The island of Kythira has been the crossroads of cultures for the people of the Mediterranean. Kythira has been inhabited since the Neolithic era. Throughout the years, Minoans, Phoenicians, Mycenaeans, Dorians, Argives, Spartans, Athenians, Franks, Venetians, Arabs, French and British all came to the island, leaving behind their historical and cultural mark - prehistoric fossils, ancient temples, Venetian fortresses, Byzantine churches, English buildings all proof of the island’s many and various inhabitants through the years. The incomparable beauty of its natural landscape, is characterized by lush vegetation, valleys with running waters, laurels, reeds, olives, thyme, stone bridges, watermills, trails and beaches with crystal clear water.