That island is one of those places which make us wish so hard to live there, we went there for the most beautiful beaches that everyone talks about, but we ended up finding much more than that. At the arrival at the airport, we saw huge mountains and every one with a lot of snow, a remarkable landscape, once we hadn’t seen the sea beside the mountains with snow so close to each other, such an unforgettable contrast.

Chania and Old Venice

That city is the strategic point for many tourists, one of the biggest ones in the island, and we also stayed there, next to Stalos beach, with such a blue water which, when it arrives, even the sand gest transparent.

A mandatory stop is the so called Old Venice or old port, that name comes from the time of the 15th century, when the island was bought by Venice and they built that amazing place, a bay of calm waters for the boats and super yachts to lash down, where everything is well conserved by the hotels and restaurants stablished there, we spent the entire morning there and we went back in the evening to see everything lit, a cozy ambiance and with restaurants in a half light.

Beaches

We moved about the island by a rented car very fine, we spent the afternoon at the airport and went directly to Souda, in the way that goes down to the city, there’s an amazing panoramic view of the coast and the ferries at the port. There wasn’t so much to visit in downtown, only the port, so we went to a small and isolated beach not so far from there.

Balos Beach

We planned to go in the following early morning, to go to Balos beach, when we got to the dirt road, which has 10 kilometers of amazing cliffs and ravines, we had a scare, we thought it wouldn’t be possible to visit it, as there was a slump right in the beginning of the street, and there was only one machine and one truck working on removing the dirt. So, we stood there for a while and we walked closer to the machines, when the truck passed, we asked the driver how long it would take and he said 20 minutes, it was such a relief, the luck was on our side, as we could follow the plan. As soon as the access was allowed, we went checking the divine beauties of that place, and the most amazing, we were the first ones to get in that day! In the end of the 10 kilometers, we parked the car and we walked for more 20 minutes and 2 kilometers of downhill, to arrive at the beach through a stone stairway.

We spend the entire morning in that beach, if you are in a summertime, plan to spend the whole day there, it’s very worthwhile and it’s one of the most beautiful beaches we have seen so far during all the trip.

Elafonisi Beach

As the sun sets late there in that season of the year, we went forward and we visited Elafonisi beach, where we found crystalline water and much pink sand, one more charming place that will stick to our minds. It’s a structured place, with restrooms, changing rooms, beach chairs (they can be rented). It has snack bars, kids’ area, the beach is peaceful, ideal for kids and to have fun all day long. And it also has a Free parking lot for your car, but you have to get there early in the high season, as it gets crowded of tourists.

Seitan Limania

In the other day, we went to Seitan Limania beach, located among the crags, in a slit opened by the water, the access demands much attention, as it takes us 10 minutes of steep downhill in a track around the crag, but the final visual is very worthwhile.

Springs of Argyroupolis

As the island is not formed only by beaches, we always search to visit different places, talking to the staff of the places where we stay, and they recommended us to visit the Springs of Argyroupolis, a place full of greens, rich with plants and trees, and with a very beautiful grotto.

There are restaurants specialized in trout, a kind of fish raised right there in the brook of the mountain, you just have to choose and they prepare it right away, another dish that caught our eye was the one named antikristo (roasted meat of lamb), which costed 28 Euros per kilo with side dishes, those restaurants were introduced among the brooks and, while you eat, the water runs among the tables.

 Lake Kournas

In the quite close return, there is the lake Kournas, another attraction you can visit, having some ice cream while you take a paddle boat around the lake. It’s a beautiful place, with crystalline waters, the price of the paddle boat ride is 7 euros for the couple during 30 minutes, and there are restaurants, pubs, ice cream parlors and gift shops surrounding there.

Where to stay

We chose to stay in by Expedia at Koukouras hotel, and we found a great location at Stalos beach, only 200 meters far from the beach and 4 kilometers far from the city of Chania, where there are a lot of touristic attractions such as Old Venice. We stayed right close to stores, restaurants, mini golf and beaches, and we had total attention from our host, the place also has a pool and bar.

Here’s the link of the hotel: https://www.koukouras-lia.gr/

Means of Transportation

We rented a car, as we wanted to explore more cities and beaches of the island, if you want to do the same, you’ll have 02 options, looking for a car rental shop, and that’s not hard, once there are thousands in the city, and the other one is going by buses that leave the bus station in the center of Chania, and they work very well and there are great buses to every parts of the island. But get the tip: we researched on the internet and we found options for the half of the price we were offered at the counter, the daily rate was 25 euros per day, and on the site holidayautos by the app kaiak, we paid 12 euros, with total insurance, be attempted, because some ones charge for the insurance aside, that was not our case.

Safety of the city

We thought it’s very safe during the time we stayed there. We saw some cops in the streets, and guards at the touristic attractions. We walked a lot through all over the city during the daytime and it was very peaceful, the people are super friendly and helpful.

Travel Insurance

For you to travel in peace, it’s important to have a travel insurance which keeps you safe and has a comprehensive coverage. We always ensure with April Brasil Seguro Viagem, which covers all around the world, it has an app that is easy to access, for you not to keep all that paperwork when you need to use it, the best part, you can access it from everywhere in the world with service in our language.

So, don’t waste time and hire something safe, and we have a discount coupon, we’ll leave the link below too! Run and use it.

DISCOUNT COUPON: COUTRIPS10%

https://www.aprilbrasil.com.br/coutrips

Internet for your trip

To keep your connection during all the trip, you need a great SIM card, with a worldwide coverage, internet 3G and 4G. For that, we used Easysim4u, the best internet SIM card in the world for your trip. And see that we have been through some countries and we always had the coverage of the plans of Easysim4u. Don’t waste time, run and hire your SIM card for your next trip.

Here’s the link for you to access and ensure your connection to the internet in the world.

https://www.easysim4u.com/?sourceCode=coutrips

Kind of Currency

The local currency of Greece is Euro, in the exchange in dollar for May/2019 is $1.00 to 0.90 Euros. We recommend to exchange the currency in a safe place such as an airport or at Exchange, a bank in the city. It’s always good to have the local currency.

Expenses in Crete

Our expenses in currency (REAIS) in Crete during 4 days for the couple were the following:

Feeding: R$240.00 (market, snacks)

Transportation: R$460.00 (flight, bus, rented car)

Lodging: R$320.00 (Expedia)

Our passage in Crete really made us think about returning and staying for much more time, we visited only 30% of the island and we loved it, see the 70% still left. We enjoyed riding around the city and talking to the people very much, those days were very nice. The days were amazing, we visited the place two months before the high season, and it was perfect, the places weren’t crowded, it was fine, we were able to talk to local people, have a nice chat.

Get our tip, if you go to Crete, try to go before or after the high season, because, besides paying less, you’ll have an excellent service.