Agios Nikolaos

Agios Nikolaos is the capital of Lasithi prefecture, built in the place of the ancient “Latou to Kamara” in the graphic gulf Mirampellou that took its name from the homonym Venetian castle that was destroyed by the Turks.
Agios Nikolaos is the administrative and commercial center of the prefecture and is a very cosmopolitan city with intense tourist activity.

On the contrary to the coastal tourist resorts, in the mountainous regions of the prefecture, with the graphic villages, life has traditional rythms with raki, serenades, the Cretan pentozali and the genuine Cretan hospitality.

• the water biotope in Almyros, a passage of migrating birds
• the Lake in the center of the city that today is linked with the sea with a canal

In the prefecture

• The palm grove in Vai with 5.000 palms, unique in Europe
• Ancient Itanos near in Vai, one of the most important cities of Dorian Crete
• in the archaeological site of Gournia you will see the ruins of a meta-Minoan settlement in the centre of which existed a building that constituted the centre of the settlement and was very useful to researchers to understand about the way life was in Minoan times
• in Elounta, the ruins of ancient Olounta that can be seen in the sea. In the region on the green hills are graphic traditional villages.
• Spinaloga, an islet with a Venetian castle
• the archaeological site in Zakro. Here was found the fourth most important palace of the Minoan culture. Built sometime after 1.700 B.C. and was destroyed in 1.450 BC possibly because of the explosion of the volcano in Thira. From the ruins appears that around the palace was a prosperous city.
• in Kalamafka you must see the cavernal church Timiou Stavrou, and the canyon of Hayga with a depth of 300 m. and exceptional beauty with a lot of caverns
• in Kritsa close to Agios Nikolaos are the ruins of the Dorian city Lato seaport of which was Latou to Kamara, the present Agios Nikolaos
• also in Kritsa is the 14th century Byzantine church of Virgin Mary Keras with exceptional wall paintings
• in Myrto, ruins of a proto-Minoan settlement and mosaic floorings of Roman baths
• in Neapoli are the ruins of ancient Driros, a Doric city of Crete
• the church Megali Panagia (19th century) in Neapoli
• the stone windmills in Tzermiado
• Diktaio Antro (cave of Psychro) where according to mythology Rea gave birth to Zeus
• the archaeological site of Palaikastro, with a Minoan settlement and the sanctum of Diktaios Zeus
• in Vasiliki are the ruins of proto-Minoan settlement and meso-Minoan cemetery
• in Mohlo graves from the proto-Minoan time