotikos Gorge, where the Great River (Megas Potamos) flows. It is certainly the most famous beach in south Crete, accepting thousands of visitors every summer. During the 60s and 70s, it was a favorite destination for the hippies. On the banks of the Grand River there is a large colony of Theophrastus palm trees, which give the region a sense of a tropical landscape. The river, forming a small lake, 500m long, before emptying into the sea, has water all year round.
You can walk along the river, under the shade of palm trees and other trees, and start ascending in the beautiful canyon. You can swim in the cold ponds formed in the gorge. A big fire in 2010 burnt almost everything of this paradise, but paradoxically the palmgrove recovered most of its damage.

At the exit of the river, a sandy beach with pebbles and sand is formed, with sea water being very cool due to the river. In the eastern part of the beach, there is a beautiful rock reminding of a heart. The beach is not well organized because the area is protected, without any umbrellas.You have two basic options for accessing Preveli, from the west or east. The first option is to drive from Plakias to the Monastery Preveli, following the relevant signs. 1.5km after the Kato Monastery of Preveli, you will stop at a large parking lot, where a path that descends to the beach starts. The parking is located near towering vertical cliffs, west of the beach, where you can take some fantastic photographs. To reach the beach walk the footpath that takes about 15-20 minutes. However, return is tedious as the ascent is rather steep.

To avoid the difficult climb, you can alternatively drive in the dirt road leading to nearby Drimiskiano Amoudi and walk the short path that leads to Preveli in just 5 minutes. However, you won’t have the chance to see the spectacular view from the tall cliffs on the west side. Lastly, there are small boats running to Preveli from Agia Galini and Plakias.

Preveli gets its name after the nearby historic monastery of Preveli. It is a men-only monastery, founded in the 16th or 17th century and is dedicated to St. John the Theologian. There are two monasteries, the old and the new, called Piso and Kato Monastery respectively. The old is abandoned and you will meet that a few meters south of the old stone bridge of Preveli.

28/04/2019

27/03/2019

Mochlos is a modern island in the Gulf of Mirabello in eastern Crete, and the archaeological site of an ancient Minoan settlement. There is evidence that Mochlos was not an island in Minoan times, but was attached to the mainland and acted as an eastern harbor.

The name Mochlos also applies to the small fishing village and resort located on the main island of Crete, opposite Mochlos island. Only 150 metres separates them. The island is administered from Tourloti which is only 9 km away.

Mochlos was first excavated by Richard Seager in 1908 at the western end of the island, where a prepalatial cemetery was found. At that time, tombs, pithos burials and pit graves were uncovered, as well as two large tombs at the western tip of the island. In the 1970s, Jeffrey Soles documented the tombs and cemetery uncovered by Seager. The cemetery was in use from Early Minoan I to Middle Minoan IA.

According to Keith Branigan,

On present evidence, Mochlos was one of the largest Early Minoan settlements in Crete, much smaller than Knossos or Mallia, but comparable to Phaistos and perhaps Palaikastro, and certainly much larger than Myrtos, or Vasiliki.

Dilatos barracks Temple dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary and Saint Paraskevi.

It was erected in 1835 on ruins of an older temple. Its characteristic is the majestic wood-carved iconostasis and the pictures of the 15th and 16th centuries.

20/03/2019

Samaria or the Samaria Gorge is one of the main sights of Crete. Every tourist who visits Crete will have heard of this beautiful gorge or soon will. The locals call it the “Farangas” or “Great Gorge”, both in admiration at its beauty and to differentiate it from the many other, smaller gorges of Crete.

The Samaria Gorge is in west Crete, in the White Mountains. It is the longest gorge in Europe, with a length of 18 kilometres.

The gorge starts at Xyloskalo (1227 m. above sea level) on the Omalos Plateau and runs down to the seaside village of Agia Roumeli on the south coast of Crete.

The Samaria National Park is exceptionally rich in plant and animal life. In the gorge you will find unique species protected under international law.

It is said that there are 450 plant species in the gorge, and not a single flower may be removed from Samaria, by law. Don’t see this as a pointlessly strict rule, but as the only way to protect the delicate ecosystem of Samaria so that thousands of visitors can continue to enjoy it each year.

In Samaria you can admire the forests of huge pine and cypress trees, a picture from Crete’s past, when thekri-kri, the wildgoats of Crete inside Samaria gorge island was covered by forests famous for their timber, ideal for building strong ships.

Inside the gorge you may even meet its famous inhabitants, the wild goats of Crete, which the locals call “agrimia” and tourists call “kri-kri”.

The Cretan wild goat is endemic to Crete and you will probably see some in the village of Samaria, as they often approach the houses at the edge of the village

19/03/2019

Ideon Cave (or Ideon Antron) is located on the eastern slopes of Mount Ida (Psiloritis), in the plateau of Nida. The distance of the cave from Anogia is 24km and from Rethymno it’s 78km. The cave has not any special geological value, but has enormous mythological and cultural value, as this is the cave in which, according to the legend, the greatest Greek god, Zeus, was grown up. Today, thousands of tourists visit the cave every year, especially during the summer months.

The Idaion Andron cave is located at an altitude of 1538m, at the western edge of the Nida plateau, exactly on the steep cliff formed by the Nida fault. Its entrance is to be found on the fault plane, while internal parallel faults can also be seen. Nice folds of the platy marble occur both at the entrance and at the large internal area. The cave is not particularly important from the geological point of view as it is relatively small and lacks speleothems. However, near the entrance to welcome visitors three majestic stalactites. The cave has an area of 800 sq.m., which is divided internally into three compartments and the sanctuary. Access to rooms is on descending slope, while there are a few points where the visitor can discern a small work of stone decoration.

17/03/2019

Kedrodasos (i.e. cedar forest) is an amazing beach, located 76km southwest of Chania and 1km east of the famous Elafonissi lagoon. The beach is full with juniper trees (mistakenly confused with cedars) and sanddunes. These are the small twisted junipers (juniper species are Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. macrocarpa and Juniperus phoenicea). If you ever visit the beach, you should note that the trees are very fragile and need respect.

The "cedar" grove covers a big area of about 110 acres and is a magnificent place. It is a wonderful choice for swimming and a favorite beach for naturists. It is a very nice beach with white sand and some smooth and flat rocks in places. Fortunately, there are no facilities nearby, making this secluded beach, one of the latest untouched paradises in Europe. Moreover, since the beach is secluded, you should keep it clean and not littered.

15/03/2019

Karteros Gorge is located east of Heraklion. It is part of a wider geological complex that consists of Astrakiano Gorge, Kounaviano Gorge and Karteros Gorge and all these are about 22 km long. It is integrated in the wider area of Ecological Park of Giouchtas, in Archanes. The park includes the Giouchtas Mountain and three gorges: the Knosanos, the Kounaviano and the Astrakano or the Karteros Gorge, which is also the longest. This area has been integrated into the NATURA 2000. All in all, the gorges are connected in various places with the settlements along their course. There are five main entrances: one from Karteros village, one from Aitania village (bridge of Aitania), one from Ag. Paraskies (Kolomodis area), one from Kato Astrakoi and one from the flatland of Peza (entrance of the Kounaviano Gorge).

The scenery that one can see at the Gorge of Karteros is beautiful. It is a route that is distinguished by the richness of its natural, geomorphological and cultural features. It is a green path with springs and small lakes, while the wonderful formations in the rocks give the impression that the visitor is in a dreamlike place. The gorge is suitable for hiking or mountain bike rides. The duration of the whole trip is 3:30 hours and the route is not a problematic one, since it has become infrastructure projects making it ideal for families with children. It is a very well organized path with bridges, wooden railings along the course and it is marked to guide the visitors.

The Karteros Gorge is one of the largest in the region, with a total length of 12.5 km. It starts from the village of Kato Astrakoi, crosses the mainland and ends up in Karteros, a tourist area with a beautiful beach (Karteros Beach). In the green bed of the gorge and along the route, the Karteros River flows.

In the gorge, there are several old buildings, such as old chapels on the rocks, old watermills, small waterfalls and abundant vegetation which reveal that there was a high human presence in the gorge before. In the middle of the gorge, the landscape is interesting. At this part, the water increases, the plane trees are bigger and the river is wider. The Neraidospilios with the small artificial lake and the cave where the spring flows are also located there.

The rich waters of the area contributed to the creation of a watermill system along the gorge. With the aid of the water they took from the river, the farmers grinned up the grain of the region. 10 watermills had been operated before the war but none of them operate today while the remains of several of them are still in existence. The locals fished eels and crabs in the waters which, as it is mentioned, still exist. The ruins of a basilica dedicated to St. George are still on this road. It is a three-aisled Byzantine basilica. About 100 meters away, the church of Panagia, with a unique representation of a Byzantine bicephalic eagle above its portal is located. The road leads to the abandoned settlement of Kato Astrakoi (2km from Astrakoi) which was abandoned in the early 1930s. In the gorges of the park, sites of historical and cultural value have been found such as Eltyna, the Minoan settlement of Myrtia and the Minoan cemetery of Astrakoi.

At the exit of the Karteros Gorge in Mesa Karteros, where the information hut is located, a resting place built by the General Directorate of Forestry is found.

The flora of the gorge includes hydrophilic species such as plane trees, willows, kermes oaks and osiers as well as many endemic wildflowers and herbs. As for its fauna, it includes more than 44 bird species and 7 mammalian species.

It is certain that the visit at the Karteros Gorge will be an unforgettable experience for anyone who crosses it.

01/06/2018

Keratokambos Beach is a long, wild beach, virtually unpopulated and is quite a drive from major centres, located on the south coast of Crete.

This beach is about 70 km from Heraklion and 54 km from Ierapetra and makes a good break point between the two towns.

Make your way here from Heraklion via Knossos, the villages of Archanes and Peza and their wineries, and across the island via Arkalohori, Pervola and Chondros.

The approach to the beach is a dramatic, steep and twisting road with excellent views and plenty of reasons to stop and take photos of the Chondros gorge and the turquoise water.

The village is very small. It is wise to book ahead for summer, as this enclave gets very full. There are a couple of tavernas serving fresh fish, and a mini market. Take some time out to sit by the Mediterranean, get some fresh air and relax.

01/06/2018

Matala is a village located 75 km south-west of Heraklion, Crete, Greece. Matala is part of the community of Pitsidia within the municipal unit of Festos, Heraklion regional unit. The artificial caves in the cliff of the Matala bay were created in the Neolithic Age. Matala was the port of Phaistos during the Minoan period. In the year 220 BC., Matala was occupied by the Gortynians, and during the Roman period, Matala became the port of Gortys. In the 1st and 2nd centuries, the caves were used as tombs. One of the caves is called "Brutospeliana" because according to the legend it was frequented by the Roman general Brutus.

Matala was then a fishing village. In the 1960s, the caves were occupied by hippies[1] who were later driven out by the church and the military junta. Now Matala is a small village living mainly from tourism.

Canadian folk singer Joni Mitchell's experiences with the Matala hippies were immortalised in her 1971 song "Carey".

01/06/2018

The summer begins!!

11/05/2018