Choose your Real Estate in Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands and the fifth-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is the ideal place for choosing your real estate in Crete. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits (such as its own poetry and music). Crete was once the centre of the Minoan civilization, which is currently regarded as the earliest recorded civilization in Europe.
A large number of islands, islets, and rocks hug the coast of Crete. Many are visited by tourists, some are visited only by archaeologists and biologists. Some are environmentally protected. A small sample of the islands include:
• Gramvousa (Kissamos, Chania) the island opposite the Balos lagoon
• Elafonisi (Chania), the island, which can be reached on foot, through the shallow water and is a protected nature reserve.
• Chrysi island (Ierapetra, Lasithi), which hosts the largest natural cedar forest in Europe
• Paximadia island (Agia Galini, Rethymno) where the god Apollo and the goddess Artemis were born
• Spinalonga, with The Venetian fortress opposite the beach and shallow waters of Elounda (Ag. Nikolaos, Lasithi)
• Dionysades islands which are in an environmentally protected region together the Palm Beach Forest of Vai in Sitia, Lasithi
• the island of Gavdos, off the south coast, which is located 26 miles south of Hora Sfakion, Chania and is the southernmost point of Europe.
Crete and the above mentioned nearby islands form the Crete Region, is divided into four regional units (prefectures). From west to east these are: Chania, Rethymno, Heraklion, and Lasithi.alities.
The economy of Crete is predominantly based on services and tourism, however agriculture plays also an important role and Crete is one of the few Greek islands that can support itself independently without a tourism industry. This is one of the main reasons why you can have your real estate in Crete. As in many regions of Greece, viticulture and olive groves are significant; oranges and citrons are also cultivated. Dairy products are important to the local economy and there are a number of speciality cheeses such as mizithra, anthotyros, graviera and kefalotyri.
Additionally, Crete is a highly popular tourist destination, with landscapes varying from great sandy palm beaches to snow-covered high peaks and stunning river gorges and a good deal of night life in its main tourist towns. Today, the island’s tourism infrastructure caters to all tastes, including a very wide range of accommodation.
The island has three significant airports, Nikos Kazantzakis at Heraklion, the Daskalogiannis airport at Chania and a smaller one in Sitia. The first two serve international routes, acting as the main gateways to the island for travellers. Crete is well served by ferries too, mostly from Athens offering an all year round accessibility to the island.
Crete straddles two climatic zones, the Mediterranean and the North African, mainly falling within the former. As such, the climate in Crete is primarily temperate. Snowfall is common on the mountains between November and May, but rare in the low lying areas. During the Cretan summer, average temperatures reach the high 20s-low 30s Celsius (mid 80s to mid 90s Fahrenheit), with maxima touching the upper 30s-mid 40s.
Crete is isolated from mainland Europe, Asia, and Africa, and this is reflected in the diversity of the fauna and flora. As a result the fauna and flora of Crete have many clues to the evolution of species. There are no animals that are dangerous to humans on the island of Crete and Crete’s flora has a rich variety of indigenous herbs and wild flowers, such as wild orchids. Your real estate in Crete will give you the chance to be part of all this.