The ancient city of Diktinna

The ancient city of Diktinna constitutes a unique archaeological destination in Crete. It is located 45 kilometers southwest of Chania and 23 km east of Kolimbari.

It was the most important worship center in Crete during the Hellenistic and the Roman times: in this sacred place, there was a temple dedicated to Artemis Vritomarti, the goddess and protector of the hunt. The ancient city of Diktinna was considered as the most important sacred place of worship of Artemis, a goddess that was worshiped both by Kydonia in Chania and Polirinia in Kastelli, despite the fact that those two ancient cities of Crete were in an endless conflict.

The ruins of the temple that visitors have the opportunity to admire today, are of the ancient Roman building, on which a Christian monastery dedicated to Saint Georgios was actually built in the 9th century. The continuous invasions of pirates against this coastal region, though, destroyed both buildings.

A visit to the archaeological site of the ancient city of Diktinna should be definitely combined with a visit to the isolated beach Menies, which is often referred to as Diktinna and is located at a close distance.