Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Eating
Elia & Diosmos
CRETAN
( 2810 731283;
www.olive-mint.gr
;
Skalani; mains €10-19; lunch & dinner Tue-Sun)
Among
the many fine restaurants in the wine country, Elia & Diosmos in Skalani is a veritable
foodie playground and a good lunch spot if you're visiting Knossos.
Cretaquarium
9.30am-9pm May-Sep, 9.30am-5pm Oct-Apr)
at Gournes, 15km east of Iraklio, is a vast
high-tech indoor sea on the grounds of a former US Air Force base. Inhabited by some
2500 Mediterranean and tropical aquatic critters, this huge aquarium will likely bring
smiles to even the most Playstation-jaded youngster. Interactive multimedia help explain
the mysteries of this rich and diverse underwater world.
Half-hourly buses en route to Malia (€1.70, 30 minutes) from Iraklio's Bus Station A
can drop you on the main road; from there it's a 10-minute walk.
TOP OF CHAPTER
ZarosΖαρός
POP 3370
At the bottom of the mighty Rouvas Gorge in the Mt Psiloritis foothills, the rustic moun-
tain village of Zaros is famous for its natural spring water, which is bottled and sold all
over Crete. Clued-in foodies flock here for the fresh farm-raised trout, which can be en-
joyed in numerous tavernas around town and on emerald-green Lake Votomos.
Zaros also lures outdoor-lovers with its easy to moderate 5km hike through the
Rouv-
as Gorge
. The trail starts near the Limni taverna but doesn't enter the gorge for another
1km, just past Moni Agios Nikolaos, a modern monastery that wraps around a historic
church rife with icons and fresco fragments. The path first weaves through fire-damaged
forest but soon the vegetation becomes increasingly lush with oak trees, lilies, orchids,
sage and other mountain flora. At the end is a little chapel of Agios Ioannis where
benches and tables invite a leisurely picnic.
Sleeping & Eating
