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Crete, an exquisite island, is located between Europe, Asia and Africa, and in the north, is it surrounded by the Cretan Sea and in the south, by the Libyan Sea. It has become known as one of the most alluring tourist destinations in Europe. This is attributed to its geographical location, extraordinary flora and fauna, a unique natural phenomenon, such as the Gorge of Samaria, and its rich historical monuments. The archaeological sites in Crete (Knossos palace) are worldwide known and can be visited along with the famous Byzantine monuments. As it is understood, such churches and their artifacts mainly appeal to visitors with particular religious interests. At the same time, for the modern tourist who is interested beyond the usual attractions, there are also developed traditional settlements, the Sustainable tourism and Ecotourism, traditional cultural events and feasts, as well as exhibitions of popular art. Regarding the economy, over the last decade, an important growth in agriculture (the climate encourages a lot of bio‐cultures), industry and finally tourism has taken place. However, a more general growth is also to be seen in other economic sectors (manufacture, trade etc.) that benefit from the increase in the number of consumers annually, due to the surge in tourism. This radiograph of the island of Crete demonstrates all the natural and cultural elements that are impressive and rare within one area, and which, if exploited correctly, may create other tourist models based on natural and cultural resources.

Ecotourism is proposed as an alternative, to mass tourism, avenue of tourist growth is proposed for Crete. Ecotourism will contribute to the development of the region, through the exploitation of its natural beauty, while preserving the island's natural environment. This paper is about upgrading the quality of and protecting the natural environment of the region, as Crete is an island full of beauties and astonishing physical divergence that will amaze its visitors. Our research aim was to select the appropriate form of ecotourism that will lead to the tourist and social upgrade of Crete while being friendly to the environment.