One of the largest and most important monasteries of Crete, it is located 10km east of Sitia and 6km north of Palaikastro in the province of Sitia. The original name of the monastery is “Panagia i Akrotiriani” as it appears from official documents and seals of the 15th or 16th century.

With the name “Toplou” it is mentioned for the first time in a Turkish document of 1673. There have been many versions about the origin of the name of the Toplou monastery, with the most prevailing opinion being that it comes from the Turkish word Top (=cannon) because of a small cannon that existed there from the Venetian period and which not only protected the monastery from pirates but also alerted the surrounding villages if it was in danger.

But the most plausible version among the rest is that it comes from the syncopation of the word plou(sio) as the monastery had and still has huge real estate (estate, vineyards, olive groves).

It is characteristic that even today when they refer to the monastery they address it with the name “The Great Monastery”. In the modern facilities of the Monastery, the visitor can taste and buy the famous organic olive oil and wine.