Top Tips for Hiking the Samaria Gorge in Crete

What is the Samaria Gorge?

The Samaria Gorge is the longest gorge in Europe, a 16km long hike which drops 5000ft down into the dramatic gorge and finishing at a cute little town.

You can only visit between May - October as access to the canyon is closed through the winter. Entry is from 7am - 1pm each day and there is an entry fee of €10 per person to access the trail. We started the hike at around 11.30am (which is quite late) and reached the café at around 3.30pm.

How to Get There?

The hike starts at Xyloskalo, a small lodge at the end of a long and scenic road where you an park your car for €5. For those who don't have access to a car there are no shortage or guided trips, that will transport you there by coach.

My first piece of advice it to try to stay somewhere as close to the starting point as possible - the nearest towns are Chania or Sougia, where public busses are also available. We had a 3 hour drive from Heraklion, which was a bit of a stinker first thing in the morning.

What Should I Pack?

• Sturdy footwear- it is a long trek and the terrain can be challenging, I did it in trainers and found it no problem but some people prefer boots. No flip-flops

• Water Bottle - you can refill your water from water stations along the way

• Snacks - once you are on the trail there are no snack stops

• Sun Cream - your skin may feel like it is melting off

• Hiking Poles - if you can these would be useful for the descent

• Swimming suit - you cannot swim in the rivers in the gorge however the beach at Agia Roumeli has incredible blue waters which are perfect for a swim to cool down after the hike

Top Tips & Helpful Advice

• Stay Hydrated - when I say this place is hotter than satan's armpit, I'm not kidding

• You need to be fairly fit before attempting this, it is a long and demanding day

• There are picnic spots, water stations and toilets at several points along the way

• There are rangers and official resting areas quite frequently along the way - you are encouraged not to stop along the way, maybe due to landslide risks

• The area is prone to wild fires so do not smoke unless at the rest areas and alert the officials if you spot smoke

• Keep a hold of your entry ticket as you will need it to get out

• Some people choose to only hike a few km into the top of the gorge and then walking back - which is fine if this is what you choose to do but you miss the best bits

• It is optional to enter the gorge from the bottom where you could walk half way up the gorge and then turn around before the village. If I was to do this again, I would probably opt to do it this way as you get to see views of the best part (in my opinion) twice. You would need to check the ferry timetable to get to Agia Roumeli to enable you to do this

• Although the hike is very well sign posted it is always advisable to have a map downloaded - Samaria Gorge is the Alltrails route that I used. 30% off Alltrails

Hiking the Samaria Gorge

Starting at an elevation of 1250metres the only way is down, down, down until you reach sea level. The initial section is down a fairly steep hill through a woodland with a few switchbacks, I noticed a few safety nets to protect from falling rocks. After about 8km and 2.5 hours (at our walking pace) we reached the Old Samaria Village, abandoned in 1962 and now nothing more than a rest zone, picnic area and toilets. This marks the end of the steep section. From here it is just a little further to reach the gorge and wow, it is well worth the wait. This was incredible, a gift that keeps on giving. The most iconic part of the hike is the Iron Gates where the walls reach up to 500m high and is only 4m wide. This hike took my breath away and continued to do so until we reached the end. There is a café at the end of the hike with fresh orange juice and beer, but don't get too comfortable as you still need to make your way to the Agia Roumeli which is a further 3km - it is possible to get a bus back for 2€ but we walked.

Agia Roumeli

Agia Roumeli is a thriving little beach town with lots of great food, bars and the brightest blue sea water, which is perfect for a swim before catching the ferry back. The town is lively until the ferries depart, but we were having so much fun and enjoying our beers and lively atmosphere that we made an executive decision to miss the ferry and get one home in the morning (little did we know that there wasn't one on a Monday morning**). The town is buzzing with euphoric hikers, but of course most people leave on the last ferry leaving the town much quieter at night. Although the party vibe was not quite what we had hoped for, we still had a lovely evening and a delicious dinner at the Calypso Restaurant. Also, shout out to the Poseidon Bar who have the friendliest owner and cutest dog - this place is a must visit.

Obviously we hadn't planned to stay so we didn't have anywhere booked, we ended up staying in Taverna Tarra which is the pub we were drinking in when we got back from the hike. We managed to get a room for 40€ in cash as we went to the owner directly instead of on a booking site - many places did seem to have rooms left if you did choose to stay it doesn't seem like pre booking would be an issue.

In hindsight we probably should have hopped on the last ferry over to Sougia, a vibrant little village with more of an evening vibe where we could continue our beer sampling. You could spend the night here if you too, like us, get carried away on the post hike beers.

** For those wondering, we ended up having to get a taxi boat back in the morning which cost €100

Samaria Gorge is definitely worth it if you are in Crete. The hike of a lifetime - it is insanely beautiful but also incredibly hot, so be prepared and don't forget to stop to take it all in. I hope this had helped you to plan your hike.

If you have any questions please leave a comment. And as always any likes and shares are much appreciated.

Happy Adventuring 🌄