Malia Palace & Monastery Of Panagia Kera Kardiotissa

Seat of the mythical King Sarpedon of the Minoans, brother of Minos, son of Zeus. Malia Palace is the third largest palace of the Minoans. A place by the sea, where the famous golden pendant with the honey bees was found, an amazing art piece. Not so much reconstructed, but with ancient walls preserved to human height gives you the idea how a Labyrinth was built. Full of highly organized storage rooms for the huge production of the area, shows clearly how a prosperous prehistoric agricultural / urban society looks like. Wander arround with our professional tourist guide in the prehistoric neighborhoods of the ancient city enjoying the sea breeze, learning all about that magnificent civilization.

Through the wilderness we ll drive up the mountains  of Dikti visiting one of the most picturesque villages of Crete, the village of Krasi.  Full of very old narrow stone paved streets, great courtyards with  flowers and vines will leave you thinking that you just stepped out of a post card with its delightful stone houses and traditional influences. Scroll around the village or just have a cup of local medical herbs under one of the oldest trees on the island, a 2000 years old plane tree which seems like it jumped out the fairy tales…

Next stop one of the most famous monastery/nunneries on the island of Crete. The Kera Kardiotissa monastery/nunnery lies in an altitude of 2080 feet on the slopes of the mountains of Dikti in a very peacefull place with spectacular views to the north side of Crete. In the monastery/nunnery you ‘ll find the miraculous 18^th century Kera Kardiotissa icon (Virgin Mary), that has never left the church, although it has been stolen four times, she always returns back. Right after the guided tour, optionally you can have lunch in an excellent local tavern where grandma Nicky cooks in the wood oven the most delicious food! Enjoy!