Agia Roumeli

 

The Gorge of Samaria became National Park following a presidential decree and is said to be the longest and one of the most beautiful gorges in Europe. The gorge is 16 km. long and the most famous part is the section known as the ?Iron Gates?, where the sides of the gorge close to about 3m.

In the National Park of Samaria there are a lot of rare and threatened with extinction flora and fauna species  the most known of all being the famous wild goat or ?Kri-kri?.

The main entrance of the gorge is found at Xyloskalo, while the exit is in Agia Roumeli.

This magnificent place offers great excitement as the visitors can walk through the breathtakingly beautiful Gorge of Samaria, stroll along the various paths of the area, visit the castles that have remained astonishingly imposing through the centuries and even go for a swim in the deep blue waters of the Libyan Sea. Apart from the nearby beaches, one can visit less known yet equally magnificent beaches with freezing cold, blue-greened waters.

Agia Roumeli is built upon the ruins of the ancient town Tarra. Many ancient authors have made reference to Tarra, as despite being small, it had its own currency, which on the one side depicted the head of a wild goat and arrows and a bee on the other.

One can still encounter the ruins of the ancient temple of Apollo, on which the old Christian church had been founded (walls 3m. in height and mosaic floors are preserved) and which was later transformed into the small temple of Virgin Mary.

The coast of the Tarra until about 365A.D. had nothing in common with the one existing today, as it was then that the land was abruptly made about 4 meters higher along the coast of Sfakia.

The findings of the ancient town of Tarra are exhibited in the Archeological Museum of Chania.