The town of Ierapetra is located on the southeast coast of Crete, along the beach of Ierapetra Bay. It lies south of Agios Nikolaos and southwest of Sitia and is an important regional centre. With its 16,139 inhabitants (in 2011) it is the most populous town in the regional unit of Lasithi, and the fourth town of Crete.
The area's main economic activities are agriculture in the winter and tourism in the summer. The agricultural production can be divided into two main parts. Whereas olive oil has been produced all over the municipality at least since Minoan times, for the last thirty years large quantities of fruit and vegetables have also been exported.
Discovering the nature of Ierapetra you will have the chance to visit its marvelous mountains and arrange your own outing to conquer them. During the summer, people who adore the sea can go for sailing, scuba-diving, sea-sports and fishing. Ierapetra is famous for its tasty cuisine which is based on olive-oil. Ierapetra is a place of vivid and intense nightlife, especially during the spring and summer months.
Mostly gathered in the old city, but also scattered in the new and outside the city, there are various cafes, bars and clubs that you should look for and will keep you up till the dawn, without your noticing.
Ierapetra was chosen among 500 South European destinations by the QualityCoast International Certification Program of EUCC as one of the 50 most attractive tourist destinations for visitors interested in cultural heritage, environment and sustainability. .[21] In 2012 Ierapetra was one of the only three destinations in Greece that won the Gold QualityCoast award, ranking 2nd among the TOP 100 chosen European destinations.