Sleep in Chania

PLANNED ACTIVITES

BALOS BEACH

9:00AM | Grab some breakfast at the Ginger Concept

10:00AM | Pick up something to take for lunch at xx

10:30AM-11:30AM | Drive to Balos Beach and spend the day

11:30AM-3:00PM | Spend the day enjoying Balos

3:00PM-4:00PM | Drive back to Chania

4:00PM-8:00PM | Get ready for dinner walk around Chania and enjoy the shops

8:00PM | Dinner at Oinoa (loved this place, truly delicious food, romantic patio)

TIPS

BALOS

Balos is a beautiful, shallow, clear turquois lagoon and beach in the middle of a national park with panoramic views and an exotic feel. We decided to rent a car and drive ourselves to Balos which worked out great. Be ready to endure a very bumpy dirt road drive to get there, but it is totally worth it. Once you are parked, the hike down to Balos takes about 25 minutes down 850 steps, so make sure to wear appropriate shoes (I recommend sneakers).

SHOPPING

Chania Old Town has some great shops throughout the backstreets. Theotokopoulou, Chatzimichali Daliani, and Daskalogianni are good places to look for some authentic souvenirs.

Sleep in Ronda

PLANNED ACTIVITES

SAMARIA GORGE HIKE & AGIA ROUMELI

6:00AM | Meet at pick-up spot for hike transportation

6:00AM-7:00AM | Bus ride from Chania to Samarian Gorge

7:00AM-12:00PM | Hike down the Samarian Gorge from starting point (Omalos plateau)

12:00PM-1:30PM | Conclude the hike in the coastal village of Agia Roumeli and have some lunch (there are several small restaurants to choose from)

1:30PM-4:30PM | Enjoy the beach, swim, and hang out

4:30PM-6:00PM | Take the ferry back to the bus pick-up spot; then the bus back to your drop-off in Chania

7:00PM | Get ready for dinner

8:30PM | Dinner at Tamam (classic restaurant in Chania Old Town)

TIPS

THE HIKE 

The hike is amazing – would highly recommend. It is a very strenuous ~10-mile hike down a steep ravine with many loose stones, a lot of climbing, walking on uneven stones etc. If you are well equipped to walk through some challenging terrain, it is worth it. Just make sure to wear the right shoes, comfortable, layered clothes (the temperature can vary greatly from the top of the ravine to the bottom) and pack sunscreen, a swimsuit, beach shoes, a towel, water, and snacks. The hike ends at a pretty little village (Agia Roumeli) located right between the mountains and the sea.

LOGISTICS

We booked this excursion which made sense because the ride to the beginning of the gorge is long, narrow and curvy – beware if you experience motion sickness. Because we did a tour, the pick-up was very early in the morning and we had to drop others off, but it did take out a lot of the coordination to get back to the car. The alternative option would be to drive your own car, park it at the entrance, hike, take the ferry back to where the buses pick everyone up, then take a taxi back to your parked car. Regardless, I would recommend starting very early to avoid the crowds.

Sleep in Chania

PLANNED ACTIVITIES

DAY TRIP TO ELAFONISSI BEACH

9:00AM | Breakfast through the hotel or grab something light

10:00AM | Pick up some lunch and snacks to bring

10:30AM | Drive to Elafonissi for the day

4:00PM | Drive back to Chania and get ready for dinner

6:00PM | Have a cocktail at Woodstock

8:00PM | Palazzo Almare for dinner 

TIPS

ELAFONISSI

This beach is famous for its pick sand and clear water and is considered one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.  There are chairs and umbrellas to rent or you can just bring your own towel and umbrella (the hotel provided these for us). 

Sleep in Santorini

PLANNED ACTIVITES

ARRIVE & WINE TOUR

10:15AM | Flight from Chania airport to Santorini

2:00PM | Check into hotel

2:00PM-3:30PM | Relax at hotel pool/hot tub, settle in

4:00-7:00PM | Santo Wines tour and tasting

7:30PM | Kapari Wine Restaurant for dinner

TIPS

GETTING THERE

We chose to book a flight from Chania which was relative quick and easy (3 hour duration including a quick layover); the alternative would be to book a ferry (provided you don’t go too late in the season). There aren’t ferries directly from Chania; you’d have to drive two hours to Heraklion to catch the ferry there.

STAYING

We stayed in Imerovigli right on the caldera edge pathway in between Fira (the main town) and Oia (the more expensive northern part of the island).

WINE TOUR

Greece has some amazing wine, and we loved visiting the winery and booked ours for sunset (which Santorini is famous for) and loved the wine so much, we shipped some home. You can book it here.

GETTING AROUND

We booked a rental car and had it dropped off at our hotel so we could get around – the hotel helped us with this when we got there, but you could do this ahead of time as well. If it had been a little warmer, we would have considered a scooter rental for fun (just know it requires the right kind of license).

Sleep in Santorini

PLANNED ACTIVITES

BEACH DAY

10:30AM-3:30PM | Boat Day Cruise, Snorkeling, and Lunch

3:30PM-5:00PM | Get back to hotel and ready for dinner

5:30PM | Head to Oia for some exploration before dinner

7:00PM | Dinner at Sphinx on the rooftop for sunset

TIPS

BOAT TOUR

We booked the Caldera Yachting Gold Day Cruise. Next time I would try a different company (this one has a ton of great reviews) because some of the crew seemed generally annoyed much of the time. Despite that, the overall the experience was fun. They picked us up at our hotel, cooked us a full lunch onboard and provided snorkel gear when we stopped to swim. The water was pretty cold in October, but we loved it still. We were with a small group of other people (~20 of us in total). We had plenty of space and enjoyed seeing the sights. We learned a few facts from the boat crew, but it was mostly time to relax, enjoy the views of the Islands, and swim. 

Sleep in Santorini

PLANNED ACTIVITES

FIRA TO OIA HIKE & SPA

7:00-11:00AM | Hike from Imerovigli down to Fira and up to Oia

11:30AM | Get some lunch at a fish taverna on the water in the cute fishing village of Ammoudi (down 300 steps from Oia)

2:00PM | Head back to hotel

3:00PM | Spa experience at hotel

7:30PM | Dinner at Selene

TIPS

THE HIKE

Start early as possible as the pathway gets super crowded. The cruise ship port lets out in Fira, and the path gets more congested with people as the day goes on. Starting early also helps with avoiding the heat of the day depending on the weather.

SPA

Santorini has some wonderful resorts and ours offered a wellness cave experience which we took full advantage of and enjoyed massages there as well. This was amazing after a long day of hiking. Alternatively, just enjoy the pool or hottub (many of the resorts in Santorini have hot tubs looking right over the caldera)

EATING

This is a splurge restaurant for sure but worth it – we enjoyed the fixed price menu and wine pairing and it was a full experience. The service, food, and atmosphere were the best. There is a Meze & Wine Bistro downstairs without the price tag if you are looking for a good alternative.

Sleep in Santorini

PLANNED ACTIVITES

ACROPOLIS & DINNER

11:00AM | Check out of hotel & head to airport

1:00PM | Flight from Santorini to Athens

1:00PM-3:00PM | Land in Athens and take metro or taxi to hotel and settle in

3:30PM | Visit the Acropolis

6:30PM | Drinks

8:30PM | Dinner at the Tudor restaurant

TIPS

ACROPOLIS

Since this was just a quick visit to Athens, we built in time to visit the top site there – the Acropolis (home of the Parthenon). It worked out great to visit here late in the day because we missed most of the crowds this way. You can buy your tickets there or ahead of time online here. You can get through the whole site in 90 mins or so. The last entrance is typically 4:30PM.