This week’s dream: an unspoiled fishing port

The charming little fishing port of Elounda has survived the explosion of tourism on Crete unscathed, says Linda Cookson in the Independent. A few luxury hotels have sprung up in nearby bays, but they don't disturb the "breathtaking" views from the town, inland to majestic Mount Oxa or out across the Gulf of Korfos, a "silken sweep of deepest turquoise" bordered by rugged peninsulas.

And while there are some new bars with garish neon signs on the main square, the languid rhythms of local life go on unchanged around them. Down by the harbour the boats still bob, fishermen "still play with their worry beads" and "skinny tabby cats" scavenge for scraps when the catch comes in.

There is a "curiously North African feel" to the place, with its low buildings, palm trees and dusty streets. A string of colourful bars and restaurants line the waterfront. At the oldest of these, Maritsas, "the prices are still given in drachmas rather than euros, the air is thick with cigarette smoke and the backgammon boards are in permanent use".

Behind them, tiny streets wind up the mountainside, the town dissolving into sleepy hamlets along the way. Among the dazzling white, sunbaked houses, the occasional verandah appears like an "oasis", overflowing with "geraniums, pink bougainvillea and potted chilli plants".

Successive occupiers - the Minoan, Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires - have all left their mark here. Near Elounda are two of the most important archaeological sites on Crete: the ancient city of Olous and the huge Venetian fort on the island of Spinalonga. Olous was once one of the most powerful trading centres on the island, home to 40,000 people; today its ruins sleep beneath clear, shallow waters just off the coast, easily accessible to snorkelers and divers.

Sovereign Luxury Holidays (0870-200 6677) offers seven nights in Elounda from £1,530pp incl. flights. ·