DK Travel : Crete

Although it could not be more Greek, Crete is really a country within a country, with its own history, folklore and traditions. It was the birthplace of Europe’s oldest civilization, the enigmatic Minoan culture which flourished over 4,000 years ago. Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Saracens, Venetians and Turks also left their mark. This rich human heritage is set against the backdrop of magnificent mountain scenery and beaches lapped by a deep blue sea.

Casa Delfino, Chania

This 17th-century Venetian mansion, Chania’s most exclusive address, has been luxuriously restored. In a quiet alley, it has fine rooftop views and the suites have been individually designed.
Casa Leone, Chania

The “House of the Lion” has been meticulously restored, with period details such as Venetian mirrors and antique (and reproduction) furniture. The Casa Leone also has a smart cocktail bar.
Casa Veneta, Chania

This Venetian mansion near the harbour has been divided into double and twin-bedded studios, and open-plan apartments sleeping up to four people on three floors, with twin-bed galleries and balconies, some with sea views.
casaDoria - slowlife hotel & restaurant

Small slow-life hotel with restaurant in Loutra, close to Lentas, for nature and perfect relax. Wild lonely beaches at 1 min. walk. Italian and Greek food. Rediscover the luxury of time.

CasaDoria Slowlife’s building consists of a main two-floors building with ten rooms, a restaurant with a large terrace where it’s lovely to take rest since it offers a marvellous panorama facing the Lybic Sea.
Catamaran Sailing

Catamarans can be hired by the hour or day at most resorts, with instruction available for novice sailors.
Catchfly

The catchfly, with its ragged bright-pink flowers, traps insects on the sap-coated hairs of its sticky stems.
Cave of the Holy Fathers

This gloomy cave in the remote Sellino highlands is now a Greek Orthodox shrine.
Chania

Music blasts out from most of the cafés and bars along the harbour front at Chania on summer evenings, and if you prefer an evening of bar-hopping and café-crawling to a night in the dance clubs there are few better places in the whole of Crete. Most younger Chaniots, however, desert the cafés for the clubs of Platanias after the toll of midnight (see Chania).
Chania

Chania, Crete’s second largest city, is built around a fine natural harbour which attracted a host of settlers over the millennia, from early Minoans to Romans, Byzantines, Saracens, Venetians and Turks. The heart of the city is the old town, a huddle of narrow streets sheltered by a ring of battlements built by the Venetians; under their rule Chania was one of Crete’s most important ports. Today the old town is dominated by restaurants, cafés and bars, while outside the Venetian walls is the newer part of town. Chania has some of Crete’smost spectacular scenery as backdrop, with the slopes of the Lefka Ori range (White Mountains) rising steeply a short way inland and seeming to dominate the entire southern horizon (see Chania).

Firkas Fort, Chania
Chania

The Venetians lost Chania to their arch-rivals, the Genoese, in 1263. They regained it 22 years later, and set about making the town impregnable, starting with walls around the hill above the harbour in the district still known as Kastelli (the castle). Further walls followed, but though they may have deterred occasional pirate raids, they proved ineffective when the Turks assailed the city in 1645.

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Hotel price categories

For a standard, double room per night (with breakfast if included), taxes and extra charges.
- under €30
- €30–€40
- €40–€80
- €80–€120
- over €120