The village was formerly called Kastellos, due to the castle built by the Knights on a high rock outside the settlement. In 1948 it was decided that it should receive a Greek name, so it was renamed Kritinia. The Kritinia castle, or Kastellos, overhangs on a rock above the sea. The first written mention of it as Castel Nuovo dates back to 1480. Inside it there are the remains of the buildings where the guard resided and the ruins of the catholic church of Hagios Pavlos (Saint Paul).
It is worth making a stop at the square of Kritinia, in the small coffee house situated under the shade of the age-long plane tree. The square is adorned with a marble drinking fountain, constructed by the Italians in 1914. A few meters away stands the small church of Saint John, featuring wall paintings from the 16th century.