High mountains and deep gorges, archaeological sites alongside traditional villages where life continues in a relaxed and friendly way, clear blue seas bordered by golden sandy beaches. Zeus, the king of Greek gods, was born in a cave on Mount Idi, the highest mountain. He represented hospitality and his spirit lives on today in the hearts of all Cretan people.

Crete is the largest Greek island. It covers 8,336 sq m with 1.100 kms of coastline. It is considered as one of the most prosperous areas in Greece. Its development has been favoured by its geographical location, climate, diverse natural beauty as well as its unique cultural and historical treasures.

Crete is renowned for its breath-taking mountain ranges and long sandy beaches running down to aquamarine seas. This particular geography allow the existence of a large number of rare flora and fauna species, such as the sea lily along the coastal zones, sea turtles Caretta Caretta in Rethymnon and Eleonora’s Falcon (falcon Eleonore) in Lassithi. In the valleys and semi-mountainous areas, one can find more than 100 different varieties of flowers and plants, while in the high mountains and deep Cretan gorges the visitor may encounter interesting flora and fauna including the wild goat kri kri, which is found only in Crete.

Climate: Crete enjoys perhaps one of the best subtropical Mediterranean climates with over 300 days and more than 3,000 hours of sunshine each year. The light rainy season is normally confined to the period between November and March. Mild temperatures prevail year round.

Description: Crete is 260 km (160 miles) long and 56 km (35 miles) at it's widest point. The area is 8,260 sq km (3,190 sq mi).

Population: The population of Crete currently is approximately 600.000 people.The majority of inhabitants live in the four main towns of the island, Hania, Rethymnon, Agios Nikolaos and Heraklion, the capital. The remainder of the population is spread in smaller towns and scattered fishing and mountain villages.

Language: Greek

Religion: Greek Orthodox

Currency: Euro is the new currency of Greece since 2001.

Main Cities and Towns:

North coast: Heraklion (200,000), Chania (80,000), Rethymnon (30,000), Agios Nikolaos, Sitia.

South coast: Ierapetra, Mires, Timbaki, Paleochora.

Airports: There are five airports in Crete but only three of them are used for passenger flights: the Heraklion airport, the Akrotiri airport close to Chania and the Sitia airport. The airports of Kastelli and Timbaki are military airports.

Harbours: In Crete there are two main harbours: the Heraklion harbour and the Souda Bay harbour. The harbours in Rethymnon, Agios Nikolaos and Sitia are much smaller. Along the south coast there are various fishing ports.

Mountains: Crete is a mountainous island and the island's history, as well as the personality of its inhabitants was greatly affected by these mountains. In the west there are Lefka Ori (White Mountains): 2453m, in the center there is Mt Idi (Psiloritis): 2456m and in the east there is Mt Dikti: 2148m. Cretan mountains form a continuous chain from one end of the island to the other and they make Crete look much larger than it really is.

Rivers: Rivers in Crete are short and they dry up in the summer months. Rivers which flows year-round are the river at Preveli in southern Rethymnon district and the river at Vrisses in Chania district.

Lakes: the lake of Kournas, a small but beautiful lake with many taverns around it.

Islands: There are several small islands very close to Crete: Gavdos island is the southest border of Europe and it is populated. The islands of Hrissi or Gaidouronissi, Koufonisia, Dia, Paximadia, Gramvoussa are much smaller and not populated. Most of them are popular destinations for one-day cruises from Crete.

The Cyclades island of Santorini or Thira is close to Crete also and there are daily cruises to it too.

Administration. Crete is one of the 13 administrative divisions of Greece. In Crete there are 4 Nomoi or Prefectures and many Dimoi (Municipalities). Each Dimos is consisted of various towns and villages.

Economy: The main sources of wealth in Crete are agriculture and tourism. The cultivation of the olive tree is very important in Crete and excellent virgin olive oil is produced here. Other important products include oranges, grapes and vegetables from greenhouses. Honey, cheese and herbs are of excellent quality also. Finally, big numbers of sheep and goats are raised in Crete.