1 week Kreta (part 1/2)

Lemayee
Jul 13, 2022
5 min read

Updated: Jul 14, 2022

Greece has many islands and the largest of them is Crete. Since I was little I heard many family members and friends talk about Crete. In my eyes, it always seemed to be quite a touristic destination. After my recent visit, I found out that there are also many beautiful hidden gems in Crete, where there are less tourists. Together with 2 friends we went on a Cretan adventure for 1 week.

Day 1: Chania

We took a flight to Chania airport, this airport is located on a peninsula "Akrotiri" north of the famous and wonderful city of Chania. The flight to Crete is an experience in itself, you fly over some of the most beautiful islands of the Mediterranean Sea and the view is amazing. When you get out of the plane you immediately have a beautiful view on the mountains of Crete.

After collecting our luggage, we got into our rental car. A rental car is a must on Crete. It is easy to get quickly to the sights but also the somewhat more remote spots. We booked the rental car at Sunnycars.nl, they have always been a reliable partner during our travels. This time we opted for the "all-inclusive" option. It is slightly more expensive, but you are well insured and there is no hassle with credit cards. Picking up the car at the airport is also done in 5 minutes. We even got a free upgrade to a bigger car how great is that!

Agia Triada Monastery

Our first stop, fortunately, is not that far 5 minutes from the airport is the Agia Triada monastery. The monastery was built in 1631 and was founded by two brothers, Venetian monks. The monastery was built in a Venetian Renaissance style. The monastery was burned down by the Turks in 1821, after which it was rebuilt in 1830. Take the stairs up to the entrance, the entrance is €5 and you can easily spend an hour looking at all the beautiful buildings inside and out. There are also always beautiful cats around that needs some attention. There is a small shop next to the monastery where you can buy all kinds of local Greek products.

After the visit we headed to our hotel to drop off our luggage and then headed straight to the beach. Our hotel is located in Agia Marina. Agia Marina is a beach area 3km to the West of Chania. We decide to check in and get our swimming trunks out of our luggage. It is warm and the sandy beach that is close by. We enjoyed a few more hours on this beautiful beach before heading to Chania.

Chania is one of the most beautiful places in Crete. The Venetian harbor has a lot of history and is very cozy. The harbor in Chania was built in the 14th century, among other things as a protection against pirates. You will also find quite a few Ottoman and Cretan influences throughout the city. In the middle of this historic mishmash you can go for a beautiful evening walk to the lighthouse. Also, in the center, you can get lost in the narrow streets where you can find all kinds of unique restaurants and souvenir shops. We ended the day with a large seafood platter at "Kavouras Tavern" on the Venetian harbour.

Day 2: Balos Beach

After a good night's sleep and a delicious breakfast we drove to Balos Beach. It is about an hour's drive from our hotel. You lose most of your time in the last 5km as this road is unpaved and you are forced to reduce your speed quite a bit. You will also regularly encounter a friendly mountain goat (KriKri) on the way. With good maneuvering skills, we got to the parking lot of the beach without any problems. From there, it is still a fifteen minute walk and descend to the fantastically beautiful beach. The water is pretty blue like a Bounty commercial. We have been there all day, the way back is quite tough because you have to climb up again, so it's wise to bring a bottle of water with you on the way back. Also bring enough cash, as it is not always possible to pay with card.

After freshening up in our hotel, we headed back to Chania. We will eat at "The well of the Turk" The Well of the Turk offers a wide variety of authentic Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes made from the best ingredients. After the delicious food we decided on an evening walk through Chania to photograph some beautiful scenery. Finally we ended up at a craft beer store "B for Beers" where we picked out a nice IPA before going back to our hotel.

Day 3: Loutro

In order to get to Loutro we first drove towards Sfakia, from there you take the boat to Loutro. In Sfakia you have a lot of Tavernas and souvenir shops. The ideal place to drink a Mythos beer.

Loutro is an old, picturesque fishing village and can only be reached by boat. There are no roads going there, so you don't see cars either. In Loutro you can choose from several cozy tavernas on the seaside. You can also enjoy the clear blue water. We forgot our swimming trunks so bought one at a local shop, as we couldn't resist the beautiful water. We had a fantastic time here and next time I would stay for the night. Unfortunately we had to return to Sfakia in time, by boat.

Back in Sfakia we bought some olive oil, honey, raki and rakimelo as souvenirs. The beautiful thing is that you can taste most of it before buying and then buy what you like best. On the way back to the hotel, with the advice of a good friend, we headed for a good local restaurant for a nice and well-deserved dinner.

Kypros Tavern is a mix between a butcher shop and a restaurant. The owner is a flamboyant man who likes to show off his cuts of meats to his customers. You can walk to the cutting table, where you can choose your type of meat and even the size of your portion is also no problem. Under a tree opposite the restaurant some tables and chairs are placed. I have got the impression that we are the only tourists, because we are only hearing Greek at the tables. Soon the bread, wine, tzatziki, Greek salad and 3 juicy steaks come our way. After the dessert of raki and fresh fruit we went back to the hotel.