Things to do on the Lasithi plateau

The Lasithi plateau, at around 850 m in the mountains south of Agios Nikolaos, is famous for windmills that mostly no longer turn. Thousands once pumped irrigation water across the flat basin; what is left today is rusted metal frames, with only a handful restored and repainted for photographs.

Above the plateau, the Dikteon cave at Psychro, the mythical birthplace of Zeus, is a steep, slippery descent over wet rock, not a quick look from a car park. There is no KTEL coach service into this inland pocket of Lasithi, so a rental car is the only practical way in.

July and August bring crowds and heat to the coast, but the altitude keeps the plateau noticeably cooler, making spring or early autumn the better window.