Formerly a Turkish old town
After Heraklion, Chania and Rethymnon, Ierapetra is the fourth largest and sunniest city in Crete with around 8.000 inhabitants. It is also the southernmost city in Europe and is located on the island's wasp waist. The distance from here to the north coast is only 16 km.
In addition to the predominantly modern buildings, Ierapetra also has a small, formerly Turkish old town with mosques and fountains. Numerous greenhouses around the city, where different types of vegetables are grown, make it clear that agriculture in Greece is very important for the population.
At the western end of the promenade is the Venetian fortress, built in 1626. Behind it stretches the old town, the small streets of which show many traces of the Ottoman period. On the quiet Platia there is a mosque with a restored minaret and fountain house.
In the old town you will find numerous restaurants, taverns and cafes, which offer coveted places to linger under shady tamarisks, especially in the spring and summer months when the hot desert wind often blows. The sandy beach in the middle of the city, which is not only used by swimming enthusiasts, is also beautiful. Here you can also see fishermen piling up their boats and mending their nets.
