Hello,
We’re traveling as a family to Greece and will be in crete for 3.5 days before going to Athens. First time in Crete. We’ll be staying in Hania and can rent a car if needed. Traveling early July. Looking for recommendations - should we hike Samaria Gorge one day? And visit Elafonisia beach another day? Any other recommendations or tips for beating crowds in those areas? Thank you!
I am not an expert but we just spent a week in Crete, with three nights in Chania. I am also certain that travel in April is very different from travel in July - both weather and crowdwise.
I can tell you that we really enjoyed Balos beach and Preveli beach. Both of these beaches required a rigorous, heart-pumping hike up and down - about 30 minutes each way. We also visited Elafonisi beach, which underwhelmed us, but you could drive right up to it. On our Balos beach day, we had a stunning meal at Gramboussa Restaurant. I would also say that Rethymno was by far our favorite town, although Chania is very charming. You will definitely want a car.
Hi! I love that you are staying in this region of Crete—it’s my favorite. Don’t overlook the Akrotiri Peninsula (where the airport is). There are great local beaches including Seitan Limani as well as Agia Triada monastery which has good olive oil and is lovely and Gouverneto with a hike down to a lagoon. I went way out of my way to go to some of the famous beaches a summer ago and was disappointed—they were beautiful but sooooo crowded. Because of that I enjoyed the Akrotiri beaches more. Just my opinion!
Oh, and if you rent a car Anna Cars and Zorbas have been great local companies I’ve used over the past 20 years.
In July you are not going to beat the crowds at all, its high season.
Here is something to consider. Take the early morning KTEL bus from Chania to Sougia. AS I recall it departs around 5am. Sougia is a small village on the Libyan Sea. The bus trip is breathtaking as the route is winding as you cross over the White mountains.
This is actually one of the buses that go to the start of the Samaria Gorge. Stay on the bus and finish the route to Sougia. You will have some time to wander the village and perhaps take a dip in the sea. There are sea caves way over to the left from the village.
At 8 o'clock a ferry will arrive which will take you along tone of the most rugged shorelines you will ever see. You will arrive at Agia Roumeli around 9am. This is where the Sameria Gorge hike terminates. You can take a shuttle to the bottom entrance of the Gorge where you can explore at your leisure without having to do the steep top of the gorge hike. You can get to the iron gates and probably all the way to the last rest stop at Christos before you meet the fast hikers from the top.
Head back to Agia Roumeli and have a couple of hours on the beach there.
Take the ferry back to Sougia and the KTEL bus will be waiting for you to take you back to Chania.
I suggest this because many people report they are totally exhausted after the downward hike (its 16km) and pretty much have to spend most of the next day resting sore muscles.
You can also take the excursion that starts at Kissamos harbour. There is a excursion boat that takes you to Gramvossa which has a good beach, a shipwreck and a 14 th century Fortress to explore. The boat then takes you to Balos lagoon. It is a large shallow lagoon with lots of beach areas which means you can get away from the crowds. Having said that, this is a popular excursion so the boat likely will be pretty full. There will be crowds there. The excursion is worth it.
Chania old town will take you a full day to really explore the maze of back alleys and the Venetian harbour. If you choose to do what I have suggested you will not even need a car.
This can be done by bus excursion or the KTEL bus system.
Here is what you will see.
Chania 2022. https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72177720299646015
Chania Sougia and Plakias 2019
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157711266062752
There are some videos of the bus ride. Watch out for goats.
Ferry trip Libyan Sea https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157653434073393
Samaria Gorge from the bottom https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157670610409530
Crete Libyan Sea villages https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr54/albums/72157645487373222
Thank you so much @stanbr. We have one free day in Chania next month and I was definitely considering the Akrotiri peninsula, but I also like the Sougia idea. Now we have options.
