Vryses is a large, shaded village in the Apokoronas region of western Crete, built around a river fed by mountain springs and lined with tall plane trees. Its central square, where the clear water runs beneath the planes, draws travellers and locals alike for a slow coffee in the cool. Old stone bridges cross the … Read more
Gavalochori is a well-preserved traditional stone village in the Apokoronas region of the Chania district in western Crete, set inland from the resorts of Almyrida and Kalyves and close to the larger village of Vamos. Cobbled lanes wind past stone houses, old wells and Venetian-era arched cisterns, while olive groves and vineyards surround the settlement … Read more
Vamos is a traditional inland village and the historic capital of the Apokoronas district in north-west Crete, in the Chania region. It sits among olive groves and low hills between Chania and the Souda Bay coast. Stone houses and old mansions line its quiet lanes. The village became a pioneer of Cretan agrotourism after a … Read more
Kalyves is a large seaside village and low-key resort on the Apokoronas coast of north-west Crete, set where two small rivers meet the sea on the western edge of Souda Bay. The village belongs to the Chania region and keeps a lived-in, working feel rather than a purely tourist one. A long sandy beach, a … Read more
Almyrida is a small seaside resort on the Apokoronas coast of north-west Crete, in the Chania region. It sits east of the village of Kalyves, on the Souda Bay side of the Drapano peninsula, facing calm, shallow water. A sheltered sandy beach, a shallow reef reaching offshore, a row of tavernas and cafes, and a … Read more
Apokoronas spreads across the green foothills east of Chania, a fertile pocket of north-west Crete where stone villages sit among olive groves and cypress trees. Vamos, Gavalochori, Almyrida and Kalyves hold restored Venetian houses, shaded squares and traditional tavernas that give travellers a settled, lived-in feel far removed from resort strips. Sandy beaches at Almyrida … Read more
Lake Kournas is the only natural freshwater lake on Crete, and it sits like a quiet green mirror in the Apokoronas hills between Rethymno and Chania. Mountains ring the water on almost every side, so the surface stays calm and the light changes hour by hour. The colour shifts through the season from bright turquoise … Read more