Crete - Useful information

Money We recommend that you take some Euros on holiday with you although you will find many places to change cash and travelers cheques in the main tourist areas. Banks are open Monday to Friday until 2 pm only.

Telephones There are OTE offices in most of the main towns from where you can telephone to anywhere in the world. Increasingly, Hotels and Apartments have telephones in the accommodation, linked to computers that calculate the cost of any calls. Street kiosks sometimes have card phones and you can buy telephone cards at kiosks, mini-markets and post offices for use with public phones.

Electricity The voltage is 220 volts which is compatible with the UK but you will need a two pin adapter to use your own equipment. Electricity is expensive in Crete so please do be considerate in the way you use it. Occasionally there are power cuts due to high demands

Drinking Water The spring water from the mountains of Crete is perfectly safe to drink but bottled water is available in most restaurants and shops. There are shortages in the long hot summer and care should be taken that water is not wasted.

Pets & Others Due to the warm climate of the southern Mediterranean, the rural background of Cretan life, and the location of certain properties, pets are really unavoidable. It is particularly important not to leave food sitting out, or uncovered. Flies, wasps and bees are naturally attracted to tavernas, and in no way suggests unsanitary conditions. Many of our houses and villas are situated in the countryside and you may therefore be awoken by a cockerel or disturbed by goats or sheep, or the barking of a guard dog. This is all part of the Mediterranean island life and as such a little understanding goes a long way

Time Zones All of Greece is within the same time zone as Eastern Europe, which is two hours ahead of the UK. They also change for Summer Time, by an hour, and since 1997 the changes are made on the same dates as the rest of Europe. Therefore there should be a consistent difference of 2 hours.

Medical Services The medical services in Greece are generally good. However, we do advise you to take a form E 111 with you. This form, along with a personal identity document will ensure that you receive medical assistance and can reclaim any costs you incur upon your return. We do of course strongly advise everyone to have full Travel Insurance cover including repatriation for medical emergencies, when traveling abroad.

Food Restaurants and tavernas are mostly open from 7 pm and many stay open to 2 am the next morning. The choice of cuisine is very varied, based mostly on vegetables, meat, fish, cheese and wines in a vast array of combinations. In some tavernas guests are welcome, before they order, to have a look at what is available in the kitchen or what is in the saucepans and baking trays. The taverna waiters should advise any specialties for that day. A good restaurant is usually pretty full of local people, although Greeks like to eat much later than we do in the UK, perhaps around 9 pm or 10 pm. House wine, from the barrel, is served by the carafe in most tavernas and is very inexpensive. Food is cooked fresh every day, starting early in the morning. In the afternoon there is usually a siesta time roughly between 2 pm and 5 pm, and the main meal of the day is in the evening.

Technical Problems It is not always as easy or as fast to get problems solved as one might hope. Most equipment is imported and spare parts are not always readily available. The Greek way of life does not lend itself to necessarily giving priority to blocked drains or water shortages. However, problems are resolved while retaining the laid back charm which is an essential ingredient of a Cretan holiday.

Cretan Diet The island of Crete is one of the most naturally healthy places in the world, where the people incorporate thousands of plants and herbs as part of everyday nutrition. The islanders have developed a particular diet, which has now been proved to be one of the most healthy in the world. The basics of this diet are bread, pulses, nuts, vegetables, fruit,meat, fish, olive oil, cheese, spices, and wine. From these ingredients in a great variety of combinations, spring the delicious array of Cretan specialties. Research which started in 1960, using data from seven countries, concluded in 1986 that as a result of their diet, Cretan people suffered notably fewer deaths as a result of heart attacks, various forms of cancer and other diseases compared to all of the other places in the study. From a separate and further study, it was concluded that not only was the Mediterranean cuisine better for the heart and produced fewer heart attacks, but the Cretan diet was in particular extremely healthy. A large part is played by the island's olive oil, which is produced in vast quantities on Crete and is basic ingredient in a multitude of dishes. So now increasingly, even in hotels, there is a demand for traditional Cretan specialties, and requests for old recipes. Therefore, not only does Crete offer a healthy climate but a particularly excellent diet.

Beaches The many beautiful and varied beaches of Crete are naturally open to everyone to use and are generally very safe for swimming. However, often there are no lifeguards on the beaches and no life saving amenities available. The island winds, which are most refreshing in the summer heat, may of course at times roughen up the seas and naturally seaweed and driftwood may alter the look of the beaches. There are now many spacious yet well organised beaches with sun beds and sun umbrellas, snack bars with a wide choice of water sports, from canoes, pedal boats to wind surfing, jet skis, water skiing, and para gliding. So you can very much choose what suits you best, whether it be tiny secluded coves or mile long beaches.

Pets The change in quarantine laws allow English residents to now have the choice to bring their pets on holiday, and for anyone resident in mainland Europe it is possible to bring pets into Greece. However, you should check with us first if it is suitable to have pets in the accommodation, which you are booking. Prior to travel you will need to procure and bring along, on behalf of your pet, a certificate of health from a registered Veterinary Surgeon, and check with the airline that they will carry your pet.

Building Works There always seems to be new buildings going up in most Cretan towns and so you will need to be prepared to see building sites here and there. However this does not automatically mean that you will be confronted with building noise, because mostly Cretans build in stages. They build as far as their money allows and then stop until they make enough money to complete the project. Also, in the summer months work on buildings frequently stops entirely, due to the heat. We naturally make every effort to be advised of any building work, which might possibly affect our holiday accommodation.

Breakfast The Cretan breakfast, similar to other Mediterranean countries, is a very simple meal. Over the last few years, however, due to numbers of foreign visitors, you can now find a varied and more substantial choice of breakfast in most tavernas and cafes.

Cost of Living Although it is still very inexpensive to eat out in Greece, it is true to say that the cost of food and drink has increased a bit over the years. Naturally the further away from tourist areas you are, the cheaper the cost of food.

Tipping In restaurant bills there is a service charge of between 10-15 % already built in. However it is usual to leave a small tip for the waiters. It is also usual to tip taxi drivers, hairdressers, porters and chambermaids.

Sleeping Habits For Cretans, the evening meal begins no earlier than 9.00 p.m. Also no one will think anything of it if you telephone at 10.00 p.m. in the evening. However, 'siesta' time, between 3.00 p.m. and 5 p.m. is held as sacred. During the siesta it is just as unpopular to disturb someone, as it is to 'Go German'!!

Eating Habits The more you eat out in Crete, particularly in the company of Cretans, you will notice when it comes to paying that bills are not individually split, Cretans find this splitting down of bills to be a deplorable habit and the Greeks have nicknamed this “Going German” (in the UK, we call this Going Dutch!). In contrast, however, small tips are most welcome such as for the old lady in the village who goes and fetches the key to the church, or for the priest who is proud to show you around his church. You should in this latter instance never give money directly into the hand, but rather leave it at the entrance of the church in an appropriate receptacle. As casually as the Greeks may like to dress in the daytime, when they go to church they put great emphasis on decent attire, moral codes are tightly observed. For anyone visiting churches, sleeveless blouses, shorts and beach clothes are definitely out. In many monasteries and churches, you will not be allowed entrance if you are not 'properly' dressed. It is advisable, at least, to wear long trousers; a pullover or a wrap to cover the shoulders if you are on a sightseeing tour which will take in visits to churches.With dress codes in mind, if you are invited to a private home in Crete, don't turn up in shorts or sandals, as Cretans like to dress up. It's the same if you go out together with Cretans in the evening. Cretans have, like all the Greeks, a very different attitude to time. If you have agreed to meet in the 'afternoon', the earliest meant by this will be 6.00 p.m.!

Wines CRETE is an island of sun and sea, but it is also the home of Dionysos, the God of wine. In mythology, Dionysos, married Ariadne the daughter of King Minos, and brought to Crete the Craft of wine making. Crete was one of the first places in ancient times to establish the tradition of growing grapes for the production of wine, and the oldest wine cellar in the world has been discovered on Crete. In ancient times, Cretan wine was famed for its excellence and exported throughout the ancient world. Amphora bearing the mark of "Vinum Creticum Excellens" have been found in a great numbers in Rome, Lyons, Athens, Egypt and Corinthia. The wine is also mentioned in the ancient writings of Homer, Pausanias and Euclides and in many other old European texts...even in the great works of Shakespeare. In the Byzantine era, and through the Middle Ages, it wasn't only Cretan wine in general but specific makes of wine such as 'Malvuasia' which became well known. The Italian Buondelmonti, in the 15th century, listed the export abroad of 20,000 barrels of Cretan wine. However, in the 19th Century many vineyards were destroyed as a result of the battles between the Turks and the Greeks. For 2000 years wine. which is high in alcohol content, full of bouquet and taste, has been a daily part of the Greek diet. Still today thanks to the sun, Cretan grapes grown in traditional style vineyards produce some excellent red and white wines, and the island alone provides a fifth of the total wine production of Greece. Wines such as 'Mandilari', 'Kotsifali' and 'Liatiko' (which succeeded the ancient Malviasia) are among the better known Cretan red wines are produced in the areas around Archanes, Peza and Daphnes, near to Heraklion and Sitia. In smaller quantities, the white wines 'Viniana' and 'Romkios' are produced mostly in the areas around Heraklion and Kissamos. 'Maroulas' a sweet wine comes from the area around Chania. In a world where increasingly there are fewer types of grapes producing ever-larger quantities of wines, it is reassuring to know that in Greece there is a wider range of grapes, which produce a rich selection of good wines.

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