The beach of Matala has been occupied since ancient times. The settlers back then carved a set of caves in the soft rock of the mountain. During a period these same caves were inhabited by hippies who made them famous worldwide. The beach provides umbrellas and sunbeds. In the village there are tourist shops, restaurants, cafes and bars.

The small port of Kokkinos Pyrgos separates its two beaches. On the west side there is a rocky and pebble beach that stretches to Agia Galini and on the east side a beach that reaches Kommos.

The gorge of Samaria is the second most visited tourist attraction on Crete (following the Minoan palace of Knossos) and by far the most popular walk. More than a quarter million people walk through the gorge every year from May to October. In winter the gorge is closed to visitors due to danger posed by water and falling stones.

The Samaria gorge is the longest one in Europe. It is an area of stunning natural beauty. Rare flora and fauna have survived in this area and are protected. The mountains that have formed it are wild, high and steep. One will pass through forests of ancient cypresses and pines and descend between vertical cliffs. The path starts from Xyloskalo (near Omalos) in the White Mountains at an altitude of 1230 meters and comes to an end at the village of Agia Roumeli at the Libyan sea. Walking through the gorge usually takes anything from 3 to 5 hours (excluding the breaks).

A beautiful beach, right next to Agia Galini can be reached by car or by boat from the port of Agia Galini or even on foot in about 1 hour.

In Agia Galini is also the cave of Daedalus, where according to myth, Daedalus hid himself whilst being pursued by king Minos and together with his son Icarus, managed to fly to freedom using his self-built wings glued with wax

The rock that Daedalus and Icarus used as a base for their flight is located on the right side of the port facing the sea, still seeing them off on their doomed journey.

At this spot there are two statues, these of Daedalus and Icarus as they get prepared for their journey, which are easily accessible to the visitor.

The holly grove of Rouvas is located 55km south of Heraklion and 16km north of Gergeri village, in one of the most rugged and secluded parts of Crete. This isolation is the main reason for its existence, since humans have fortunately not destroyed that like all the other lost forests of Crete.

Rouvas forest develops in a small - depression - plateau at the southern part of Psiloritis mountain. One can approach the forest either from Gergeri village through the forest road, or from Nida Plateau again through a forest road or even by walking in the European hiking trail E4, starting from the Zaros lake, crossing the amazing Gorge of Agios Nikolaos and reaching the forest after 2 hours.