Places to visit

The name Anogia, meaning “high place”, is connected with the location as it is built, at an altitude of 790 m. The climate is particularly cold, because of the altitude, with snowy weather in winter and cool nights during summer.

The residents of the village are very hospitable and have many pleasant stories of their history and culture. They are especially well-known for their resistance to German and Turkish conquerors. Today’s village has been rebuilt three times, since it has been burned down twice by the Turks and once by the Germans . Anogia, also, has a great tradition in music and it is the birthplace of many great musicians and performers like Vasilis Skoulas, whose family owns the Resort, Nikos Xilouris and Psarantonis. Traditional Cretan music can be enjoyed in the village at weddings and concerts which are held in the open theatre during summer, as well as at festivals the first two weeks of August.

The main occupations of the villagers are sheepherding and agriculture.

Anogia is a center of hand and loom weaving as well as embrAnogia is a center of hand and loom weaving as well as embroidery. It attracts many visitors that come here to buy a tablecloth or some pieces of linen. There is factory where the wool from the sheep is processed. Many of the families here are occupied full time with weaving. There are several shops in Anogia where you can see the process of loom weaving .
During the Second World war all the men from the village were taken hostage by the Germans in an act of retaliation (they had kidnapped a general and kept him prisoner) and they never returned. The village was almost completely destroyed with the exception of the church. To support themselves, the women of the village started to weave and this tradition is still alive today. They used materials such as cotton, wool, flax or silk and made blankets, sheets, carpets, towels, tablecloths, sacks, aprons and doilies.
Cretan weavings are characterized by the vivid colors and the rich decorative design. Geometrical patterns are common with the rhombus as a basic motif. But also flowers, animals or humans or designs from the history of Crete are used.

Anogia is one of the major Folkloric Art and creative crafts centers on Crete.
A great point of interest in the village is the museum of folkloric art of local artist Alkiviadis Skoulas (his nick-name was Grilios). Grilios was an old shepherd and he owned a small cafe in Anogia . Wise and witty Grilios, having experience the deep wisdom of life, decided in his later years to capture beauty as he saw and understood it with the eyes of his soul.
At the age of 70’s he began to paint and carve wood and stone. By the age of 95 – when he left for the long journey over the peaks of Psiloritis mountain to heaven… he left behind very much work of art inspired by the life of the village and his personal conception of Cretan history.
Tip: Go to Perahori square and ask for “SAKOULAS” for a tour of the museum.

One may visit the Cave of Zeus, also known as Ideon Andron, and Nida Plateau
Mythology tells us that ZEUS was born or raised in this cave by the Goddess Rhea, to hide him from his father Kronos , who had eaten all his children.
The tales tell that special warriors known as Kourites, danced with shields and metal weapons to protect Ζeus, making a clashing noise so that his father would not hear him cry. Perhaps these were the original Cretans?
ZEUS, of course, went on to become one of the most powerful Gods: he was the God of Mt. Olympus, ruler of all the Gods, God of Thunder and God of the Sky.
From Anogia it is 25 km further up steep mountain roads. The road ends at Nida Plateau, with one or two small buildings and a little chapel. Behind the church, named the Church of Analipsi, which looks out over the plateau and the mountain range, is a lovely picnic area. Of course in

Zominthos is situated 1187 meters above sea level on a small plain with a plentiful supply of water. It is best known for the large Minoan building discovered there: signs of permanent settlement date back to about 1800 BC. In 1982, the Greek archaeologist, Yannis Sakellarakis, unveiled a large two-story Minoan building at an altitude slightly below 1200m. The building’s unusual size and careful construction, which incorporates some features similar to royal architecture, has attracted the interest of archaeologists. The significance of the discovery is emphasized even further by the fact that it lies considerably above the limit of altitude of Minoan and modern Cretan settlements. Excavations have unburied only a small part of the building and are still under way. However, they have made clear that the structure has been strongly built and is unusually well-preserved, with some of the remaining walls rising up to 3 meters in height.
One may visit the museum in Anogia which exhibits artifacts from “Zominthos”.

The Skinakas Observatory is a research facility operated jointly by the Foundation of Research and Technology – Hellas (F.O.R.T.H.), the University of Crete and the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics of Germany. Travelling up the mountains toward Psiloriti at an altitude of 1750m. is situated the Skinakas observatory.
The observatory offers excellent conditions for high quality astronomical observations of the area of the Mediterranean. It is equipped with a variety of instruments which qualify it as one of the world’s best equipped telescopes, at least relatively to its size.
The first telescope came into operation in 1986. The second one, with a mirror diameter of 1,3 m., is the largest observatory in Greece and it is inaugurated in 1995.
The observatory of Skinakas is a joined project of the University of Crete, the Foundation for Research and Technology (ITE) and the Max Planck Institut fur Extraterrestrische Physik of Germany. Also, it has excellent technological equipment.
* The observatory opens to the public once a month during the full moon from May to September, between 5pm and 11pm (English-speaking guides in July and August only).

The small and beautiful church of the orthodox Saint of the lovers, Saint Yakinthos is in the middle of a forest with perennial oak trees, young maples and eternal rocks, in an area called Korakopetra. The church of Saint Yakinthos is similar, in architectual design, to a Cretan mitato, as it is a circular, stone building and the Post-Minoan architecture.
Saint Yakinthos is celebrated on the 3rd of July.
Saint Yakinthos became widely known in Crete in 1998 when the composer and singer “Loudovikos of Anogia”, along with the inhabitants of the mountain village of Anogia, persuaded Anthimos, the Metropolitan Bishop of Rethymnon, to build a small church in honour of Saint Yakinthos. The proposal was accepted by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the church was soon built.
Modern Yakintheia – In the 1980s and for the first time, Manos Ηatzidakis and Giorgis Klados decided to organize musical events in the mountains of Anogia to disperse culture.
Then every year, on the first days of July, hundreds of people began their journey to the three-day festival of love that has a different theme each year.

STALAGTITES, STALAGMITES, GLITTER & UNDERGROUND HARMONY
Sfentoni Cave
Whoever wants to admire nature’s beauty should visit Zoniana and Sfentoni cave.
The rocks, which are dominant on the massive mount Psiloritis, are limestones: the existence of which justifies the very large number of caves and cliffs.
The cave named “Sfentoni cave” is the only cave where there is infrastructure for receiving and touring visitors. It is situated one km northeast of Zoniana village in the location “Mironos”, on the steep southern slopes of Halepa hill.
The cave has a length of 145 m. in a straight line and takes up a surface of over 3,000 m2. Its main development extends to the north and it has been created by the slow corrosion of the calcareous rocks.
Opening times: Summer Season: From April 10th to October 31st, from 10:30 to 17:30 throughout the week.
Winter Season: From November 1st to April 9th, from 10:30 to 14:30 on Saturdays and Sundays

The Museum of Wooden Sculptures is located at the foot of the sacred mountain of Psiloritis and it is a permanent collection of the sculptor George Koutantos. It works both as a Museum and Workshop and is the outcome of twenty years of involvement with sculpture.
The dimensions of the sculptures are in a natural size, while some of them are presented in bigger dimensions.
The wood was collected from different parts of Crete, mainly , dead trees or eliminations from natural destructions.
The visitor has the opportunity to tour the museum and the workshop and learn about the aesthetic and artistic talent, traditional elements (customs and traditions of the inhabitants of Crete) folklore elements (for example, the marking of the animals), sociological data (the family structure, the position of man and woman), historical evidences.
Admissions: Students 3€, Adults 5€
Group visits by appointment

The church of Holy Cross in Vossako is built in a small plateau between the peaks Koutroulis and Mesokofinas of the Talean Mountains. The monastery can be reached by car via the village Doxaro and the rough landscape is amazing. There is a second road starting from Sisses village.
The name Vossako comes from the abbreviation of the greek words vous (buff) and sakos (fold) and means cattle pen, as the plateau probably was used for feeding cattle.
The complex of the monastery is arranged in three wings around the main church which is situated on the east side of the central yard.
According to various historical sources, the monastery was in continuous use from the early 17th century until 1960, when the last of its monks died. In April 1676, Vossakos became a Patriarchical monastery. The monastery played an important role in the greater area of Mylopotamos and owned many pieces of land as well as establishments in the nearby villages of Sisses, Garazo and Dafnedes.
The church is devoted to the Holy Cross and celebrates on September 14th each year.