Lygaria beach
Enclosed sandy cove sheltered from summer winds, with turquoise water and a hillside chapel above the shore.
Location
About this audio guide
This guide to Lygaria beach near Heraklion opens with competing stories behind its name, one tied to a wild shrub and another to a Venetian nobleman named Ligaras. It follows the whitewashed chapel on the hillside above, remnant of a monastery first recorded in 1610, and the long stretch of Venetian rule on Crete that was drawing to a close around that time. You'll also hear why sailors once chose this particular cove as a sheltered anchorage.
This audio guide was created using AI.
Similar places
Paralia Agia Pelagia
Sheltered bay of golden sand ringed by low hills, with a legend-linked cave at its northern edge.
Ammoudara Beach
Sweeping sandy Cretan shore where a rare wild lily blooms above an ancient buried coastline.
Heraklion Venetian Port
Sea fortress guarding a Venetian harbor, built on sunken ships and armed against a twenty-one-year siege.
Matala beach
Sandstone cliff riddled with ancient man-made caves that briefly became a legendary nineteen-sixties hippie commune.
Basilica of St. Mark
Venetian ducal church turned Ottoman mosque, now a municipal art gallery on a historic Cretan square.
Dermatas Gate
Modest Venetian sea gate built cheaply into the coastal walls as a backup route to the harbor.