Nature

The artificial lake of Agia (Ayia) is located near the village of Agia, 9 km west of Chania. It is a small lake of 450 acres, which is close to the valley of Fasas. This valley is considered as the most humid of Crete. Agia lake receives water from underground springs and the river Xekolomenos.

It is located at the exit of a small valley, a rare phenomenon in the wild Asterousia Mountains, which starts from the village Antiskari and ends in settlement. The fertile valley is used for growing early vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, etc., since the temperature here is always high. Characteristic of the warm climate is that the swallows do not leave the area in winter.

Votsalaki (or Botzalaki) is located 71km southeast of Agios Nikolaos and 36km east of Ierapetra, on the west end of Goudouras, at the position of Aspra Chomata (White Soil). It is situated amid the arid and rugged landscape of East Crete, close to the exit of the wild Gorge Asprolithos.

Pourgonero beach is located at Krassas area, just 500m east of the port of Tsoutsouras, in the area where the houses of the settlement stop. It is actually the eastern part of Tsoutsouras bay, located in front of the hill Sarakinos. According to the legend, the eternal sarcophagus of King Minos, the mythical king of Crete, is burried below this place.

Kalo Horafi is located approximately 37km east of Rethymno and 43km west of Heraklion, at the former position of 318 Agii Pateres (318 Holy Fathers) monastery. The monastery does not survive today, but there is a newer chapel commemorating that. “Kalo Horafi” is the name of the wider area, characterized by the wild Cretan landscape with high mountains and green gorges.

The sandy beach is formed in a small bay in front of the hotel Hellenic Palace. Opposite the bay there is an islet where you can go swimming, but beware for the strong currents. The beach is well organized with umbrellas and sunbeds, and there are several tamarisk trees nearby. Like most beaches in northern Crete, Santa Barbara is vulnerable to winds.

East of the village Platia Peramata you will firstly meet the longest beach of Platia Peramata, called Psili Ammos, which is totally isolated and very beautiful. The beach is not very suitable for camping, as there is no shade from trees. However, at the eastern end there are large white rocks, called Asproharaki, which offer shade to their lucky “occupiers”.

The artificial lake of Bramiana was built in 1986 at Bramiana to meet the 30.000 of the greenhouses of Ierapetra. It is located 5km northwest of the town, in the road connecting Ierapetra and Kalamafka village. The lake covers an area of 1050 acres and has a capacity of 15 million m3, making it the second largest wetland of southern Greece, after Potami Dam at Amari valley.