Recently Reviewed Hotels around Elounda

• Spinalonga (Kalydon)
  "Interesting and sad"
  "The island was carved from the mainland by the Venetians and made into a defensive fortress to protect the old town of Olou. It became a leper colony in 1903, some say to oust the remaining Ottoman refugees. It stayed a leper colony until 1957 but an Orthodox priest remained until 1962 in order to s..."ervice the religious requirements of the Greek church. The lepers entered through Dantes gate knowing that their lives had changed forever. The good news was that they were fed, given medical help and social security funding. You can get to the island from Plaka ( 8 euros) or Elounda( 10 euros), entry is 2 euros. Facilities are limited, take bottled water and sturdy shoes. Be prepared for severe crowds July/August, up to 2000 visitors a day and extremely hot.Try and read the Island by Victoria Hislop, it really is a good read and will make your trip a little more atmospheric. On a previous trip I was becalmed off the island on a windsurfer. Waiting for the wind I was horrified to see a leper... " More >
• Spinalonga (Kalydon)
  "So much better than we expected"
  "Having watched the island from our room at the Blue Palace hotel for a few days prior to our visit we had built up all sorts of ideas of what it would be like. You can just about make out the buildings and the fortress from across the bay but it is certainly not the same as actually being there. A q..."uick 5 minute boat ride from Plaka (8€ pp return) and then a 2€ entrance fee enters you into another world. They say go before 12 noon as it can get very hot. This if course means everyone tries to do that so it can also get pretty busy. If you can go on a less hot day after 12 noon you will have less people and probably a much better experience. There are some steep areas, and rugged terrain so flip-flops are probably not the best footwear option. A bottle of water is a good idea too. There is nowhere to purchase anything on the island. You basically walk up to the large fortress and then down and around the whole island – it took us around 1.5hrs but we stopped a lot and took loads ... " More >
• Spinalonga (Kalydon)
  "Atmospheric history"
  "If you've read Hislop's book, you will really appreciate a visit to Spinalonga; and especially if you ignore the trips from Elounda and start from the village of Plaka. It is possible to see the original fishing village of Plaka behind the (fairly stylish) gift shops. We also had an excellent lunch ..."in Plaka. Spinalonga has layers of history to see and explore, including major defence works and, of course, the remains of the leper colony. We were pleased that people were quietly interested which meant the visit rightly reflected the awfulness of the place. Plaka & Spinalonga really are "so near and yet so far away". " More >