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.

Pagopoleion, Irakleio

A remarkable café-bar set in the city’s old icehouse, serving Italian, Greek and iced coffee all day long. The decoration includes mementos of the building’s past, including the old ice lift.
Paintings by Lefteris Kanakakis

Rethymno’s Contemporary Arts Centre houses a variety of Kanakakis’s work.
Palace of Malia

Only 3 km (2 miles) inland from the bustling resort of modern Malia, a ruined Minoan palace seems to grow from the rocky hillside (see Malia).

Malia beach
Palaiochora-Agia Roumeli

The boat from Palaiochora hugs the rugged south coast, calling in at the lazy port of Sougia, before chugging along to Agia Roumeli, a cheerfully ramshackle village at the foot of the Samaria Gorge.
Palazzo Rimondi, Rethymno

Tucked away in an arcaded courtyard behind iron gates, Palazzo Rimondi is a well-restored complex of 15th-century buildings, with walls painted in shades of rose and ochre, vaulted roofs, carved stone and wooden panelled ceilings.
Paleochora

On a headland crowned by a dilapidated Venetian castle, Paleochora is part fishing village, part resort. It has a crescent of yellow sand on the west side of the promontory and a longer, less crowded pebbly beach on the east.
Paleochora

Paleochora stands on a peninsula between two beaches: a long sandy bay to the northwest and an even longer, but pebblier and more exposed beach, to the southeast. Close to the centre of the village are the ruined walls of a Venetian fort, Castel Selino, which was built to guard the harbour and coast but left to crumble after the Turkish conquest. “Discovered” by backpackers in the 1970s, Paleochora is now one of Crete’s quieter resorts, with a low-key nightlife and a family atmosphere.
Paleochora

Kastel Selinou, as Paleochora was first known, was built in 1279 to guard the southwest against pirates. The great Turkish corsair Barbarossa destroyed it in 1539. The Turks saw no need to rebuild it, and it has remained an elegant ruin ever since.
Paleochora

A hippy hideout well into the 1980s (see Paleochora), Paleochora’s nightlife is still laid-back to a fault. A handful of relaxed – and none too noisy – music bars are scattered along the Pebble Beach waterfront, where, just out of town, there are a couple of open-air discos.
Pallas Café, Chania

This elegant rendezvous in an old Venetian mansion on the harbour opens early and stays open late. It has tables on the quay, up on a roof terrace and inside, within rooms prettily decorated with frescoes.

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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