Monastery Gouvernetou was built in 1537 and is one of the oldest monasteries in Crete. It is located on the Cape of Chania, 19km away from Chania, at approximately 260m in altitude, at the entrance of Avlaki Gorge. It was probably built by the monks that lived in the Monastery Katholikou, which is located further down in the gorge. Its architecture is similar to a Venetian fortress, of parallelogram shape and towers with crenellations on each of its corners. The main church is dedicated to Panagia "Kyra ton Aggelon", while the chapel is dedicated to Agios Ioannis or Erimitis or Xenos, who led an ascetic life in a cave of the gorge and he seems to be the founder of the monastery. The monastery was repeatedly destroyed during the Ottoman Empire and the World War II by the Germans. As a result, all the records of the monastery have been destroyed. A stone paved downhill trail starts from the monastery that leads in the gorge, passes from the cave where Agios Ioannis lived and ends in the sea. The cave of Agios Ioannis (his feast day is on the 20th of September) and the adjacent preserved remains of the Monastery Katholikou with the bridge and the rest buildings indicate the activity that took place there many years ago. The Monastery Gouvernetou can be accessed through the monastery of Agia Triada, where there is a sign indicating the direction.
Opening Hours: Monday-Tuesday-Thursday 9:00-12:00 & 17:00-19:00, at the weekends 9:00-11:00 & 17:00-20:00