DK Travel : Crete : Places of interest

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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
Diktian Cave

According to ancient Greek myths, this mossy cavern, filled with strange limestone formations, was the birthplace of the greatest Olympian god, Zeus. Rhea, Zeus’s mother, supposedly hid the young godling from his father, Kronos, here. Bronze figurines and Minoan double axes found in the cave are on show in the Irakleio Archaeological Museum. The site is also often referred to as the Idaian Cave.
Elos

Elos is one of the settlements known as the Enea Choria (“Nine Villages”), which are set among the chestnut forests of the Selloni region. At 1,200 m (3,700 ft) above sea level, it can be pleasantly cooler than the south coast beaches in summer. Surrounded by woodland, Elos has a 14th-century Byzantine chapel and a ruined Turkish aqueduct.
Elounda

Elounda, on the Gulf of Mirabello, is Crete’s most expensive resort area, with several exclusive villa and hotel complexes in landscaped grounds. Several of these even have private beaches. The village itself is less upmarket, with a clutter of shops and restaurants surrounding a small fishing harbour from which boats depart daily in summer on trips to Spinalonga, the Venetian fortress-island and former leper colony not far offshore.
Ethia

It is hard to believe that this desolate hamlet was an important place during Venetian occupation, when it was the fief of the De Mezzo family. Their ruined family tower is now recognized as an important Venetian building, worthy of restoration.
Frangokastello

A small, deserted “Castle of the Franks” – actually built in 1371 by the Venetians to defend this stretch of the south coast against pirate attacks (see Frangokastello) – gives this small fishing village and resort its name. The Lion of St Mark, symbol of the Venetian Republic, still adorns the town’s southern gateway. Frangokastello has a long sweep of grey sandy beach, and offers, by way of accommodation, small pensions and apartments. A handful of restaurants and cafés open up in summer, but the choice of places to eat, drink and stay is very limited in the low season.
Franzeskaki Collection

Leaving the museum, turn right onto Epimenidou and look in at the Franzeskaki Collection of Traditional Weaving and Embroidery, with its marvellously colourful exhibits. Here can be found some of the finest textile work in the whole of Greece (see Franzeskaki Collection)
Georgioupoli

A modern community by Cretan standards, the town was founded little over a century ago when it was named in honour of Prince George, the then governor of Crete. More recently, it has become a resort, with hotels stretching along the sandy beach. It attracts a less raucous clientele than resorts such as Malia and Chersonisos, however, and the heart of Georgioupoli is a town square, shaded by eucalyptus and plane trees.
Gortys

Toppled Roman columns, a ruined Byzantine basilica, post-Minoan fortifications, and an agora, acropolis and remains of temples to Athena and Apollo all hint at the past glories of this large and little-visited archaeological site close to Crete’s south coast. First settled in Minoan times, it became one of the most important cities of Doric Crete. It later allied itself with the Romans to become an important provincial capital, and was one of Crete’s most prosperous cities until it was sacked by Arab invaders during the anarchic years of the 8th century AD (see Gortys).
Gournia

Early in the morning, on any day except a Monday, head east out of Agios Nikolaos on the main coast highway. Gournia is south of the road, 24 km (15 miles) east of Agios Nikolaos. Try to arrive when it opens at 8:30am and allow a couple of hours to explore this well preserved Minoan site (see Gournia).