For the second part of our trip to Crete in 2020, we decided to stay a short drive away from Spili. Spili is a small town around 30km south of Rethymno, and sits on one of the main roads running from the north to south of the islands. However, it is not a busy town, with only a handful of restaurants and tourist attractions, but the surrounding scenery and nearby towns make Spili worth visiting. During our stay here, we spent perhaps a day or so in the town and hiking around, and otherwise did a few day trips to places on the south coastline of the island- such as to Loutro, Frangokastello, Phaistos and Preveli- which are all seperate blog posts with accompanying photos, suggestions and tips.
Shops in Spili
The town is mostly known for town center with its fountain with 25 sprouting lion heads, replacing the venetian original which has been moved to a less prominent position closer to the town’s outskirts. The town center has a number of cafes and restaurants and some tourist shops lining the road. We mostly stopped by the cafes for a caffe freddo, but did come across an incredible restaurant located a short walk away- called To Sideradiko- which we’d definitely recommend. There are various other things to check out and do in Spili, including visiting the Holy Monastery of Saints Rafael, Nicholas and Irene, hiking around the area and even a local museum- on this blog post we’ve listed the main highlights and our recommendations.
Tourist shops in Spili selling traditional goods
To Sideradiko
This is a small, family owned restaurant, serving traditional Cretan food, with produce coming directly from the family farm and garden. Not only are the produce incredibly fresh, but the menu changes daily- so you can see all the dishes available before ordering. During our visit we were really spoilt for choice, and in the end went for a few dishes – Gigantes Plaki, Gemitsa, roasted fish and lamb. All of these were incredibly delicious!
The decor of the restaurant is impressive as well as you can see from the photo. We sat on the terrace which is interestingly decorated with various blacksmith tools – the restaurant was previously a family blacksmith but then turned into a family restaurant, and the tools have since be reused as decor.
Click here to find out more about the restaurant and visiting.
Above: dishes at To Sideradiko: Gigantes Plaki, fish and Gemitsa. Left: tables at To Sideradiko
The Folk Museum of Spili
Above and below: various artefacts on display
The Folk Museum of Spili
Located a short walk away from the town center and the lion fountain, this is a small but impressive museum showcasing Cretan culture. We found the guide (Manolis) to be informative, friendly and incredibly enthusiastic- you will learn lots about the culture and history of Cretans and Manolis was able to answer any questions.
On display you can see various pottery, household tools, furniture- a bit of everything. Walking around the museum doesn’t take too long and entrance is free (although donations are accepted)- so definitely worth a visit!
An example of a typical Cretan room in the museum
Maravel garden
We first noticed this botanical garden when driving past- and decided to stop by. We would recommend others do the same! Consisting of around 4 acres in size, there is an impressive collection of various plants, fauna, trees and herbs. Whilst walking around, we saw various lavender plants, roses, fruit trees. Apparently the garden has more than 100 herbs-aromatic herbs and medicinal herbs. We found that there were numerous information boards to be on display as we walked around and there was a very easy to follow path which takes you through the garden (this took about an hour or so). The botanical garden also runs various programmes- such as on aromatherapy, soap making, and using herbs in cooking.
Views over Maravel Garden
There is also a great terrace cafe serving delicious food and drink, and also a shop selling local produce- ranging from honey, to soap and essential oils. After our walk, we stopped by the terrace to take in the beautiful views, and enjoy some herbal tea and a slice of Voskopita pie. This is a type of monastic pie, and was absolutely delicious and worth trying!
To find out more about visiting Maravel garden, click here.
Voskipita pie
Above: some of the trees and plants at Maravel garden. Below: some of the herbs and teas on sale in the shop.
Views whilst hiking over Spili
Hiking around Spili
There are various hiking routes around Spili- we did a circular two hour route (following the Path of Spiliou – Yous Kampos) which started out by the health center on the outskirts of town, and then followed a marked path uphill to enjoy the beautiful views over Spili and down the valley.
The route then took us through the gorge, through the trees to get onto the path that takes you past the church for the Holy Spirit, and then meets the Spili-Yeraki road before descending back into the village. To get a map of the route, we popped in to see Heracles at Hercales Rooms in Spili to ask for this particular hiking route. You could also get more suggested routes and from Heracles.
Various footpaths during the hike, and the church of the Holy Spirit
Views down towards Spili
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