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    Elounda is located some 9km north of Agios Nikolaos and is reached via a good new
    road which has an observation point at its summit followed by a winding drop, past
    the turnings to the large hotels( Elounda Beach, Elounda Gulf, Elounda Mare, Porto
    Elounda), into the town itself. The area which is conventionally known as Elounda is,
    in fact, a smaller
    village called Schisma which houses the harbour and main square. In the summer
    many pleasure boats depart from this area for the island of Spinalonga. Sadly, the
    area is now experiencing large amounts of building work for new villas, due to the
    expanding real estate market, and many traditional visitors find this intrusive.

    Although the luxury hotels P.R departments have painted a 5 star picture of the
    resort, the main harbour area is often densely populated with package tourists and
    day visitors from other parts of the island. Do not expect to find high quality
    restaurants or accommodation
    outside the luxuy hotel strip. Basic tavernas and satellite television bars are the norm
    around the harbour area although you can find some gems if you know where to look.

    The area has some of the most spectacular scenery in Crete and the smaller villages
    of Kato Elounda and Epano Elounda still exude their natural charm due to some
    sympathetic renovation work. Other villages, such as Mavrikiano, are suffering from
    extensive new building developments and have lost their original attractiveness to a
    great extent.

    Even visitors who have stayed in Elounda many times often neglect to discover the
    wildlife and history of the area, much of which is to be found by the salt pans to the
    south of Schisma. The sunken city of Olous is nearby and the canal and old windmills
    are also worth a visit on your way to the preserved mosaic floor of a Byzantine period
    basillica.
    The peninsular of Spinalonga (the island with the fortress is actually called Kalydon)
    is an excellent place to walk and see wild flowers, birds and wildlife

    Elounda remains a wonderful place to stay and there are still some very good
    accommodations available, particularly in the Tsifliki area between Schisma and
    Plaka. Often depicted as a family resort by some tour operators, Elounda is probably
    more suited to couples of all ages.
Elounda
Mantraki  Holiday Apartment Reservations Service
For Agios Nikolaos & Elounda, Crete, Greece
original content © SCH 2006