Sellia

Sellia is a mountain village on the Greek island of Crete just a few kilometres from the tourist resort Plakias by the sea. Once Sellia was the largest village in the area, the coastal town of Plakias did not exist until the 1960s. Due to the boom in tourism, the inhabitants of Sellia and the neighbouring town of Mirthios gradually built the town of Plakias by the sea.

Many former inhabitants of Sellia now live down by the sea and have become rich through tourism. The inhabitants of Sellia and Mirthios own the majority of the hotels and taverns in Plakias. The town of Sellia has fallen into oblivion. Apart from a few modern taverns and souvenir shops, not much has changed in the mountain village.

Sellia can be reached by foot from Plakias in a good hour. Of course you can also drive up one of the two narrow streets by rental car. After Sellia a road continues along the south coast of Crete towards the west (to Rodakino, Frangokastello and Chora Sfakia). The biggest road leads to the county town Rethymno with a turnoff to Mirthios.

There are some taverns in Sellia. The new tavern Merastri, run by nice young locals, receives a lot of praise from regular guests. The cuisine could be described as modern Greek. The good tavern Elia has been in the centre of the village for much longer. Both have a terrace with a beautiful view of the bay of Plakias (see picture below)..

Blick von Selia nach Plakias. Man sieht gut den wunderschönen,  langen Strand und die runde Bucht von Plakias

There is no bus connection from Plakias to Sellia. A taxi costs about 8 Euro (beginning of 2018). The only buses to and from Sellia are daily buses to and from Rethymno in the early morning and afternoon. These buses are only available during the week, not on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. The buses continue to Rodakino. Even further west (to Frangokastello and Chora Sfakia) it is no longer possible to take the bus from Plakias and Sellia. The connections were stopped 10 years ago due to lack of demand also in summer.

Sellia is from Plakias a worthwhile destination for a small hike. From many places in Plakias you can see the village at the top of the mountain. Almost all paths in this direction lead to Sellia. The path climbs steeply for about an hour and you have to climb more than 200 metres. For example, you can go to Sellia for lunch. However, the steep path in midsummer is of course not everyone's cup of tea at lunchtime.

Some houses in Sellia also rent rooms. There are also two shops with handicrafts in the centre of the village. There is also a cheese dairy in Sellia which is well known in the area. The cheese factory shop is only open in the morning during the week. The shop is located on the road towards Hora Sfakion about 100 metres from the centre. Most shops in Plakias and the surrounding area also sell Sellia cheese and yoghurt. Especially the fresh feta and the yoghurt as sheep's milk taste excellent to us. A worthwhile destination is also the church above the village Sellia (see picture above).