Monastery of Arkadi
Just 25 kms from the historic town of Rethymnon you
can take a local bus or you can book a tour of the most important site
in the area of Rethymnon - Arkadi Monestry, a living monastry with an
heroic history.
Map of area
Old map of area
Pictures from Pikris
Immaculately situated in the
foothills of Psiloritis Mountain (Mount Idi), Arkadi is something of a
national shrine. During the 1866 rebellion, the monastery served as a
Cretan stronghold in which hundreds of Cretan guerrilla fighters and
their families took refuge as the Turks advanced and had the upper hand
in the proceedings, it was here that they were surrounded by the Turkish
army that lay siege for two days, finally the defenses were breached on
November 9th, 1866.
Read more
about the holocaust of Arkadi
As the attackers poured in, the ammunition stores in
the monastery were exploded deliberately on the orders of the Abbot.
Hundreds were killed in the internal blast, Cretans and Turks alike,
this enraged the assailants that they put most of the surviving
defenders to death. There are celebrations annually on the anniversary
of the 7-9 November blast.
Arkadi nowadays
There are still monks and a couple of nuns living at the monastery; they
take care of the church and the surrounding buildings as well as the
small museum where relics from the monastery and the church are kept. In
the museum you can also buy very good copies icons made in the
traditional way and other religious items.
Outside the grounds of the monastery there
is a cafeteria and a souvenir shop. Here they sell local handcrafts,
honey, Raki, komboloi's of a very good quality (the traditional string
of beads that many men play with), and many other souvenirs and of
course postcards.
A popular walk from
Arkadi to the village of Pikris.
Privatly you can book a walk from Arkadi to the village of Pikris,The
walk starts with a tour around the monastery of Arkadi and the small
museum there.
After that we start descending to the village of Pikris, some 6 kms from
Arkadi. The walk will take you from the monastery down the mountainside
through meadows and fields.
The villagers here have always been very closely
connected with the monastery, and therefore have their own route.
The guide is a direct descendent of one the heroes of
the battle of Arkadi and is also the owner of the only taverna in
Pikris.
A late lunch can be provided at the village taverna after the walk.
Evening meals by prior arrangement with Kostas, Dina his wife prepares
home made mouth-watering dishes and some of the best chips in Crete.
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