Crete is not just an island — it is a civilisation. Ten days crossing the largest Greek island from east to west: Minoan palace ruins that predate ancient Greece, the dramatic 16km Samaria Gorge hike,...
Crete is not just an island — it is a civilisation. Ten days crossing the largest Greek island from east to west: Minoan palace ruins that predate ancient Greece, the dramatic 16km Samaria Gorge hike, the pink sand of Elafonissi, the Venetian harbourfront of Chania, and a culinary tradition so distinctive it is considered a world treasure. Petros, our Cretan botanist guide, has walked every path twice.
Europe's oldest city with a specialist archaeologist narrating 4,000 years of history
Europe's longest gorge hike through towering cliffs to the Libyan Sea
Shallow turquoise lagoon with rose-tinted sand at Crete's southwestern tip
Cold-press tasting and lunch at a fourth-generation Cretan olive farm
Labyrinthine old town, lighthouse, and the most beautiful harbour in Greece
Estate tasting of indigenous Liatiko and Vidiano varieties, plus Cretan raki ceremony
💶 Pricing Note: All prices quoted in Euro (€). The price shown is per person based on twin/double share. Single supplement available on request. No hidden fees — all inclusions listed on the Inclusions tab.
Click any day to expand the full programme. B = Breakfast · L = Lunch · D = Dinner included.
📍 Heraklion
Arrive at Heraklion Airport. Transfer to your hotel in the old city. Evening walk along the Venetian harbour walls. Welcome dinner at a Cretan meze restaurant with introductions and a raki toast.
📍 Heraklion
Morning visit to Knossos — the Palace of Minos and the heart of Europe's oldest advanced civilisation. Guided by a specialist archaeologist. Visit the Heraklion Archaeological Museum (the finest Minoan collection on earth). Lunch at a traditional Cretan kafeneion.
📍 East Crete
Drive to the windmill-dotted Lassithi Plateau. Boat to the haunting Venetian island fortress of Spinalonga — once Europe's last active leper colony, made famous by The Island. Cretan village dinner.
📍 Central Crete
Morning at a traditional olive farm — see the trees, taste the oil, meet the family. Drive to Rethymno — the most intact Venetian old town in Crete. Afternoon free to explore the fortress and alleyways. Lunch included.
📍 Omalos → Agia Roumeli
The centrepiece of the tour. 16km descent through Europe's longest gorge: towering limestone walls, wild goat sightings, and ancient chapels. Emerge at the Libyan Sea village of Agia Roumeli. Boat along the coast for transfer back.
📍 Southwest Crete
Half-day at Elafonissi — the famous pink-sand lagoon beach. Afternoon free for swimming, reading, or the coastal path walk. Evening in Chania Old Town, dinner on the Venetian harbour.
📍 Chania
Morning walking tour of Chania: the covered market, Etz Hayyim synagogue, Byzantine museum, and maritime museum. Guided lunch through the covered food market. Afternoon free. Optional sunset cruise.
📍 Chania Region
Morning wine tasting at a biodynamic estate. Afternoon traditional cooking class with a Cretan grandmother — dakos, lamb stifado, baklava. Farewell dinner with the whole group.
📍 Chania Region
Free morning for a last swim, souvenir shopping, or a lakeside coffee in the old town. Farewell walk through Chania. Transfer to Chania Airport.
📍 Chania
Transfer to Chania Airport (CHQ). Tour ends.
Photography from GreceTour guests and destinations. Each image is taken in the region covered by this tour.
"Samaria was the hardest and most rewarding thing I've ever done on holiday. Petros knew every plant and bird by name and made the whole island feel like a living organism. We left completely changed."
"Elafonissi alone made the trip. But Knossos with a proper archaeologist, the cooking class with the grandmother, the raki ceremonies — every single day was layered with real experience. Exceptional."
"I was worried the gorge hike might be too much for me at 58. Petros was patient, encouraging, and brilliant. I made it all the way and it was the proudest moment of the whole trip. Do it."
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