West Crete

Anoskeli

We started the day driving to Ano Skeli winery and olive oil mill. The drive over there from Heraklion was filled with rolling hills of olive trees and beautiful coastline. When we arrived at the winery, we were greeted with a tour of the facility. After the tour, €5 bought us a tasting of 5 wines with hors d’oeuvres containing delicious locally sourced salted olives and the mill’s olive oil. At the end of the tasting was a ray of delicious cinnamon sprinkled fruit and shots of raki, the crete made spirit similar to vodka. After we purchased our souvenirs, we drove about a mile north to the oldest olive tree in Europe. Next to the olive tree is a little restaurant where you can purchase olive oil, salted olives, and olive products. They also have a mini farm outback with ducks, chickens, and various fruit tress.

Balos Beach

Our next stop was Balos Beach. It is located on the northwest coat of Crete. When you approach the “entrance” to the beach, you will need to pay a €1 park conservation fee. afterwards you will drive up a very steep, rocky, narrow mountainside. This can be pretty tricky if you don’t have an offroad vehicle. It also gets a little scary when cars are coming down the hill as you go up because there is barely enough space for the two to pass especially when people are parking on the side of the narrow road. I would highly suggest going as early in the morning as you can to avoid this hassle. Once you park your car, you will have another 2 miles or so hike down the other side of the mountain to reach the beach. The journey can be very harrowing, and it may be the only thing you do for the rest of the day, but the views are well worth it. If you prefer the easy route and have the extra cash to spare, you can take a boat from one of the nearby beaches and sail around to Balos beach.

East Crete

Knossos

Knossos is the oldest city in all of Europe. For an entrance fee of about €14, you can access the well kept ruins. Once inside, there is a thorn room they allow people to enter one at a time.

Spinalonga

Spinalonga Bay is also known as Leper island. Up until the 50’s or 60’s lepers were sent to live he rest of their days on this island. Although it sounds horrible to be sent away, the island is magnificently beautiful. There are several cafes and stores around Plaka Marina. You will also find a small boat booth near the docks where you can buy a ticket for a ride to and from the island. The round trip tickets are no more than €10-20. Once you arrive, there is a little cafe where you can purchase drinks which I highly recommend as it can get very hot. You can ten pay the €14 entrance fee which gives you access to roam the island. There are many beautiful lookouts and hidey holes to explore. There are also a couple of churches there. The church located on the lower level near the left side of the island had a priest stationed there. We received a cotton ball with oil anointed by the patron Saint- Saint Panteleimon, of the church on the island.

Agiofarango

This a another beautiful but difficult beach to access. You will have to drive up a rocky steep mountainside for a few miles until you reach a little parking area with a small trailer/store. From there you will need to hike about 2 miles or so until you reach the beach. The hike is pretty flat along a dry riverbed, so it’s not as bad as the hike to Balos beach. On the hike you will see many caves tat some people access when rock climbing there. You will also see an old church. A hermit monk used to work there and live in the nearby caves. The beach itself is unique in that there is no sand. It is entirely comprised of pebbles.