The Toplou Monastery is one of the most important and beautiful monasteries in Crete. The building itself looms imposingly over its surroundings with its 33-metre bell-tower in the rough, nearly desolate landscape. It makes an impression from afar, looking like a small fortress surrounded as it is by high walls, about 10 meters tall. It is the only one that has survived among the numerous monasteries, big and small, that were once scattered throughout the area of Sitia, all destroyed by wars and pirate raids.