Agios Vasileios

On the road leading to Armeni, 40 minutes away from the city of Rethymno, there is a village of Agios Vasileios of the prefecture of Rethymno.

Built at the barren hills’ foots, at an altitude of 350 meters, there is the Agios Vasileios village, which spans to the west of a verdant valley full of olive trees and vineyards.

The village, which until the 1950 was called New Agios Vasileios, was named as Agios Vasileios after the church that stands in the middle of the village.

It is not known when or how the village of Agios Vasileios was founded, but the ruins of an ancient wall prove that there was an older settlement in this area. Nearby a Byzantine fortress has been discovered, where only the privileged ones took refuge.

Within eight meters from the entrance to the homonymous church of Agios Vasileios there is a small hole that leads to an unexplored cave.

Finally, apart from the church of Agios Vasileios and a little bit outside of the village more churches can be found, such as a chapel of Agios Ioannis Prodromos, Agios Ioannis Theologos, Agios Antonios and the ruins of Agios Georgios.