Chania, Crete, Greece - September 2025

Brief History/Information

Chania (pronounced: Ha-nia) is a beautiful city with a lot of history. It is located on the northwest coast of Crete. Archaeological discoveries indicate continuous habitation since at least 3000 BCE. The Venetians rebuilt the city with Fortifications and walls, the Venetian Harbor, and the iconic Firkas Fortress. Chania played a key role in Crete’s union with Greece in 1913. Much of the old town architecture today stems from the Venetian time.

What we did

We left Heraklion and drove about one hour to Chania via Rethymno with our rental car. We spent three nights at the fabulous Porto Veneziano Hotel, it’s right on the water. Parking is a little wonky but we managed. We did laundry through the hotel here for about 20 Euros, again they laundered, folded, and delivered our clothing to our room. We explored the Old Town, visited the Fortezza of Rethymno, and then strolled along the Venetian Harbor. We had dinner at Tamam, a fabulous Turkish restaurant that’s actually in an old Turkish Bath House! The food was fantastic.

The next morning, we met our guide and were driven to hike the Samaria Gorge (Europe’s longest gorge). Now, let me tell you… this hike is NOT for the faint at heart, not for those that want a nice leisurely or quick hike, and not for those that haven’t prepared for this hike. This is an 11 mile and very difficult hike down in a gorge… there are rocks, boulders, inclines, bridges, and bees. Wear good hiking shoes and bring trekking poles. Once you’re finished with the hike, there’s only one way back to where you came from- a ferry that leaves at 5:30pm daily. At the bottom and waiting for the ferry, there are shops, restaurants, good food, and beer. Some people take a swim in the water but we didn’t. We prepared for this hike, we are avid hikers of the Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mountains, and this was the most difficult hike we have ever done, but so rewarding when we finished.

The next day we had a private cruise around Crete planned, but the weather turned bad and it was canceled. We were looking forward to this, but in the end, were happy it was canceled because we were having much difficulty moving after our Samaria Gorge hike. We decided to have a leisurely day in Chania and went to Cretan Brewery. What a great and relaxing find this was!

Places of Interest

• Venetian Harbor & Lighthouse- the 16th century lighthouse was rebuilt in the 19th century

• Ottoman quarter (Splantzia)

• Minoan & Byzantine areas (Kastelli)

• Former Christian aristocratic area (Topanas)

• Samaria Gorge – Europe’s longest gorge