Chania

Old Jun 23rd, 2017, 03:59 PM
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Chania

My husband and I will have 5 nights and 4 full days in Chania. We will arrive at 10PM the first night and plan on a leisure time in the town the following day. I am trying to optimize my time the next 3 days and need help on a schedule. We want to hike the Samaria Gorge, have some beach and swim time, and do some exploring. We do not mind renting a car a day or 2. I have read that if hiking the gorge, it may be a good idea to sign up for the bus to and from tour. Any advice on a daily schedule and sequence would be most appreciated!
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Old Jun 23rd, 2017, 07:06 PM
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Chania is delightful!

Some of the places you might want to see are closed for parts / all of a day or two each week, so you might want to check hours before finalizing your plan. And Chania can be overrun by tourists on days when cruise ships come near; I don't believe that happens every day (thank goodness!) but you might want to check cruise ship schedules.

Enjoy!
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Old Jun 24th, 2017, 03:04 AM
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You should definitely visit Elafonisi beach and Balos beach. Especially the first one, it has been awarded many times as the bedt beach in the World.

And if you are a foodie, don't miss Ntounias. It's a restaurant in Drakona village about 30' from Chania, which serves probably the best food in West Crete. All its products are made by the family (meats, vegetables, cheeses, olive oil, wine) and cooked in the old way (wood oven etc). Cretan cuisine is the best regional cuisine in the Greek World, and this is a great place to taste it.
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Old Jun 24th, 2017, 07:04 AM
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Just in case you are contemplating usign your car for teh Sameria Gorge hike I can tell you that is not a good idea. Take the bus. You can do it yourself with the KTEL public bus or you can sign up with any travel agent for the excursion.

The bus will take you to the top of the Gorge, you will hike down the gorge 16 km to Agia Roumeli where you will take a ferry (if you DIY you will have to purchase ferry ticket in Ag Roumeli) The ferry can take you to Sougia where you will catch the KTEL bus back to Chania or to Chora Sfakion where there is also a bus. Most people choose to do Chora Sfakion but I like the Sougia route better. less crowded.

If you had taken your car to the top of the gorge you would have to take the early morning bus the next day to retrieve it.
Here is what Chania is like.
Chania http://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr5...7632117917828/
Chania May 2016 https://www.flickr.com/photos/stanbr...57671465596275
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Old Jun 24th, 2017, 07:10 AM
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Roadster, a reminder note - Just because someone has posted previous threads, don't think that all of us regulars remember key details -- each time you have a new question, do share WHEN you are going, as well as length of stay. Advice about activities like gorge-hiking can vary Greatly, depending on whether you plan it for Mid-July( !!) or for Mid-Sept, the actual time... which I found by checking your past 2 threads. Luckily stanbr has better memory, younger brain.
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Old Jun 24th, 2017, 09:02 PM
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A couple of other ideas for you....
A drive via Vrysses, through the hills, past the White Mountains to Hora Sfakia & on the little ferry to Loutro for the day. Very beautiful scenery, Loutro is a picture postcard village, albeit very busy now, a very pretty short boat trip along the south coast.

The 3 monasteries on Akrotiri (the headland to the north of Chania) - stop at Agia Triada to look around this lovely place then drive on the small hilly interesting road to Gouverneto & walk (40 mins) down to Katholiko. Follow this by 1 of the lovely beaches at Kalathas, Tersanas, or Marathi.

Do your research into the Samaria Gorge, many people just put it on their 'to do' list without much knowledge, for some a walk down Imbros gorge could be a better option. Samaria is really only for regular, fit hikers with strong knees (yes, lots of other people do do it & some regret it!) & you will probably want to schedule a quiet day the next day. Go by public transport or a tour book in Chania, much easier than with a car, 1st bus is currently at 06:15

Consider a drive to ancient Aptera in Apokoronas, just 15mins out of Chania & perhaps a drive round the local countryside, with many traditional tiny villages, or swimming in Kiani Akti just before Kalyves, for instance.

There are decent beaches at Chrissi Akti & Agoii Apostoli immediately to the West of Chania city. Of course, Elafonisi & Balos are justly famous, but you need to plan your journey carefully- if you are going to drive (Balos is down a dirt track for which your hire car won't be insured) try to arrive early in the morning so you can leave by midday when they get very busy. There is a very limited bus service to both, for Balos to Kissamos port where you can get a boat trip
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Old Jun 25th, 2017, 03:31 AM
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jwugg's advice is excellent! About a gorge walk -- some people are dead set on Samaria, just because it's the most famous (and has a lot of companies doing tours) ... while Imbros can be a fab experience, can be done in 4 hours instead of 8, and not require a recovery day for a 60 year old.

You can either drive or -- these days -- book a small-group tour that take care of transport before/after. If you rent a car, it's an attractive drive down thru Vrisses, go thru Imbros village, entry is about 1 km on. Halfway down, a nice grove where u can have a picnic or a snack. When we went in May, the aroma from thyme bushes made me feel like a leg o' lamb! In lower stretch, just as in Samaria, it gets VERY narrow, one particular spot, if I were Magic Johnson w those loooong arms I could have touched each side. At gorge end, a little kiosk sells cold drinks, then it's about 1 km walk down a road to a beach cafe where taxis are lined up, & you take one back up, on the rim-road (26 switchbacks!) to your car.
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Old Jun 25th, 2017, 03:33 AM
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jwugg's advice is excellent! About a gorge walk -- some people are dead set on Samaria, just because it's the most famous (and has a lot of companies doing tours) ... while Imbros can be a fab experience, can be done in 4 hours instead of 8, and not require a recovery day for a 60 year old.

You can either drive or -- these days -- book a small-group tour that take care of transport before/after. If you rent a car, it's an attractive drive down thru Vrisses, go thru Imbros village, entry is about 1 km on. Halfway down, a nice grove where u can have a picnic or a snack. When we went in May, the aroma from thyme bushes made me feel like a leg o' lamb! In lower stretch, just as in Samaria, it gets VERY narrow, one particular spot, if I were Magic Johnson w those loooong arms I could have touched each side. At gorge end, a little kiosk sells cold drinks, then it's about 1 km walk down a road to a beach cafe where taxis are lined up, & you take one back up, on the rim-road (26 switchbacks!) to your car.
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Old Jun 25th, 2017, 03:34 AM
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sorry about duplicate ... my computer is wonky today.
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Old Jun 25th, 2017, 04:05 AM
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I agree with all the posters here regarding the Samaria gorge. Take the bus. The public bus works just fine and is inexpensive. Consider if you are in good enough shape. It is downhill on rock for much of the hike. You must wear strong hiking shoes in my opinion. I did not and after the first mile, my toes were bleeding from being pushed against my shoes due to the downhill nature.

I would however, recommend a car for taking other drives to the beaches. I think we enjoyed driving around the countryside more than anything else in Chania. We felt we were on an adventure and found many interesting sites including an old monastery that was very charming. The goats were fun to discover everywhere.

Enjoy!!!!
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Old Jun 25th, 2017, 04:09 AM
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The drives in the countryside were not of course in Chania but on the island of Crete.
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Old Jun 25th, 2017, 01:03 PM
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Thanks for all of the advice! I will dwell on this and come up with a plan. We will be there in mid-September, which I think will be a great time to do any of the things on our list.
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