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Elounda

Greece Travel Guide

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Overview

Although surrounded by some of Crete's most luxurious resorts, Elounda retains a charming down-to-earth feel. Salty fishing craft bob in its little harbour, where you can board a boat to Spinalonga, a former leper colony and the area's biggest tourist attraction. Attractive shops, bars and tavernas wrap around the harbour and continue north along the sandy municipal beach and south along a paved waterfront promenade. Offshore lies the rugged Spinalonga Peninsula, linked to the mainland by a narrow causeway and home to ancient ruins, beaches and hiking trails.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Aerial drone view of an old Venetian fortress island and former Leper colony (Spinalonga, Crete, Greece); Shutterstock ID 1809885124; your: Barbara Di Castro; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi
1809885124

    Spinalonga Island

    Elounda

    Tiny Spinalonga Island became a leper colony in 1903 and catapulted into pop-cultural consciousness thanks to Victoria Hislop's 2005 bestselling novel The…

  • Kolokytha Beach

    Kolokytha Beach

    Elounda

    On the eastern shore of Spinalonga Island, Kolokytha is a small but lovely sandy cove with a view over to Kolokytha Island. Tour boats drop their…

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