You can combine the excursion to Knossos Palace with CretAquarium!

Details and Prices

The archaeological site of Knossos (Knosós GR: Κνωσός) is sited 5 km southeast of the city of Iraklion. There is evidence that this location was inhabited during the neolithic times (6000 B.C.) . On the ruins of the neolithic settlement was built the first Minoan palace (1900 B.C.) where the dynasty of Minos ruled. This was destroyed in 1700 B.C and a new palace built in its place. The palace covered an area of 22,000sq.m, it was multi- storeyed and had an intricate plan. Due to this fact the Palace is connected with thrilling legends, such as the myth of the Labyrinth with the Minotaur. Between 1.700-1.450 BC, the Minoan civilisation was at its peak and Knossos was the most important city-state. During these years the city was destroyed twice by earthquakes (1.600 BC, 1.450 BC) and rebuilted. The city of Knossos had 100.000 citizens and it continued to be an important city-state until the early Byzantine period.

The essense of Crete in one unique journey.

Learn the course of olive oil from its production until the final products that we taste and use in our everyday life. Starting from the most ancient olive tree in the world (more than 3000 years old), we visit an olive oil mill discovering how the fruit is becoming the so valuable to our health oil. Then a stop to a local producer to perceive how handmade olive oil care products are created.

Wine, accompanies the most joyful moments of our life, a product first produced in Greece 6500 years ago is equally important to us. A visit to a local winery and wine tasting couldn’t be missing from this journey.

Unravel the secrets and the characteristics of cretan wine first hand.

All day hiking!

The gorge of Samaria is the biggest, most imposing and beautiful gorge in Chania and in Europe, and that is why it is internationally renown and mostly visited, since more than 300000 people have the opportunity to cross it each year. It has a wonderful landscape with rare geo-morphological formations. It is a unique biotope with particular richness in fauna and flora. It has a rich mythology as well, that goes back to pre-historical years and a tumultuous history during the difficult years of Crete. It was proclaimed National Park of the White Mountains of Crete in 1962, date at which two or three Sfakian families still lived in the village of Samaria, in the middle of the gorge, who were mainly busy with cattle-breeding and woodcutting. The surface covered at the time was 48.500 sq.m., whereas the expansion of the Park is promoted today on 250.000 sq.m. that will include the remarkable portion of the White Mountains. The length of the passage to the limits of the park is 12,800 km and the distance to the coast of Agia Roumeli is then another 3,200 km. Its crossing at a good pace can be done in five or fewer hours, but it is preferable not to walk less than 6 to 8 hours in order to enjoy its incomparable beauties. The gorge can usually be visited from the beginning of May till the end of October, unless there are bad weather conditions. There are guardhouses of the State’s Service of the Park (Forest Inspection Service) at the beginning of the gorge (in the village of Samaria) and at its end. A doctor is also available to serve the visitors of the gorge, as well as a helicopter airport in Agia Roumeli.

Ideal for cruise ship!

Details and Prices

Stavros is a seaside resort located 17 km northeast of Chania, at the northest edge of Akrotiri peninsula. There are two beaches in Stavros. The main beach with Blue Flag, white sand and turquoise water is located at the foot of the mountain, where many scenes of the known film “Zorbas the Greek” (1964) were filmed, with Anthony Quinn dancing the famous sirtaki of Alexis Zorbas. The beach is located in a bay, absolutely protected from the winds. It constitutes an ideal choice for the windy days in Chania. The beach is well organized including sunbeds, umbrellas, showers, lifeguard, and taverns in a short distance. Near the beach there is a small livid local port. The second beach of Stavros (Pachia Ammos) is located 300m west of the central beach and includes thick sand.

Approximate time 2-4h

Ideal for cruise ship! 

Of course if you want to explore the highest mountains you have to walk for lots of hours and follow the trails.... Our trip doesn't include all this walking or hiking!!!

We start from your hotel or yacht at the arranged time and we drive for 32km through the gorge of Therisso (we have a 5-minute stop for photos) and we arrive at Therisso village.We continue our small excursion driving to Meskla village, almost 11km of winding road and low speed but with amazing view!.Very close to the village is the Botanical park and gardens of Crete, were you can have a walk around the paths of the park.There are two paths, the small one about 45-60 minutes of  walking and the bigger one about 90 minutes.After your walk you can taste some traditional Cretan food at the gardens. The exploration finishes after we visit the lake of Agia about 10km further down on our way to the town. There you can have a small walk around the lake and get a drink at the two coffee shops.