Phenice

Phenice (or Phoenix) was a harbor on the southern coast of Crete facing southwest and northwest, mentioned in Acts 27:12 as the port where the crew of Paul's ship hoped to winter rather than at the inadequate harbor of Fair Havens. The majority decision to sail for Phenice against Paul's advice led directly to the catastrophic storm and eventual shipwreck at Malta. The harbor is generally identified with the modern Loutro on the southwestern Cretan coast, whose sheltered bay fits the description of facing "toward the southwest and northwest." The same word (Phoenicia) is used elsewhere for the coastal region of Syria and Lebanon.