Cave temples and caves of religious interest

Thanks to its special natural topography, with its countless gorges, wild mountains and the abundance of inaccessible spots, Crete has been an ideal place for ascetic life. So much so that Orthodox asceticism flourished during the Byzantine period that Crete was described as a ‘holy island’. In the most remote parts of the island, in caves and far from civilisation, hermits and ascetics have isolated themselves over the centuries, abandoning worldly pleasures and joys and creating places of worship.

Don’t miss

  • In the caves of Agiofarango, in the south of the prefecture of Heraklion, it is said that centuries ago hundreds of hermits lived there, who did not communicate with each other except on the day of the Resurrection. They met in Goumenospilio, the small cave next to the cavernous church of Agios Antonios. It is said that unseen ascetics still live in Agiofarango.
  • In the Monastery of Gouverneto, in the prefecture of Chania, where Saint John the Stranger lived as an ascetic, there is a “stone city”, a monastery carved almost into the rock.
  • In Matala, the well-known caves on the rocks were used by the first Christians as catacombs and the cavernous church of the Virgin Mary is located there today.
  • In many caves on the island St Anthony-Agios Antonios is worshipped, who was himself an ascetic in a cave. The cave of Agios Antonios in the gorge of Patsos in Rethymno is beautiful, while on the path to the Koudoumas Monastery, in the Asterousia Mountains, there is a cave dedicated to Agios Antonios. It is said that holy water flows from the stalagmites and stalactites and is collected in three troughs from which one can drink.
  • There are quite a few caves on the island to which Cretans fled to save themselves from the Ottomans and the latter exterminated them, as happened in the cave of Milatos, near the village of Milatos in the prefecture of Lassithi, which is today dedicated to Agios Thomas.
Monastery of Koudoumas
Monastery of Koudoumas
Saint Nikitas
Saint Nikitas