Zaros
A Cretan village with a lake, gorge, and working water mills from the 16th century.
Zaros (Greek: Ζαρός) is a village and a former municipality in the Heraklion regional unit, Crete, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Faistos, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of 71.803 km2 (27.723 sq mi). Population 2,565 (2021).
Zaros village, at an altitude of 340 metres, is a village with a lake and gorge nearby. The village has a couple of hotels and it is 44 km from Heraklion at the southern foothills of Mount Psiloritis. The population produce olive oil, sultanas, vegetables and spring water. There are a couple of tavernas that serve trout.
Close by is Rouvas Gorge, which is part of the Psiloritis mountain range and is on the hiking route known as the E4 European Walking Path. Nearby Zaros village are traditional water mills which have been working since the 16th century, as well as archaeological sites and monasteries. Zaros is also famous for its bottled water derived from Lake Votomos.
Quick Facts
- Municipality
- Faistos
Lore & Background
In James Aldridge's 1944 novel of the escape of a Greek partisan and two Australian soldiers after the Battle of Crete The Sea Eagle, the three are befriended and shaved by a barber in Zaros (called "Saros" in the text). This literary moment places Zaros in the context of World War II history, specifically the aftermath of the Battle of Crete. The village's real-world geography—at an altitude of 340 metres, 44 km from Heraklion at the southern foothills of Mount Psiloritis—provides the setting for this fictional encounter. The novel's characters find refuge and a simple human kindness in the village, which today still offers hospitality through its couple of hotels and tavernas serving trout.
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