In the late antiquity, this part of the coastline served as the harbor for the nearby Doric city of Lato. During the Fourth Crusade (1202-1204 AD), also known as the ‘commercial crusade,’ the notorious pirate Pescatore established the ‘Castello de Mirabello’ on a hill east of the present-day city center. He did this on behalf of Genoa, which was in conflict with the Venetians during this crusade. Eventually, the Venetians prevailed and ruled the island for the next four and a half centuries. During this period, the island was not called Crete, but referred to as Candia.

In 1645, the castle was betrayed and captured by the Turks, but the Venetians fought back fiercely and recaptured it in the same year. To prevent the Turks from reclaiming the castle, the Venetians took the drastic measure of completely demolishing their own castle. However, the name of the castle was preserved and is still used to refer to the bay in which the city lies.

In the previous century, people from the Sfakia region, in the south of Crete, settled around Voulismeni Lake. The village founded there was named after the nearby church of Saint Nicholas, leading to the name ‘Agios Nikolaos.’ Saint Nicholas is also the patron saint of sailors.

Until the end of the 20th century, Agios Nikolaos remained a village with a few thousand inhabitants. After 1960, partly due to tourism, it underwent rapid growth and developed into the lively city it is today. During the peak season, it is hard to believe that the population still hovers around 30,000 people.

Continue along the old road.”