Crete Travel Question

Old Apr 28th, 2010, 06:58 PM
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Crete Travel Question

My fiance and I are doing our Honneymoon in Greece. The first leg of our trip will be in Crete. We fly into Crete on May 25th and will have a car for the 4 days we will be in Crete. We are staying at the Amos Hotel in Chania on the west side of the Island. Our ferry out on the 29th leaves Heraklion at 945AM. Right now we are planning on staying in Chania the night before and just getting up really early that morning and driving to Heraklion. How long will this drive be? Do you recommend doing it this way, or heading to Heraklion the day before and staying overnight closer to where our ferry departs? Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!
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Old Apr 28th, 2010, 07:19 PM
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It's 138 Km = 93 miles... on a pretty good modern road. Of course you will encounter some rush-hour traffic when you get to Heraklion. And personally, having driven into/out of Heraklion at least 4 times, have gotten lost each time; 1-way streets, confusing. FORCE your rental car people to mark the best route into Heraklion CAREFULLY on a DETAILED street map.

I think you can do it if you buy your tickets beforehand at any Chania ticket agency, and leave by 6 am. Your agency usually will let you simply leave your car in the dock parking lot with the keys under the floor mat.
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Old Apr 28th, 2010, 09:05 PM
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Actually the drive takes about just over 2 hours from Chania to Heraklion but Jan is correct it is a good highway.
We plan a similar trip just a day or two behind you but we will head to Heraklion the night before in order to arrive about 2 o'clock so we can visit Knossos after all the cruise ship people leave.
We love Chania, great choice here are some pictures.
http://travel.webshots.com/album/571195659jPcKjK
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Old Apr 29th, 2010, 05:17 AM
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stanbr you are right about the amount of time for the drive... I was just trying to allow for "gaper delays" (the scenery on part of that coastal road is so lovely), and also leave some slack for traffic in Heraklion & missed turns.
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Old Apr 29th, 2010, 12:18 PM
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Thank you everyone for your quick responses. I think we are going to drive to Heraklion the day before just to play it safe. Any suggestions on Hotels in Heraklion? It does not need to be five star since we will only be there for one night, but if you have any recommendations please let me know.
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Old Apr 29th, 2010, 12:28 PM
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Two people I know well from another forum recommend Hotel Olympic. They live in Greece and go to Crete periodically. The more upscale boutique hotel in Heraklion is Hotel Lato. And there are a ton of bad hotels... all overpriced.
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Old Apr 29th, 2010, 12:35 PM
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Be very careful with your car rental. Note each and every scratch when you first pick it up and make sure they are marked.
We just rented in Athens (National Car Rental through Economy Car Rentals) and they charged us over $300.00 for "new" scratches on a car that was covered with scratches to begin with.
The man from the rental had not gone over the car with us when we picked it up, just gave us the paper work and said, "Damages are marked". When we returned it however, they went over it with a fine tooth comb and somehow found "new scratches".
I've been back and forth fighting it since we returned from Greece Sunday night.
Luckily, I called my visa company today and they are going to remove the charges.
Have a great time in Greece!!!!!!!!
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Old Apr 29th, 2010, 05:31 PM
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In Crete I always believe in renting from LOCAL car agencies... they meet or beat the biggie agencies, and are dependent on repeat business. In May I am renting for the THIRD time from Autoway, which is the leading Crete-own car rental agency on the island. HQ in Rethymnon but will deliver and pick up from Chania , Rethymnon, Heraklion, port or airport no extra charge. Every time, I compare with both other Crete agencies and with Biggies like budget, economycar etc and Autoway equals each time. And NEVER a problem with Fake Damages as above.
Renting in Athens, another question, plenty of chances to go wrong --- however a man I trust, a Greek-American who goes to Greece 2-3 x a year for many years, rents from Budget, but not budget.us or even budget.gr, but a special link called http://www.budget-athens.gr/ ... it is the Athens branch of budget... and you get the best deals there. JohnnieB has been dealing with them for years with never a problem.
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Old Apr 29th, 2010, 06:01 PM
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We stayed at the Amos and then drove to ferry in morning. We made good time getting there but problem was we didn't have good directions and got lost. Once we found it, there was no place to return car to so scurried around to figure that out. (Left in in parking lot with keys under seat--worried for weeks that it got stolen) Even though you are going the day before, I'd be sure to get good directions and know the procedure for returning the car.
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Old Apr 30th, 2010, 02:54 AM
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We stayed at the Amos also and took the bus to Heraklion the day before just so we can visit Knossos and museum. You'll love Amos and its excellent staff. Have a great time!! In Heraklion, we stayed at the Marin Dream Hotel which is very, very convenient to the docks for your morning ferry. The website is www.marinhotel.gr. Not a 5 star but a very nice, clean hotel. Congratulations!!!
This year, we'll be staying in Rethymno and driving to the dock with a rental car the morning of our ferry to Santorini. I, too, am concerned about where to drop off and getting exact directions once in Heraklion. I'll make sure that the rental agency highlights the best route. Either that or I may turn in the car in Rethymno and take the early morning bus which drops off right by the docks.
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Old Apr 30th, 2010, 04:50 AM
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As previously mentioned Marin Dream Hotel and Lato Boutique Hotel are within a walking distance to Heraklion port, quite expensive though.
You can also try Lena Hotel (cheaper with ok facilities) and Sofia Hotel (next to the airport) .
A quick tip, rent a car is a must as you have the flexibility to drive along at your own and avoid the mad taxi drivers of the island. We use most Just Rental Center http://www.rental-center-crete.com for our car rental, with new cars and all inclusive package always included... plus they deliver and collect all over Crete, which is very convenient for us.
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Old Dec 12th, 2010, 08:45 AM
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ttt
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