Crete Gorges

This Crete Gorges section hopes to give you a flavour of the beauty of this wonderful Greek Island.

If you are a relatively healthy and active person, the most memorable and enjoyable experiences can be found by exploring the island during long walks or hikes. The fabulous flora and fauna of Crete is unique and the scenery breathtakingly stunning and can really be appreciated while out walking.

For the more adventurous there are so many opportunities to explore the great gorges in Crete. Hiking through the Crete gorges, is a challenging yet rewarding way to discover Crete and all her beauties.

Crete Gorges

There are several wonderful gorges to explore on the Greek island of Crete. If you enjoy flora and fauna, walking, trekking and hiking you’ll love visiting Crete. There are many gorges to explore around the Island.

Samaria Gorge

The most impressive of all the gorges of Crete is the famous Samaria Gorge in the Chania region of West Crete. The Samaria Gorge is the longest in Europe, some 18 km and renowned for its majestic beauty. Hiking down the gorge is permitted from May to the end of October, depending on the weather.

For a really good insight, please click this link to read about our personal experience Walking Samaria Gorge.

Imbros Gorge

Imbros Gorge (also known as Faragi Imbrou) is a 11km long canyon located near Hora Sfakion in the Hania region of West Crete. This is a very pleasant and relatively easy walk and, after Samaria, attracts the largest number of tourists. This is one of the most enjoyable and beautiful Crete gorges with its narrow canyons and rich flora and fauna.

Imbros Gorge was the escape route for thousands of Allied troops retreating from the north of the island following the Battle of Crete in 1941 and heading for Chora Sfakion for evacuation to Egypt.

Agia Irini Gorge

The Agia Irini Gorge (also known as Ayia Irini) is a section of the world famous E4 European Walking Path and is much less crowded than the Samaria Gorge and thus more appealing to some. We walked the Agia Irini Gorge in mid October 2007 and really enjoyed it

Click here for our own very personal account of walking Agia Irini Gorge!

The Agia Irini Gorge is close to the Samaria Gorge and is located at the White Mountains of Chania in West Crete. The gorge itself is about 7km long and is simply stunning.

Butterfly Gorge

Butterfly Gorge begins high up on the road to Orino and ends at Koutsouras National Park in the Lassithi region of Crete close to the village of Makriyialos. The walk actually takes you through a valley with abandoned Cretan villages and is named Butterfly Gorge because of huge number of butterflies to be found there.

Pefki Gorge

Pefki Gorge begins just outside the village of Pefki on the road to Agios Stephanos and ends at Aspros Potamos. Again the Pefki Gorge is found in the Lasithi region of East Crete close to the village of Makrigialos. The gentle walk will lead you along ancient donkey tracks through olive groves through the impressive gorge steeped on either side by 200 metres of vertical cliffs.

Moni Kapsa Gorge

Moni Kapsa Gorge begins at the village of Kato Pervolakia and ends at the Monastery of Kapsa. This gorge is the deepest of all three of the Crete gorges in the Lasithi region of East Crete close to the village of Makrigialos and is undoubtedly the most challenging but you’ll be rewarded for your efforts as the scenery is simply stunning and contains some of the richest variety of natural fauna in the region.

The Gorge of Zakros

Zakros marks the very end of the the long distance walking route named the E4 path, which is throughout Europe and goes through the Gorge of Zakros. It is found at the far east of the Crete in the Lasithi region.

The Gorge of Zakros also named the Gorge of the Dead is of outstanding beauty, with large caves in its walls. In those caves were discovered tombs from the Minoan period, and finds of great archaeological importance, hence the name of Gorge of the Dead.