The Lasithi Plateau: Crete's high farmland, its windmills and a family taverna lunch

High in the Dikti mountains of eastern Crete, about 850 metres up, the Lasithi Plateau is the largest plateau on the island: a flat floor of fields and orchards, with its own villages and a set of old windmills at its northern entrance. For people travelling on their own who want the Crete beyond the beaches, Spice Escapes takes a small hosted group up there for a day, through the villages to a home-cooked lunch at a family-run taverna.

That day is the third of Crete Discovery, a week with two seaside bases and half board. Read on for the height and the farming, the Seli Ambelou windmills, the cave of Zeus and how that day runs.

Crete's largest plateau sits in the middle of the Dikti range

Incredible Crete, the Region of Crete's tourism site, places the plateau at the heart of the Dikti range, with peaks above 2,000 metres and smaller plateaus such as Katharo and Limnakaro around it. The site's suggested round drive from Agios Nikolaos climbs through the villages of Mesa and Exo Potami to 1,300 metres, where the plateau comes into view to the southwest.

Potatoes, apples and sheep: farmland that is still worked

Potatoes, vegetables, pears, apples, walnuts and cherries come from the plateaus and valleys of the Dikti range, and keeping sheep and goats is an old tradition too.

The Crete Discovery itinerary describes fields and orchards shielded by mountains, where the old ways of working the land blend with the new.

Twenty-four windmills still stand at Seli Ambelou

At Seli Ambelou, on the northern way in, stands what Incredible Crete calls the most remarkable set of windmills surviving in Crete. Twenty-four of the original 26 remain, on both sides of the road into the plateau.

They ground cereals for the people of Lasithi. The mills are mentioned as far back as Venetian times, and were moved here from Zaronas, near Potamoi, at the end of the 19th century.

Villages, monasteries and the cave of Zeus

Beyond the fields, the plateau takes in:

• its villages, with a historical and folklore museum in Agios Georgios
• the monasteries of Kristalenia and Vidiani
• two venerated caves, Trapeza and the Diktaean cave

The Diktaean cave, known locally as the Psychro cave, is where myth says Rhea gave birth to Zeus. It lies 1,025 metres up on the northern slopes of Dikti, half an hour's walk south of Psychro village, and is open all year.

Day three of Crete Discovery: up through the villages to a family taverna

On Crete Discovery the plateau has a day to itself. After breakfast in Agios Nikolaos the group heads up through traditional villages, then settles into a family-run taverna for a home-cooked lunch and the views. The itinerary calls it an ideal way to round off eastern Crete.

The cave and the Seli Ambelou windmills are not on the itinerary, so picture villages, fields and an unhurried lunch. Ask Lauren Fawkes, who hosts the week, anything about the day.

Two seaside bases, half board and a group of around fifteen

Crete Discovery is 7 nights with two bases: three at the Miramare Hotel and Spa in Agios Nikolaos, or a similar hotel, then four at the Theartemis Palace in Rethymno. Both have two pools and a spa, with breakfast and dinner included throughout. Heraklion, Chania and the south coast fill the rest of the week, with Knossos if you wish.

At that taverna table sits a group of around fifteen people, and some reach twenty. Most book on their own, and the host is with the group all week. Our first-time solo travellers guide covers going alone, and the single supplement page sets out the cost of a room to yourself.

See the dates and book online on the Crete Discovery page: 5 Oct 2027 – 12 Oct 2027, from £1,499.

Not free that week? Pine woods on Lošinj or a short break in Athens

Croatian Chillout swaps mountains for pine woods: a spring week on the Croatian island of Lošinj with Jackie Whyte, a hike offered through the pines towards Saint Ivan Hill, and half board at Hotel Punta. Dates: 1 May 2027 – 8 May 2027.

Ancient Athens is 4 nights in the city with Jackie Whyte, starting with dinner together at a local restaurant. Dates: 10 Mar 2027 – 14 Mar 2027.

Browse more culture and discovery holidays, or everything we run in Greece.

Questions people ask

How high is the Lasithi Plateau?

The Lasithi Plateau lies about 850 metres up, according to Incredible Crete, the Region of Crete's tourism site. The Dikti peaks around it pass 2,000 metres, and the highest, Spathi, reaches 2,148 metres.

Is the Lasithi Plateau cooler than the coast?

Yes. Incredible Crete says the weather in Crete's mountain areas is cooler, and the plateau sits 850 metres up, so a light layer for the day is sensible.

Does Crete Discovery visit the Diktaean cave?

No. The itinerary builds the plateau day around the villages, the fields and a home-cooked lunch at a family-run taverna, and it does not list the cave.

Do people go on Crete Discovery on their own?

Yes. Most people on Spice Escapes holidays book on their own, so arriving alone is the norm. The group is around fifteen people, and some reach twenty, with a host who travels with it.

Lunch on the plateau, with Lauren and the group

If villages, farmland and a home-cooked lunch at a family taverna are the Crete you are after, see the dates and book online on the Crete Discovery page. Right now: 12 places left.

Questions before you book can go to Lauren Fawkes, who hosts the week, through our contact page, or to Rosie, the chat on the holiday page. For other hosted trips, see our over-50s solo holidays.