Sights
Although Heraklion City has been destroyed and then rebuilt many times in the course of its history, it still has a good number of monuments and sights which are worth seeing. It consists of the Old Town, enclosed by the Venetian walls, and the New Town which has spread outside these.
The palm beach of Vai in East Crete (24km far from Sitia) is one of the largest attractions of the Mediterranean island of Crete. It features the largest natural palm forest in Europe, made up of Cretan Date Palm (Phoenix theophrasti).
The Natural Park of Sitia is on the easternmost edge of Crete, in the Municipality of Sitia. It covers the entire area of the former Municipality of Itanos, as well as parts of the former Municipalities of Lefki and Sitia. Geographically, it extends from cape Kavo Sidero, in the north, to the southern coast of the Municipality, the edges of the city of Sitia, to the west, and the coast of Zakros, to the east.
Sitia is a picturesque town, built in an amphitheatre shape beside the sea in the Gulf of Sitia.Our town is situated on the north-eastern edge of Crete. It has a population of 10.000 inhabitants and it is economically and administratively the centre of its own Province.
Lasithi Plateau is a picturesque valley surrounded by mountains. It is a very beautiful area of our island, which combines tradition with mythology and history thus attracting many tourists who wish to enjoy the natural landscape, wander around the villages and admire the windmills which were being used by the inhabitants in the past in order to pump water and water the fields.
A safe natural harbour on the Bay of Messara (South Heraklion coast - 65km far from Heraklion Airport), blessed with a gently sweeping sand and pebble beach, the place in legend where Zeus swam ashore in the guise of a bull with Europa on his back. Many people make this village their base for Cretan holidays, as it is so central on the south coast, and away from the over-development of the north coast. The beach is 250m long and 45m wide.
Sitia Natural Park
The park (Sitia GeoPark) covers the far eastern part of Crete in its entirety and boasts a number of magnificent sites, such as famous Vai palm tree forest and beach, the Zakros palace ruins and a considerable number of beaches, gorges, trekking routes and opportunities for exploration.
