A few words about Sougia.

Sougia is a small seaside village on the south coast of Crete, 65 km south of Chania. It is located at the end of Agia Irini Gorge and is famous for its beautiful pebble beach. In Sougia can be found tavernas with good food and cafeterias where coffee, ice cream or a snack can be enjoyed with a sea side view.

History of Sougia

In ancient times Sougia was the city of pigs, as its ancient name, Syia, from sys (pig) indicates. The mountains around Sougia are full of oak trees and in antiquity there would have been even more. As acorns are a pig's favourite food, we can surmise that pig-keeping was widespread here.

Ancient Sougia flourished in Roman and Byzantine times. It was a harbour of the Dorian city of Elyros, which was prosperous enough in antiquity to mint its own coins, but was destroyed by the Saracens in the 9th century AD. Elyros was near the modern village of Rodovani, and the ruins of the ancient city on the Kefalas hill can be visited.