Elounda is a village in Greece in the eastern part of the island of Crete, in the region of Lasithi, 12 km from Agios Nikolaos. In ancient times, the ancient Greek and then Roman port of Olus existed on this site. After an earthquake (II century AD), part of the land, together with Olus, went under water, resulting in the formation of the bay and peninsula of Spinalonga, located opposite Elounda.

Elounda and its surrounding area were practically deserted until the middle of the 15th century due to constant pirate raids. Then the Venetians discovered salt mining here and the area began to develop rapidly. The Venetians, in order to protect such an economically important area from pirates and Turks, decided to separate part of the peninsula and create the island of Spinalonga and build a fortress on it.

It has now evolved from a fishing village into a fashionable resort.