The Lasithi Plateau is a high, flat bowl in the Dikti mountains of eastern Crete, a plain of roughly eight hundred metres above the sea, ringed by limestone peaks that can hold snow into spring. It is one of the few places on the island where the land is level enough to farm in big fields, and for generations it has been famous for potatoes, apples and pears. The plateau is also known for its windmills: once there were thousands of them, white-sailed pumps that lifted groundwater for irrigation, and a number still stand, though many sit idle now.
Getting here is part of the point. From the north coast, around Mália and the busy resort strip, the road climbs in long, steady bends into the mountains, past villages, olive groves and then bare, rocky slopes, before reaching a rim where the plateau suddenly spreads out beneath you. The surface is generally decent, though patched, and the corners are fun at a moderate pace. Sheep and goats can appear in the road, and the occasional tour bus takes the full width on tight bends, so stay alert and keep to your side.
Once on the plateau, the road circles the edge past small villages, and the pace slows. The nearest towns of any size are Mália and Ágios Nikólaos on the coast, so if you need fuel, fill up before you climb rather than hoping for a pump up here. Tavernas in the plateau villages serve simple Cretan food: grilled meat, local cheese, wild greens, and raki after the meal if the host insists. Mountain weather is cooler than the coast by several degrees, and cloud can settle on the rim, so bring a layer.
The plateau is bound up with Cretan myth too. Nearby, the Diktaean Cave is said to be where Zeus was born and hidden from his father, and the cave attracts visitors in numbers, many walking up the steep path from the car park. Whatever you believe, it adds a layer of story to what is already a striking landscape. Spring brings blossom and green fields, autumn brings harvest, and the long evening light on the rim is memorable.