Elounda
And Spinalonga, Setting for The Island
Like Malia, Elounda is a mix of the ancient and the modern. It has a long and rich history, but today it is mainly known as a popular beach resort if not quite as loud and abrasive as Malia. There are several large luxury hotels as you approach the town, including some of the best resorts on Crete, and an attractive harbour with some good restaurants.
The Harbour at Elounda
Olous
Elounda is on the site of what was a city-state known as Olous, and the remains of this site are visible just beneath the surface of the waters between Elounda and the Spinalonga peninsula, joined by a causeway from where the remains can be seen.
Olous had one of the most important harbours in eastern Crete, and it is known that there are at least two temples beneath the waters. It is thought that the city was destroyed in about the 2nd century BC, when immense land movements caused several areas of eastern Crete to sink below the waves, while the opposite happened in parts of western Crete.
The Venetians
On either side of the causeway are also the remnants of Venetian salt pans, as it was the Venetians who developed Elounda as a port in 1579. Its advantages were – and still are – that the harbour is well sheltered by the protective peninsula. On the peninsula itself, which is a good place to escape most of the crowds, there is a church which was once part of Ancient Olous, which still has some of its original frescoes and from where, if the light is right, you can make out parts of the old harbour beneath the waves.
Spinalonga
Offshore from Elounda is Spinalonga Island, which also helps protect the bay and is where the Venetians built their protective fortress. It was such a stronghold that this was the last place on Crete to surrender to the Turks, in 1714, some forty years later than most of the rest of Crete. From 1903 to 1957 the island was renowned throughout Greece as a leper colony, and a thriving town built up, the ruins of which can still be seen. It is a haunting spot, filed with the ghosts of the people who lived out there lives here, in enforced isolation.
The Island
Spinalonga became better-known in recent years as the setting for Victoria Hislop's best-selling novel, The Island. You can take day trips to explore the island from the harbour at Elounda.
Boat Trip to Spinalonga
Where to Stay in Elounda
Other Crete pages
Greece Travel Secrets recommends where to eat in Eastern Crete including restaurants and tavernas in Elounda, Agios Nikolaos, Sitia, and Kato Zakros.
Greece Travel Secrets visits the Crete Botanical Gardens near Chania and finds a wonderland of colourful plants, trees, and flowers filling a lovely valley.
Margarites is known on Crete for its pottery, with ceramics shops and workshops lining the streets of this charming small town not far from Rethymnon.
The Goules Taverna in Goulediana, south of Rethymnon, has been called one of the best tavernas on Crete and Greece Travel Secrets recently visited them.
Greece Travel Secrets chooses ten of the best beaches on Crete including the beautiful beaches at Vai and Elafonisi.
This Amari Valley drive in southern Crete starts and ends in Ayia Galini, takes four to five hours and cover 100 kilometres or 62 miles.
The largest of the Greek islands, Crete has four ENUESCO sites, which are Sitia, Psiloritis, Asterousia, and the Gorge of Samaria.
What was daily life as a Minoan like on Crete, living in palaces like the ones at Knossos, Malia, Phaistos, and Zakros, and what were their religious beliefs?
Hiking the Samaria Gorge on Crete, one of the best things to do on Crete, by Greece Travel Secrets.
Icon painting is a centuries-old tradition in Crete and the rest of Greece, and Greece Travel Secrets meets a modern-day icon painter in Elounda on Crete.
Keramos Studios in Zaros on Crete is an inexpensive two-star hotel/guesthouse with one of the best breakfasts on the island using food from the family’s farm.
Greece Travel Secrets discovers Sitia, the main town in eastern Crete, with its relaxing waterfront, inexpensive hotels, good food, and nearby ancient sites.
Greece Travel Secrets recommends where to eat in Western Crete with tavernas and restaurants in Chania, Rethymnon, and Paleochora.
Sir Arthur Evans is the archaeologist famous for the excavations he made at the royal palace of Knossos on Crete.
This olive grove walk from Limnes to Vrises on Crete also takes you through orchards and gives close-up views of some of the island’s windmills.
Crete’s wildlife and landscape are two of the island’s attractions, including gorges for hiking, rare raptors like the lammergeier, wildcats and ancient trees.
This Airbnb in the quiet village of Malaxa, a 30-minute drive into the hills above Chania, is a peaceful retreat with a delightful and thoughtful artist owner, with wonderful views and amenities.
The best things to do on Crete and top things to see include the Samaria Gorge, the Minoan Palaces at Knossos and Phaistos, the towns of Chania and Rethymnon.
This Lasithi Plateau drive on Crete starts in Neapoli and ends in Malia, covering a distance of 80 km (50 miles) and taking two to three hours.
The Snails House in Plouti near Phaistos in southern Crete serves the Cretan delicacy of snails, cooked in several different ways.
Greece Travel Secrets suggests where to stay in Eastern Crete with our favourite hotels in Zakros, Elounds, Sitia, Agios Nikolaos, Istron Bay, Myrtos, Neapolis.
The best Crete hotels include 5-star luxury hotels, historic and romantic Venetian palaces, and several hotels in Hania and Iraklion.
Greece Travel Secrets tours the Lyrarakis Winery on Crete and learns about Crete grape varieties such as plyto, dafni, vidiano, vilana, mandilari and kotsifali.
Western Crete in five days allows time to visit Chania and Rethymnon, enjoy the beaches, hike the Samaria Gorge and see the monasteries at Arkadi and Preveli.
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