Vori is a traditional village on the Messara plain in the southern reaches of the Heraklion district, a quiet stop that reveals the everyday life behind Crete’s famous monuments. Whitewashed houses, shaded squares and old fountains line its lanes, while olive groves and vineyards fill the surrounding fields. The village sits near the ancient palace … Read more
Moires stands as the bustling commercial centre of the Messara plain in southern Heraklion, Crete, far removed from the polished tourist resorts that line the island’s northern coast. This working market town serves the fertile agricultural region with banks, shops, tavernas, and the practical services that keep rural Cretan life running. Every Saturday, one of … Read more
Ano Viannos stands as a mountain town in the south-east of the Heraklion district, built on the slopes of the Dikti range high above the Libyan Sea. It is the main settlement of the Viannos region, and whitewashed houses climb the hillside among plane trees and running springs. Old churches, two of them carrying fine … Read more
Treis Ekklisies, meaning Three Churches, is a small seaside settlement on the south coast of Crete. It sits below the Asterousia mountains in the Heraklion district and faces the Libyan Sea. A long pebble beach, clear deep water and a small fishing anchorage rest at the foot of a mountain road that winds down from … Read more
Myrtia is a village south of Heraklion, set among the vineyards of the Peza wine region on the island of Crete. Travellers know it above all as the ancestral home of Nikos Kazantzakis, the writer of Zorba the Greek and The Last Temptation. A modern literary museum on the shaded village square keeps his manuscripts, … Read more
Houdetsi is a small village south of Heraklion, set among the vineyards of the Archanes area on the island of Crete. It carries a reputation across the island for music. The Irish lyra master Ross Daly settled here and founded the Labyrinth Musical Workshop, which teaches and stages concerts of Cretan and world music inside … Read more
Thrapsano is a large inland village in the Pediada region of the Heraklion district, east of Heraklion town. The village earned its reputation across the island as a place of potters. Families throw giant storage jars called pithoi here alongside everyday earthenware, and the clay tradition reaches back through generations. It echoes the huge Minoan … Read more
Tsoutsouros sits at the end of a winding mountain road on the remote south coast of Crete, far from the crowds and resorts that line the northern shore. This quiet fishing village rests below the Asterousia mountains at the mouth of a gorge, where a long curve of pebble and grey sand beach meets clear … Read more
Kali Limenes sits on the far southern coast of Crete, in the Heraklion region. It lies below the barren Asterousia mountains and faces the open Libyan Sea. The name translates as Fair Havens, and the settlement earns it. A string of pebbly coves, very clear water and a sheltered harbour define the shore. A long, … Read more
Gouves is a coastal resort area on the north coast of Crete, in the Heraklion region between Heraklion city and Hersonissos. The area splits into two distinct halves. Pano Gouves is the old inland village in the hills, while Kato Gouves is the beach resort on the shore, lined with sandy and pebbly beaches, hotels, … Read more