DESTINATIONS
ELAFONISI
Take a trip to Elafonissi, 65 kilometres south west of Maleme, and you will find a perfect beach of white sand and shallow clear water. On the way stop off at Chrisoskalitissas monastery perched high above the plain. The monastery takes its name from the 90 steps that wind up to the church. They say that one is made of gold but only those who have never committed a sin can see which one it is
FALASSARNA & KASTELLI
Falassarna is a beautiful crescent beach of white sand on the west coast and is an idyll for sun worshippers. Safe swimming in clear water will ensure a day in paradise for beach lovers. Kastelli is a working town that hasn’t yet been ravaged by tourism and is an ideal place to stop off for a late lunch or an early dinner at one of the tavernas around the fishing harbour.
CHANIA
If you are staying in Maleme or the surrounding area a trip to Chania is not to be missed. Allow a full day starting in the morning with a break for a lazy late lunch in one of the waterside tavernas. There is ample parking behind the naval museum and the old town and the harbour can be explored on foot. On one side of the harbour there is a string of restaurants and tourist shops which then changes into the working harbour where the fishing boats are moored and fishermen can be seen mending their nets. Behind the harbour are a maze of streets packed with old Venetian houses.
Don’t miss out on the covered market.
PALEOCHORA
A winding road that stretches 65 kms down to the south coast brings you to Paleochora. A small coastal town hemmed in by mountains on all sides. There are two beaches – one of pebble and one of sand – and plenty of tavernas whose tables spill out into the street and are in a perfect position for dining at sunset. The name Paleochora is also given to tram ferrying commuters around the streets of Amsterdam. The drivers are officially allowed to name their vehicles and this driver after spending so many years in this area of Crete christened his tram ‘Paleochora’ as a reminder of the beauty of the area.
KALIVES – LAKE KOURNAS
Kalives is 17 kilometres from Chania, 34 kilometres from Maleme and is a good place to break your journey and stop for a coffee on the way to Gavalochori. The folk museum is a little known treasure and well worth the drive into the cool wooded countryside. Go in the morning but if it is locked ask at the women’s co-operative in the centre of the village and someone will give you the key. The museum exhibits are of Cretan village life and the products of the local industries of the area – silk lace making and stone cutting. Continue to Georgeopolis for lunch at a taverna under the eucalyptus trees in the village square and then on to Lake Kournas to feed the ducks!
RETHYMNON – PREVELI – PLAKIAS
Approximately 70 kilometres east of Maleme lies the town of Rethymnon. The skyline is dominated by the Venetian fort perched above the old town that is a warren of narrow winding streets of crumbling Turkish and Venetian architecture. After a stop to explore the town continue south to Preveli and the monastery dating from the 16th century and one of the best preserved on the island.
Plakias is just a few kilometres along the coast and an ideal place for a break from driving a meal and a swim before returning to Maleme.
SFAKIA – FRANGOKASTELLO – RETHYMNO
The speciality of the village of Vrisses is the local goats milk yoghurt and honey. Vrisses is 33 kilometres east of Maleme and is an ideal stopping place to break your journey on the way to Chora Sfakia on the south coast of the island. The White Mountains serve as a dramatic back drop to this village from which Allied troops were evacuated after the German invasion of Crete in 1941. The Sfakiots are a fierce and proud people and it is here that traditional ways of life remain in the face of the modern world and tourism. Take the coast road east but don’t forget your camera to capture the unforgettable views of the rugged coastline. After 7 kilometres you will come upon the great Venetian fortress of Frangokastello the site of many bloody battles when Crete was under Turkish rule. Taking the road north for Rethymnon and you will complete your circular route before heading west back to Maleme.
PHESTOS – MATALA – AGIA GALLINI
The Phestos disc in room III of the archaeological museum in Heraklion was found in 1917 at this ancient Minoan site. Dating from 1700 BC its hieroglyphics are yet to be deciphered. The site of the ruins overlooks the fertile plain of Mesaras a distance of 150 kilometres east of Maleme. After looking at the site head to the coast and the resort of Matala where the hippies of the 1960 established themselves in the caves that were originally Roman burial chambers. A little further north is Agia Galini a picturesque seaside holiday village and an ideal place for a stop in a cafe bar or taverna.
SOUGIA
Another hidden treasure of the south coast is the village of Sougia.
A drive down a narrow winding road of 80 kilometres
will bring you to this unpretentious little fishing village away from the hustle and bustle of the development on the north coast.
KNOSSOS -HERAKLION
This famous Minoan site excavated by Sir Arthur Evans at the turn of the century is situated 5 kilometres from the Cretan capital. The partial reconstruction that was carried out by Evans enables us to see the palace as it roughly was in 1700 BC. Most of the artefacts have been removed to the archaeological museum in Heraklion so make sure you include a visit here in your trip. Odos Daidalos is the pedestrianised shopping street close by.
ARKADI MONASTERY – ANOGIA
The Arkadhi Monastery was a centre of resistance against the Turks in 1866 a year when the people of Crete once again took up arms against their rulers. Hundreds of resistance fighters and their families were in the monastery when Turkish soldiers arrived to demand their surrender. The siege lasted two days and after a final attack by the Turks the remaining fighters took refuge in the wine storeroom where Abbot Gabriel ordered Kostis Yiampoudakis to fire into the powder barrels thus causing an explosion that killed hundreds of Cretans and Turks. The shell of the storeroom still stands and the baked and carbonised stonework can still be seen. The village of Anoyia is about 35 kilometres east and is a typical Greek village where not much English is spoken but the welcome is warm if you decide to stop for coffee or lunch. The village was burned to the ground and every male killed by the Germans in 1944. A museum in the lower part of the village houses the work of primitive painter and sculptor Alkibiades Skoulas. His work depicts the sacking of Anoyia, the German landings at Maleme in 1941 and the siege of Arkadhi Monastery in 1866.
