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Creating tailor-made trips
since 2012!
Crete is the largest Greek island and almost a small country of its own. It has Minoan palaces, Venetian harbor towns, high mountains, deep gorges, pink-sand beaches and some of the best food in Greece. Our Crete vacation packages help you choose where to go on an island too big to see in one trip.
Most travelers split their time between the west, around Chania, and the center or east, around Heraklion, Agios Nikolaos and Elounda. See our trips for Chania, Heraklion and Agios Nikolaos, or our wider Crete trip below. Every itinerary can change to fit your dates, budget and pace. Browse all our Greece vacation packages.
White villages on the rim of a flooded volcano, sunsets over the caldera, wine grown in volcanic soil. Our Santorini vacation packages handle everything, from the caldera hotel to the ferry to your next island.
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Most trips to Greece start in Athens, and it deserves more than one night. The Acropolis above the city, old streets made for walking, dinner that runs late. Our Athens vacation packages are planned by people who live here.
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The first capital of modern Greece still looks the part, with neoclassical mansions, a fortress on the cliff and a tiny castle in the bay. Our Nafplio vacation packages use it as a base for the ancient Peloponnese.
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Walk through the center of the Minoan world near Heraklion.
Stroll the Venetian waterfront of Crete's prettiest town.
Take the boat to the turquoise lagoon on the northwest tip of the island.
Walk one of the longest gorges in Europe, down to the Libyan Sea.
Take a boat to the Venetian island fortress in the east.
Taste dakos, olive oil, cheese and raki in the villages.
Wade across the shallow lagoon to the islet with pink tinted sand in the southwest.
End the day on the long sandy beach of the far west coast, facing open sea.
Rent a pedal boat on the island's only freshwater lake, below the White Mountains.
Find calm, clear water in a sheltered bay on the east coast near Agios Nikolaos.
See the finest Minoan finds in the Archaeological Museum, then walk the Venetian walls.
Have lunch in a shepherds' village high in the White Mountains.
Crete has the longest season in Greece. It sits far to the south, so the sea stays warm enough to swim from late May into early November, and the island is big enough that there is always somewhere quiet, even in August.
Spring (April and May): Wildflowers, green hills and days in the 70s°F. Ideal for Knossos and the old towns, and the Samaria Gorge usually opens in May once the winter water has gone down.
Early summer (June): Long days, warm sea and every boat to Balos running. One of the best months for a first visit.
High summer (July and August): Hot, often near 90°F, with the meltemi wind cooling the north coast. The busiest weeks, so book early and see the ruins in the morning.
Autumn (September and October): Warm sea, harvest season in the villages and fewer people on the beaches. September and early October are the sweet spot.
Winter (November to March): Mild in the cities, with snow on the mountains and many beach hotels closed. Heraklion and Chania stay lively all year.
Crete is the largest Greek island, in the Mediterranean about 100 miles south of mainland Greece. It is roughly 160 miles long and a short flight from Athens, with airports in Heraklion and Chania.
Yes. Crete has been part of Greece since 1913 and is the country’s largest and most populous island, with its own strong identity, dialect and music.
The Minoans, Europe’s earliest advanced civilization, who built the palaces of Knossos, Phaistos and Malia between about 2000 and 1450 BC. Their frescoes and pottery fill the Heraklion Archaeological Museum.
Yes. Crete packs Minoan palaces, Venetian towns, gorges, mountain villages and some of the best beaches in Greece into one island, and its food alone is reason enough to go.
At least five nights, and a week or more is better. Crete is big, and the drive from Chania to Agios Nikolaos takes about three hours, so we usually split your stay between two bases.
By air or by sea. Flights from Athens to Chania or Heraklion take about 50 minutes, and overnight ferries from Piraeus arrive in the morning.
Chania suits most first visits, with its Venetian harbor and the best west coast beaches nearby. Rethymno is a quieter old town in the middle, and the Elounda area in the east has many of the island’s luxury resorts.
Our packages that include Crete start at around €2,500 per person. The price depends on the season, your hotels, how much private guiding you want and how much of the island you want to see. International flights are extra, and you see an itemized price before you commit. See what a trip to Greece costs.
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