Leaving Chania we head east and follow the road to the airport. After 9 kilometers one reaches the village of Aroni.
It is a lovely village built in the southern part of the Akrotiri peninsula and has an altitude of 160 m. According to the 2011 census, Aroni had 350 residents.
The village was built in the Venetian period. Then the Venetians divided Akrotiri into 3 sections and in each section built a tower to install the nobles with their guards. These rulers were Aronis, Pazinos and Mouzouras who, after settling in their towers, their first concern was to gather scattered inhabitants from all over Akrotiri near their towers so that they could have control over them and use them in chores. The village is named by the Venetian lord named Aronis who settled here.
At that time the first houses of the village were also built, many of which are still preserved today.
In the past years Aroni had 5 neighborhoods but today it has pretty much become one as there is a lot of construction going on . This is due to the fact that many foreigners moved to the village and bought properties. Others renovated houses and others,like the locals, built new ones. So today we see in this corner of Akrotiri a beautiful, clean, and relatively large village listening to the name Aroni.
It has good streets (until 1897 they were paved with stones - slabs), beautiful houses and some shops as well.
The Metropolitan Temple dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is impressive in the village. It was built in 1960-1965 on another smaller temple that the Turks had destroyed twice.
The church of Agios Spyridon is hidden in a catacomb near the village.
In Aroni we see a beautiful square created by the Venetians and named after the "Rotia Rotunda", i.e. the Circular Square.
The village is a very short drive from the Chania international airport. It is a lively, working village and offers all sorts of amenities like cafes, Super Market, butcher, restaurants, gas station etc.
As the village benefits from its location, it enjoys breathtaking mountain and sea views stretching from the bay of Souda all the way to the majestic White Mountains.
It is also a very short 10 minute's drive from the lovely beaches in the area of Marathi.
