The East is by far the driest part of the island although olive trees are planted there as well. It possesses a mountain range, Thripti, which only rises to 1500m, but is very wild.

The area round the town of Agios Nikolaos and the Mirambello bay has become a focal point for tourism.

Central Crete. A large proportion of visitors to Crete arrive in Heraklion, the capital of Central Crete. This large town is mainly an important economic focal point in Crete. The hilly hinterland is well known for its abundance of vineyards.

The region is very important archaeologically, not only because of the Minoan palace of Knossos. The whole region is dominated by the Ida mountains and Dikti in the eastern part. In the South the plain of Messara, one of the most fertile areas of Crete, has become an important centre of agricultural production. Outstanding Minoan frescoes can be viewed in the Iraklion Archaeological Museum Plateia Elevtherias (open Mon 12:30-23:00, Tue/Sunday 08:00-19:00).

Central Crete and essentially the North coast is by far the main tourism centre of Crete with more than half of all the accommodation of the whole island located there.

West Crete is the greenest and most mountainous area of Crete. The majestic White Mountains or Lefka Ori dominate the landscape and rise to almost 2500m. They drop abruptly into the Libyan sea in the South and are cut by a number of deep gorges, the most famous one being the Samaria Gorge.

To the North, hilly areas and some coastal plains provide a fertile ground for agriculture, mainly olive trees and citrus fruit. The North coast has many nice beaches and a number of tourist developments.