All tips and recommendations for a family with a 10 and a 6 year old welcome.

We went two years ago to Rhodes via Athens and enjoyed the city so we’re going back this year.

What is worth seeing on Crete? Any quiet beaches (if it doesn’t rain)? Where is it nice to stay? Hotel in Athens for a couple of nights and self catering villa/house in Crete.

Thanks in advance STW.

Its 2010 since I was there 1st week Oct… and everything touristy was closing down for the season.

We got some fantastic deals on family suites in hotels and hired a car to drive around.

Knossos was nearly deserted…. my favourite places would be visit Irapetra, samarian gorge, rethymon and chania.

Spinalonga is a small island just off Crete that was used as a leper colony in the last century.

It has some interesting older history too. Well worth a visit.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20170921-the-abandoned-greek-island-shrouded-in-mystery

Crete is blimmin big. Pick an area and don’t expect to get around the whole island. North busy, south isolated.

Thank’s people.

Crete: Elounda/Plaka are lovely. Avoid Hersonnis, Agios Nikolaos is not bad. I think Lato is way better than Knossos, but is small. Chania area is meant to be great.

I went there a long time (20 years) ago, but I doubt it’s changed that much. It was October, the weather was fine – not too hot, and cool in the morning. Flew to Heraklion then got a bus to Chania via Rethimnon. Stayed briefly in Chania. It’s old and quaint and probably the most interesting of the bigger towns. Then we got a bus south over the mountains to Sougia, which was really nice. It was just a local bus – I remember the conductor offered us chestnuts out of a massive sack that was part of the cargo. There may have been live chickens on the bus or I may be over-romanticising.

From Sougia we got a bus to Ormalos and walked down the Samaria gorge. Even in October it was busy. We ended up in Agia Roumeli and got a boat back to Sougia then off to Palaiochora where we hired a car and went off to Elaffonissi beach (deserted and spectacular).

At some other point we went to Loutro (by boat, there’s no road). Then off via Rethimnon to Heraklion.

We just turned up at each place and found somewhere to stay for a few days then moved on. It’s not high season. If I did it again I’d probably do some more proper walking as there are lots of long distance paths. As it was we did some local wandering.

First time I was in Elounda was pre-EU…. 1986 … I worked there a few weeks renting villas out and and also in Malia picking bananas…

When I went back in the late 90’s it was really developed.

I’d definitely endorse Nicko’s samarian gorge hike and you can walk out of the bottom but take plenty of water.

I remember the conductor offered us chestnuts out of a massive sack that was part of the cargo. There may have been live chickens on the bus or I may be over-romanticising.

Probably not …. I remember live chickens…  walking out from the Gorge (90’s) we stumbled upon a nearly deserted village, a single resident who’ll be long since gone but she had a simple  shack with a gas burner and bed and the bed was outside with the mattress off and she was drying pasta on the bed frame…