The imposing fortress rock of Spinalonga, at the northern end of the sheltered bay protected by ''big Spinalonga'', is a prime target of boat trips from Agios Nikolaos, Plaka, and above all Elounda. The latter is certainly the most convenient point of Embarkation, with boats making the trip every half hour from 09am and last returns 6pm., most give you an hour on the island, though you can return on a later boat if you prefer. 

Founded by the Venetians in 1579 to defend the approach to the gulf and the sheltered anchorages in the bay, the fortress with its battlements, guard towers and seemingly impregnable walls, bears all the hallmarks of the Italian republic's military architecture.Like their other island fortresses, it proved impregnable and was only handed over to the Turks by treaty in 1715, some fifty years after the rest of Crete had surrendered.The infamous part the islands' history is much more recent, however. For the first fifty years of the last century Spinalonga was a leper colony, the last of Europe. Lepers were sent as outcasts- long after drugs to control their condition had rendered such measures entirely unnecessary -to a colony that was primitive in the extreme and administered almost as if it were a detention camp (as described in The Island, a bestselling novel widely available in bookshops locally). It's jail was frequently used for lepers who dared complain about their living conditions.

Even today, if you can escape the visitors, there's an unnerving sense of isolation when the boat leaves you here, at a jetty from which a long tunnel leads up into the fortified centre.There are still just two easily sealed entrances: this tunnel, and a jetty on the seaward side( which you see if you approach from Agios Nikolaos) which leads up to the old castle gate with its lion of St Mark.Around the base of the castle a real town grew up -Turkish buildings mostly, adapted by the lepers using whatever materials they could find.Although everything is in decay, you can still pick up out a row of stores and some houses which must once have been quite grand.A couple have been restored to make a small museum, with photos and artefacts outlining the island''s history.

If you travel to Elounda by car, you can find a parking spot near the harbor, however, it tends to get crowded in summer (to avoid crowds, the earlier you arrive, the better). The price of the ticket from Elounda (at the time of writing August 2022) is €12 per person.