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Falasarna Beaches and Ancient city

Far west Crete

Falasarna and the beaches along the far west end of Crete are peaceful and beautiful, there are just a few simple tavernas and hardly anything to do but walk, walk and absorb the wild beauty of the place. The beaches are wide, sandy and seem endless. In the hills behind the beaches, you find the ruins of the ancient city and harbour of Falasarna The beach is what people come to Falasarna for.

The only other thing that you can do here is wandering around the ruins of the ancient harbour of Falasarna. Superb sandy beaches with some of the cleanest waters in Crete and Greece as a whole. But it can get very windy. The wind often blows from the West in Crete so you get it full blast in Falasarna. The beautiful setting of Falasarna is somewhat spoilt by the many greenhouses that have been erected. Agriculture is more important for the area than tourism

Ancient Falasarna

The ancient city of Falasarna is being excavated. The excavations have exposed some of the walls and buildings of the city. The geographical shift (rise) of Crete has put the ancient harbour on dry land. Falasarna was a commercial naval power during the Hellenistic period and also the harbour of Polirinia. An interesting throne carved out of a rock, is on the dirt track as you enter the ancient city.

The acropolis of the city was on the peninsula in front, on top of the hill. The fortification walls around the hill are still visible. The harbour was just below the fortifications, on the south side of the peninsula. There are no signs of the harbour now since it is above ground. There were two towers, one on the north and one on the south side of the harbour dating from the fourth century B.C. A second channel allowed an exit from the harbour on the bay at the north side of the acropolis, 100 metres further on. It is assumed that this was a pirate stronghold at one time.