Plaka, Lasithi

Plaka is a village in

Lasithi Lasithi () is the easternmost regional unit on the island of Crete, to the east of Heraklion. Its capital is Agios Nikolaos, the other major towns being Ierapetra and Sitia. The mountains include the Dikti in the west and the Thrypti in the ...

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

. It is part of the community Vrouchas, in the municipality of Agios Nikolaos. It neighbours the town of Elounda and is close to the historical island of

Spinalonga Spinalonga () is an island in the Gulf of Elounda, north-eastern Crete, in the municipality of Agios Nikolaos, Crete, Agios Nikolaos, Lasithi, next to the town of Plaka in the area of Kalydon (Elounda), Kalydon. It is near the Spinalonga peninsu ...

. In the vicinity are the ancient cities (now in

ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

) of

Olous Olous or Olus (, or ''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'' § 350.) was a city of ancient Crete; now sunken, it was situated at the site of present day town of Elounda, Crete, Greece. According to the ''Stadiasmus Maris Magni'', it had a harbour and was locat ...

and

Lato Lato () was an ancient city of Crete, the ruins of which are located approximately 3 km from the village of Kritsa. History The Dorian city-state was built in a defensible position overlooking Mirabello Bay between two peaks, both of ...

, which Dorian settlements were frequently in conflict with each other over territory disputes. Tourist boats depart from Plaka to

on a daily basis. The one way boat passage requires approximately ten minutes. The village features prominently in the novel '' The Island'' by

Victoria Hislop Victoria Hislop (''née'' Hamson; born 1959) is an English author. Early life Born in Bromley, Kent, she was raised in Tonbridge and attended Tonbridge Grammar School. She studied English at St Hilda's College, Oxford, and worked in publishing ...

and its TV adaptation

To Nisi ''To Nisi'' (Greek alphabet, Greek: ''Το Νησί'' 'The Island') is a Greek television series based on the best-selling English novel ''The Island (2005 novel), The Island'' by Victoria Hislop airing on Mega Channel. The series premiered on 11 ...

. Populated places in Lasithi Agios Nikolaos, Crete {{Crete-geo-stub