Anatoli village: Beaches, Stays, Things to do

Anatoli, a village situated in the north-west of Ierapetra, is renowned for its name and the way the golden rays of the sun illuminate the area, earning it the nickname “the village of the rising sun.” The village is located at an altitude of 600m and is visible from the plain, with its houses appearing like white doves nested in the fortified mountain. Anatoli has a rich history and has been home to many men of letters, notaries, and university professors. In the 1970s, most of the residents worked in the glasshouse cultivations and founded settlements such as Stomio, Nea Anatoli, and Ammoudares. The village also includes the small picturesque village of Kalogeroi, which was built by a Turkish Aga and is part of Anatoli.

Throughout history, Anatoli has produced many important figures, including fighters during the Turkish rule and intellectuals during the Venetian and Turkish rule. The village boasts many ecclesiastical monuments, monasteries, and Byzantine icons of great art. The old traditional settlement of Anatoli has remained untouched by time, with its stone-built houses, alleys, and old Kato Vrysi. Recently, the village has undergone a program of renovation and has been designated as a traditional settlement. Today, houses and tourist lodgings of exceptional esthetics are built in stone, making Anatoli one of the most beautiful villages in Crete.

Anatoli has been successful in the agricultural, tourist, and intellectual sectors, with personalities from the village dominating the political, social, and intellectual life of the country. The village hosts important cultural events and is a center of attraction for both locals and foreigners. With its hospitable residents, two taverns, two coffee houses, and a renovated old school, Anatoli satisfies the most demanding visitors. The village is even rich in snails and wild mushrooms, adding to its charm and appeal. Overall, Anatoli is a village with a rich history, a promising future, and a unique beauty that attracts visitors from all over the world.

Things to do in Anatoli

The things to do in Anatoli start in the village itself, with its alleys, the old Kato Vrysi and the churches, then follow the roads that run along the slope. Anatoli stands at 600 m, and the gorges, monastery and neighbouring villages below are all within a few kilometres of it.

1. Walk the Havgas gorge. The gorge lies 3.4 km away near Kalamafka, between the Megali Korfi (1,103 m) and Kokies (993 m) peaks. Its stream, the Kapsous, is the main tributary of the Kalamavkianos river, and rare geological events have cut the rock into unusual shapes along a short route.
2. Drive across to Kalamafka. The village sits 3.5 km away at 480 m, below the hill of Kastelos. The cave known as 40 Chambers is at the top of the hill, with the chapel of Timios Stavros inside and a view over the Ierapetra plain to the Libyan Sea.
3. Eat at Tavérna Oasis (Garefalakis). The taverna is 3.7 km from Anatoli, at Kalamafka.
4. Visit the Monastery of Panagia Exakousti. The monastery stands at Malles, 4.5 km from the village.
5. Hike the Sarakina gorge. The gorge runs 1.5 km between the village of Mythi and the coast at Myrtos, where the Kryos river reaches the sea. Greek myth puts its making down to the giant Sarantapihos, whose beard is said to have split the mountain in two as he drank from the river.
6. Spend an afternoon in Myrtos. The seaside village lies 13 km west of Ierapetra, where the Kryos river comes out of the Sarakina gorge into a valley of greenhouses and citrus groves. It has small hotels, bars, cafes, restaurants, supermarkets, a petrol station and a clinic, and a bus runs from there to Ierapetra.

Beaches in and around Anatoli

Anatoli has no beach, because the village is built high on the mountain above the Ierapetra plain. Anatoli made its own connection to the coast in the 1970s, when villagers working the glasshouse crops founded the seaside settlements of Stomio, Nea Anatoli and Ammoudares. The nearest sand and pebble beaches run west from Ierapetra along the Libyan Sea, around the village of Myrtos.

• Myrtos lies 13 km west of Ierapetra, a long beach of coarse grey sand that does not stick to the skin. It is sheltered from strong winds, and the village behind it has hotels, tavernas and a bus link to Ierapetra.
• Vatos sits 18 km west of Ierapetra and 3 km east of Myrtos, reached by the asphalt road between Myrtos and Tertsa. The beach runs east towards Myrtos with several secluded stretches along the way, and it has greyish pebbles and deep water. The settlement is undeveloped, so the sand stays quiet.
• Kalikovrechtis is 19 km west of Ierapetra and 4 km east of Myrtos, at the outlet of the Kalikovrechtis stream between the Kolechtos and Kako Oros peaks. Fine greyish pebbles line an untouched shore, the water is usually calm, and a few tamarisk trees give shade before the steep slopes shade the beach early in the afternoon.