The Old Town of Chania stands out as a postcard with its narrow streets and impressive bougainvilleas, the picturesque shops with folk art items and of course the Venetian port, the Venetian youth and the lighthouse – a trademark of the port.
A guest post by Debbie Hiotopoulou (Debbiestravel.gr)
Chania, in the western part of Crete, impresses with its atmospheric Old Town, mansions, fortresses and palaces, with the beaches awarded with the Blue Flag, with the routes inland and of course with the local gastronomy and their cultural events .
The Municipal Market is the most central point of Chania, and was inaugurated in 1913, built on the leveled Venetian bastion Piatta Forma. The pedestrian street of Skridlof Street – “Stivanadika” – and Halidon is one of the most touristy roads in Chania. Following either of those two roads, you will reach the Venetian Port. On your way down in Halidon you will come passing in front of the square of the Metropolis – in the imposing Temple of the Entrances, the Catholic Church and the church of St. Francis that did house the Archaeological Museum in the past. These days is getting a relocation in Halepa district.
At the edge of the citadel of Kasteli lies the beautiful Venetian port of Chania with two clusters of Venetian villages. The long dock is interrupted by the small San Nicolo fortress and ends at the Egyptian Chania lighthouse.
On the Chania prominade of Topazi you will see the Muslim Mosque of Kioutsouk Hasan (1645), which hosts various exhibitions in the summer. At the western end of the port, stands the fortress of Firkas, on which on December 1, 1913, the Greek flag was raised for the unification of Crete with Greece.It is now a nautical museum that you can visit.
Halepa – Tabakaria
The districts of Halepa and Tabakaria are outside the walls of the Old Town of Chania. In the historic district of Halepa, you can admire the mansions of the 19th and 20th centuries, the Palace of Prince George and the house of Eleftherios Venizelos, which now houses the National Research Foundation “Eleftherios K. Venizelos”, with its statue erected on it. It is also the French School (1860), the Russian church of St. Magdalene and the church of Evangelistria.
Magestic Beaches
Agioi Apostoloi (4 km west of Chania), with three picturesque bays. On a windy day you can always find a safe spot from the wind. Agia Marina (9 km) popular and cosmopolitan beach, Chrysi Akti (2.5 km) with golden sandy beach, Kalathas (11 km.), A well-known beach for the island located 200 m from the coast, Kalamaki (5 km) ideal for families, Kalami (15 km) quiet, sandy beach, Loutraki in Akrotiri Chania (16 km) organized, popular with the locals, Marathi (17 km) with shallow waters.
Nea Chora beach is the nearest beach in the city of Chania, with shallow waters. Stalos (8 km) organized, Stavros (17 km) where scenes from the movie “Zorbas the Greek” (1964) were shot with Anthony Quinn. The tiny beach of Machairida (14 km) hidden in a rocky bay is an attraction mainly for nudists.
The beach of Tersana (13 km) is formed in a natural harbor, while the beach “Tou Stefanou”, in the area of Seitan Limania (22 km) stands out with its deep waters.
How to get there: By air to Chania airport “Ioannis Daskalogiannis” located on the peninsula of Akrotiri (tel. 28210 83800,805), from Athens and Thessaloniki. By boat from the port of Piraeus. The airport is 15 km from the city of Chania. Also, in the travel agencies you will find organized packages, at affordable prices.
Tips
–Museums:
Archaeological Museum (tel. 28210 90334),
Maritime Museum at the entrance of the Historical Fortress Firkas (tel. 28210 91875),
Folklore Museum (tel. 28210 90816),
Byzantine Collection (tel. (tel. 28210 56008),
Eleftheriou Venizelou House in Mournies,
Chania (tel. 28210 56008),
Typography Museum, the only one in Greece, 4 km from Chania (tel. 28210 80091).
–Local flavors / products: Virgin olive oil, cheese (gruyere, cream cheese, mizithra, goat cheese, etc.), Sarikopites (twisted pies with sour mizithra and honey), tsikoudia (raki), stamnagaremeni, magima (wild herbs) ofto lamb, meat pie (meat-based pie), kalitsouni with cream cheese and mint, wedding pilaf, yogurt with dessert, etc.
–Sights / Routes:
Tombs of Venizelos
Monastery of the Holy Trinity
Monastery of Gouvernetou is a beautiful monastery and with some more strength you can continue the downward slope to find a beautiful secluded beach.
Artistic Village of Verekynthos you can find a lot of the artisans of Chania.
Fortress of Castellos Varypetrou
Theriso mountain village, among others, is famous for its taverns, etc.
–Nearby Villages and Gorges for day trips:
Sougia: You can visit sougia if you are looking for a secluded down to basics village with beautiful scenery. You will have no problem finding housing, because of the noumerous hotels that operate in the area. If you need a pleasant ride with our taxi or minivan from Chania to Sougia you can ask us for a quote.
Palaiochora
This village deserves at least a day of your holidays. It is a more modern city than Sougia and you can find all the amenities or luxuries you might need. There are noumerous things to do and beaches to chose from.If you need a taxi ride from Sougia to Palaiochora or a minivan from Chania to palaiochora you can go to the according page and make your booking.
Elafonisi:
You will hear a lot to be talked about this beach with pink sand. It is considered to be one of he top beaches in the world and due to its huge size you can always find a space in the sand. As you can understand its fairly popular to the tourists and you can also find a lot of people taking advantage of the wind and have fun doing water sports. If you want a taxi to elafonisi you can contact us.
Balos:
You can arrive to Ballos, either by boat or by car. If you chose the second method, so you know, there is some walking that you must do with that. Alternatively you can catch a boat from Kissamos.
Samaria gorge:
You can find more information for Samaria Gorge on our main page of our Taxi service to Omalos. Along with detailed information of anything you might need. You can also visit the official page of Samaria gorge here.
Agia Eirini gorge:
This is a smaller gorge that is a bit easier to walk, under the shades of trees. You can take a taxi from Chania or Sougia to Agia Irini that is the closest village. We have a dedicated space in our website with more details for this lovely gorge.
You can follow us for our next article that we will reveal some hidden gems and beaches in Chania and Rethymnon community.