West Crete Tour from Heraklion: Rethymno-Chania-Kurnas

Experience the best of West Crete on a full-day tour from Heraklion. Explore the charming cities of Chania and Rethymno, and take a refreshing swim in Lake Kournas. Book now and discover the beauty of West Crete with Status MLB!

Duration: 12 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Lighthouse of Chania - Chania has the most beautiful old town in Crete and is located at the foot of the majestic White Mountains. The former capital of the island and the second largest city of Crete, it attracts tourists from all over the world for its unique blend of Venetian, Ottoman, Byzantine and Greek cultures.

You will be wandering through the maze of the ancient streets, that will fascinate you by the beauty of the colorful houses and feel as if you are travelling through time, with a variety of unforgettable sights. The old town is more like an open-air museum: splendor of the medieval architecture, beauty of churches in the Venetian style, Ottoman mosques and antique fountains.

  • Rethymnon Old Town - Picturesque Rethymno impresses every tourist with its beautiful old harbor and famous lighthouse.

You can enjoy the delicious dishes of the local cuisine right on the waterfront, buy the best products of local producers and explore narrow streets and its hidden gems in the old town.

  • Lake Kournas - The final and enjoyable part of the trip will be swimming at Lake Kournas. The lake is like a bowl, surrounded by mountains from all sides. This is the natural freshwater lake of the island, its waters are replenished by two springs.

With some luck you may see turtles swimming around.

What's Included
  • Pick-up from your hotel (at the specific tourist bus stop, outside of the hotel)
  • Transfer with air-conditioned bus
  • Information about the island and the route during the bus ride
  • Additional insurance for tour participants
What's Not Included
  • Lunch
  • Entrance fees to museums/sights, individual expenses.
Additional Information

• The city of Chania is one of the cultural centers of Greece, located at the foot of the majestic White Mountains. The former capital of the island and the second largest city of Crete, it attracts tourists from all over the world with its unique combination of Venetian, Ottoman, Byzantine and Greek cultures.
• The old town is more like an open-air museum: the splendor of medieval architecture, the beauty of Venetian-style churches, Ottoman mosques and ancient fountains.
• Picturesque Rethymno impresses every tourist with its beautiful old harbor. You can enjoy delicious local cuisine right on the waterfront, buy the best local products and explore the narrow streets of the old town.
• The final and enjoyable part of the trip will be swimming in Lake Kourna.
• This is the island’s natural freshwater lake, its waters are replenished by two springs. The lake looks like a bowl, surrounded on all sides by mountains. If you’re lucky, you might see waterfowl turtles.

  • If an infant does not sit on lap in the bus, It is necessary to pay a child ticket.
  • Pick-up from the specific bus stops next to the hotels. From Area 1: all the villages between Fodele, Agia Pelagia, Xeropotamos(West Heraklion), Area 2: Heraklion Center and East, Carteros, Kokkini Hani, Gouves, Gournes, Hersonissos, Stalida, Malia, Sissi.
  • After booking we will contact you to arrange the pick-up. Please, note, if you do not provide your pick-up details up to 24 hours before the tour, we do not guarantee the pick-up. For pick-up from different location, please, contact us.
Location
Lighthouse of Chania
Old Market near Prince Bank,
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.1
(88 Ratings)
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107sahars
Jul 23, 2024
Best Tour group - We booked our tour with status MLB and we had the best experience. Victor was great! He help us book our tour and picked and drop us at our hotel. He took us around town and showed us around. The service was excellent and one of the best experiences. I highly recommend them.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Eduardl157
Jul 14, 2024
Highly Recommended Tour with Excellent Service - A highly interesting and recommended tour with a professional guide and excellent service from the tour agents. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Juan_i
Jul 3, 2024
A convenient way to see parts of Crete when you have little time. - Chania, Lake Kournas, and Rethymno each have their own unique charm and are well worth the visit. Think of it as an appetizer if you are on limited time, and if you are ever able to return, you may want to spend a few days at each town to really get “the full meal”. This tour was perfect to give you a taste of what each town is like and hopefully you’ll want to return as much as I do!
Review provided by Viator
Ewelinawt7140cg
Jun 30, 2024
Red Trio - Trio friends trip , Spend nice and lovely day 💕 😊 Rethymno amazing town -many small shops with beautiful Greek talisman. Beach ⛱️ so nice, Chania was last , very busy , many restaurants , lots of tourists, beautiful Views, Most beautiful place was Lake Kurnas Never forget- green hot water, sunny day on the beach , amazing time on Tavern Katherine - so delicious local food . Must try 😋 Elizabeth- travel guide ✨️ so lovely and helpful lady , easy with English communication ❤️ high recommended for any age 😀, good for Kids and Adults
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Robert_l
Jun 23, 2024
Amazing day - The towns of Remfinmo and chania were amazing…definitely worth the day trip. The views during the drive itself were beautiful with ocean vistas. Our guide, Elizabeth was very knowledgeable and shared a ton of interesting facts.
Review provided by Viator
Micheal_l
Jun 15, 2024
Highlights of the island. - Great tour to see some of the highlights of the island. Our Guide was very good. A long day, but worthwhile.
Review provided by Viator
Afro
Jun 14, 2024
Great Tour, Chania is a must see - Another great tour to be able to experience more of Crete in a day. We went to Chania first which was my favourite place, it’s a really nice place. Depending on the traffic, you may have a decent amount of time here but as other reviewers have recommended, it’s best to leave lunch till you go to Lake Kournas unless you’re planning to swim in the lake. The lake is nice but you want to spend time exploring Chania & Rethymno. Like Chania, Rethymno is another nice place. If you have the time and are fast walkers, I’d recommend seeing the Venetian fortress here. You may get less time here depending on the traffic & what order you go. As for the driver & tour guide, again, they were brilliant. If you have Elena on your tour, you’ll have a great time with a great upbeat guide!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rosanne_j
Jun 28, 2024
A Crete sampler - The trip is a great Crete sampler if you don't want to hire a car! We really enjoyed our time in Chania exploring the Venetian Harbour and in the centre of Rethymno. The stop at Lake Kurnas was okay but I would have preferred longer in Chania and Rethymno.
Review provided by Viator
Lorine_s
Jun 27, 2024
Full bus trip to West Crete - We liked seeing the countryside of Crete. The views were amazing. Chania and Lake Kounas appealed to us more than Rethymno. The itinerary said swimming at the lake would be last and that appealed to us. Swimming before lunch and quickly changing to get lunch was very rushed. My husband and I were with our 13 year old grandson. By the time we joined the bus there were no longer seats near each other. We weren't prepared for a bilingual tour. There seemed to be a lot of talking from the guide. However, it was worth the time to visit Chania and see the countryside!
Review provided by Viator
Welltravelled03
Jun 21, 2024
Appalling - An appalling tour. Left our hotel at 7:45am and did not return until 9:30pm. The coach broke down approximately 10 mins outside Rethymno. Not surprisingly as it had seen better days and the tourists had been crammed in like sardines. We waited in the 30+ degree heat for nearly 90 minutes whilst the tour guide, Manuela, who was on the verge of a nervous breakdown tried to pacify everyone - provided that you were French otherwise, very little communication as to what was going on. Once the problem was resolved, we were taken to Rethymno and had 1 hour “free time” before moving on to Lake Kournas and then Chania. Not enough time was spent in Reythmno and Chania which were both beautiful places. Lake Kournas was a disappointment and was merely a place where the tour guides could gat a free meal at their “preferred restaurant”. The final blow was the seemingly endless drop off points. Do not do this trip unless you want to spend 8 hours on a coach. A couple waste of money and valuable holiday time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
September 2024
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