Welcome to Samaria Gorge
Location:
South-West part of Crete Island, Samaria Gorge National Park- White Mountains.
Address:
Mylonogiani 53, Chania.
Length:
16 km
Cities:
Chania (the biggest nearby city), Omalos (in north), Agia Roumeli (in south).
Opening hours:
1st May – 15th October from 07.00 to 15.00
Prices:
€5 (Euro)
Telephone:
+30 28213 41665 or +30 28210 92943 or +30 28210 67179
Website:
E-mail:
When to go:
May – October, but we recommend to avoid July and August when the temperatures are very high and the flow of tourists is big.
How to get here:
By car:
You can get here by car starting from any point of the island. Most tourists who choose to come here by car have Chania City as starting point in north and as destination is Omalos village. Here is the final destination to get by car and also here starts Samaria Gorge or Keys. But be careful if you come by car because you have to get back where you left it until the evening and is not so easy because you have to find a bus or a cab to get back. More details inside the article.
By means of transport:
You can get here easily with one of the morning buses (the first leaves around 07.00) known KTEL which leaves from Chania City to Omalos. For more details ask at the local tourist agency. Also to Chania you can get from any point of the island with the same buses KTEL or with any bus company which have daily routes.
Samaria Gorge, Crete, Greece
Importance, transport, prices and timetables of Samaria Gorge:
Samaria Gorge or Keys is a gorgeous creation of the nature which is a must see objective if you go on Crete Island. They are part of Samaria Gorge National Park situated in the White Mountains, a protected forest reserve from the south-west part of the Greek island. From tourist point of view it is said that this gorge is on the 2nd place in tourists preference who go in Crete, after Minoic Palace from Knosos belonging to the capital Heraklion. To get here is not so hard, but it depends from where you start and your mean of transport. To avoid any unpleasant situations, we recommend to go with one of the morning buses which go every day (as long as the park is opened) from Chania to Omalos.
A round trip price is around 14-15 euro. On top of this price you will include for sure the entrance in the park of 5 Euro (free for kids under 15 years and half price for students). At the end of the gorge a ferry is waiting for you (the price around 11 euro) which will take you to Hora Sfakion from where you can take the bus back to Chania. Keep an eye on the time you arrive in Agia Roumeli (you can buy only from here the ticket for the ferry) after 16 km done to cross Samaria Gorge because the last ferry leaves at 17.00 and from Hora Sfakion the last bus is at 18.30.
Samaria Gorge Hiking Trail and what your trip involves:
The height where the trail starts is 1230 m and here is also the leaving point nearby Omalos (Xiloskalo). From here you will gradually get down towards Agia Roumeli village situated on Libya’s Sea coast (part of the Mediterranean Sea). The 16 km track is quite uneven and the biggest attention has to be on the first 2-3 km when the slope is quite steep. The track itself is not very hard, but the steeped track and full of rocks and boulders will attract your attention on every step you make. Usually, these 16 km can be done in only 3 hours by the well trained tourists, but for the normal people (you must have a good physical condition) will take around 4-5 hours. In this track are included the hydration breaks, meal breaks (the rule on the hiking trails is to eat often but a little), the rest breaks and also the photo breaks (which for sure will be a lot because of the beautiful landscape). So, is very likely that you will need 6-7 hours in total depending your fit and the breaks you want to take. (Find more journeys on blog.worldlifetimejourneys.com)
Samaria Gorge in Samaria National Park
Don’t worry if you will be alone on the trail because there’s no day when the park is opened and not to find other tens of adventurous tourists. Usually hundreds of tourists hike the gorge every day, but you can have the bad luck to hike in a day with thousands of tourists, when you won’t feel the relaxation, silence and adventure. Samaria Keys are considered by many people as the longest from Europe, but actually they are situated on the second place after Verdon Keys from France (over 20 km).
The track in the keys is very well maintained with rubbish bins, toilets and cold water springs where you can fill up your bottle for hydration. Every spring before opening, there are some works to remove the obstacles, rocks and other objects from the track which came here during a winter with heavy rains. You have to be careful what shoes you wear (mountain shoes preferably), make sure you take with you water which can be refilled and food, because during the trail you will not have where to buy from.
Important facts, fauna and flora on Samaria Gorge, Crete Island:
At the beginning the keys start on its first kilometers with a descendant slope which will give you the impression of adventure, but after that will continue its descendant course, but will be a relaxing hike impressing you with the beauty of this place. Gradually, the keys seem to become narrower (the largest part is 150 m wide) and to the end the high walls over 500 m height will have only 3 m width between them and the name given by tourists and inhabitants is the Iron Gates (name given also to a national park from Romania) or Portes. On your way, you will cross the old Samaria village with some temporary lived houses, but also prehistoric settlement ruins. The local fauna and flora is not so rich in species, but these are protected by law. Among flora species you can find cypresses, fig trees, oleanders, pines, junipers and many others, while among fauna species there are eagles, hawks, falcons, but especially the well known wild goats from Crete known as kri-kri. Here in total live over 450 species of plants and animals, over 80 of them being endemics leaving only on Crete Island.
Beautiful Samaria Gorge trail in this small national park
Samaria Gorge opening times and when is recommended to go:
It’s important to know that during rainy weather the park is closed because there is a danger for rocks falling or torrents. If you wish to feel the adventure and to enjoy completely this hiking, we recommend to avoid the summer months (July-August) when the suffocating hot weather can make you troubles, to avoid going between 08.00 and 11.00 when there are too many tourists (preferably until 07.30 or after 11.30 with the condition to sleep in Agia Roumeli) and to make sure you are well trained physically. Also don’t forget all the necessary things (food, water, mountain shoes and the photo camera). Once equipped, start this beautiful one day adventure which for sure will amaze you and will be a lifetime memory to remember. Visit Samaria Gorge!
Splendid landscapes during your way down to Agia Roumeli
