Hike and bike holiday

Hike and bike holiday adventurous walking and cycling tours on Crete: This year we have set up a number of new walks and cycling routes. Here we give an overview of these new possibilities for a hike and bike holiday adventurous hiking and biking tours on Crete. You can walk and cycle these routes with us. Also the guests who have hiked and/or cycled with us more often will be pleasantly surprised by these new routes. You can book this as a package deal: three hikes and two cycle tours in eight days or vice versa: two hikes and three cycle tours.

Walking routes on Crete

The amygdala: From the village where we start the walk, we walk through olive fields to a beautiful church. While walking we have a beautiful view of the different mountains around this valley. In the spring, snow can still be seen on some mountains. Chances are that we will encounter a flock of sheep along the way. Via three typical Cretan villages we walk back through the olive fields and cross a river to get back to the first village.

Length: approximately 11 km
Altitude difference: about 400 meters

Hike with many views: We start the hike in one of the oldest villages in the area, founded in Byzantine times. From the village we continue our way through the fields with beautiful views over the valley. We regularly see the sea and Dia island. Via the olive fields and vineyards, with a view of the Juchta mountain and on Psiloritis, the highest mountain in Crete with a white peak for 7 months a year, we walk to a second village. We take a village walk through this village and visit a number of churches. After lunch we walk via a different route, through the fields, back to the village where we started the walk.

Length: approximately 12 km
Altitude difference: about 200 meters

Neraidospilio

The walk starts in a village in the area. We walk through the olive fields to a church. Via an ancient Roman bridge, where turtles can often be seen in the water, we walk through an abandoned village to a small lake. According to mythology, elves and fairies come together at this lake. We continue our way through a gorge, a completely different environment. We have to climb a bit and regularly cross a river. After the gorge we walk back through the fields to our starting point.

Length: approximately 15.5 km
Altitude difference: about 400 meters

Fossil gorge: From the village we descend fairly quickly into a gorge. This is a fairly wide gorge, with many types of stones. It’s like a geological grab bag! With some luck we will see turtles on the way. We walk along a beautiful sandstone wall where many fossils can be seen. After we have walked through the gorge for a while, we walk back to Zorbas via the olive fields, a village and the beach.

Length: approximately 10 km
Altitude difference: about 300 meters

The kalderimi

The name of the village we walk to first means “dark”, because of the nearby cave that we will not visit during this walk. Via an old kalderimi, where people have walked for hundreds of years before we even got into the cars, we walk through a bamboo river and through an orange/lemon area to a church in the village. We leave the village via sandy paths, through olive fields, on the way to the picnic spot. After lunch at a hidden church between the pine trees we walk along a dry waterfall via country roads to an ancient village with its own water source where time has stood still. From here we walk back to the car via another route.

Length: approximately 14 km
Altitude difference: about 500 meters

The hidden grave: Via olive fields and two authentic Cretan villages we climb to a church from the year 600. Over a mountain ridge, with beautiful sea views, we walk to a hidden church with hidden graves. We continue the road over a kalderimi, past a shepherd to reach a gorge via a pine forest and bamboo lane. This is where scrambling skills come in handy! After a climbing and scrambling part we leave the gorge and walk through an old kalderimi and a picturesque village to our starting point.

Length: approximately 10 km
Altitude difference: about 300 meters

Toupaki

We start the walk just outside a village in the area. Via a bamboo lane and olive fields we climb a bit to an old church on a hill. After having seen the church, we walk down again to walk through a small village, another church and through nature to an abandoned shepherd’s village. Here the landscape becomes a bit rougher, with rocks from the Ice Age. We descend through this beautiful landscape to an old bridge to walk back through olive fields to our starting point.

Length: approximately 14.5 km
Altitude difference: about 400 meters

Jungle, river, adventure

Our walk starts between the olive fields with beautiful views to the sea, in the valley and in the gorge. Through these fields we walk to a village, where we take a small village walk. We leave the village via another road to descend to a gorge, where our adventure begins. The path takes us along a small river, sometimes passable, sometimes with some obstacles. We cross the river several times, sometimes easier than other times. Some scrambling skills and muscle strength are needed! After we have left the gorge, a steep climb between the olive fields awaits us to our starting point.

Length: approximately 16 km
Altitude difference: about 600 meters

Skopela Gorge: The start is at an old monastery. We walk through an old Venetian village and olive fields to the next village. We walk down to a gorge. After our walk through the gorge we walk back to the village via a mountain path. Via an old connecting road we walk to a beautiful olive field where we have lunch. After lunch we walk back to the monastery where we started the walk.

Length: approximately 15 km
Altitude difference: about 600 meters

Galipe valley

From a village in the area we walk through olive fields to a beautiful church. There is some climbing involved, but the views make up for it. Then we walk on to the next village. The landscape is an alternation of olive trees and rougher landscape. Via a monastery we walk to the next village with an old water source where the bottles can be refilled. After this we walk, with a view of a dry waterfall, through fields with beautiful views. After some climbing through rougher landscapes, we come back to our starting point.

Length: approximately 16.5 km
Altitude difference: about 550 meters

Sunrise walk

We leave Zorbas early and drive to a village nearby. At a monastery we first drink coffee to wake up. Then we walk through a beautiful hilly landscape with many olive trees, while enjoying a beautiful sunrise. We walk through the fields to an olive field. After a delicious breakfast in this olive field, we walk to an authentic village. From here we walk through the fields back to the first village. After a visit to the kafeneion we walk back to our starting point.

Length: approximately 10-12 km
Altitude difference: about 300 meters

Jungle hike: this hike is for the real adventurers. The hike leads us along a little river, above a gorge. We have very nice views and regularly we have to make our way through the bushes and climb and scramble carefully. After we walked along the gorge, we follow our way along vineyards and through the olive fields back to our starting point.

Length: approximately 7 km
Altitude difference: about 200 meters

Cycle routes

Route 1 (half a day):

We leave from Zorbas and immediately start with a considerable climb. Via two villages and olive fields we cycle, with a bit of off-road, to a church for our coffee break. From the church you have a beautiful view of the area. We regularly see Juchta and Psiloritis, but also the sea. Via two other villages we climb a little more and then descend wonderfully again to sea level. We cycle back to Zorbas along the sea.

Length: approximately 28 km
Altitude difference: about 500 meters

Route 2 (half a day):

Our starting point is Zorbas. From here we climb over the mountain inland to cycle through a beautiful old village to a village from 1583. Here is an old wine press where we cycle past. Via an off-road road we cycle through another small village to a somewhat larger village. Here we have beautiful views of the olive fields around us. After a tour of this village, we start the descent towards the sea and Zorbas.

Length: approximately 27.5 km
Altitude difference: about 515 meters

Cycle routes on Crete

Route 3 (full day):

We cycle from Zorbas and start with a climb of about 200 meters. Through a beautiful village we cycle through the olive fields towards a somewhat larger village in the area. We continue our way with some ascending and descending to a monastery. Here we stop to have a look around. The monastery has a beautiful church and a museum. Then we cycle on to the native village of Nikos Kazantzakis, where we take a village walk. This tour is a combination of cycling and short walks! Via a different route we descend back to Zorbas.

Length: approximately 45 km
Altitude difference: about 800 meters

Route 4 (full day):

From Zorbas we cycle inland and immediately start with a climb to warm up the muscles. Via three small, typical Cretan villages we cycle on paved roads to a somewhat larger village. Along the way we have beautiful views of the rolling countryside and the olive trees. Then we climb a lot while we cycle through beautiful villages. Then we start the descent (with some climbing now and then) along a large reservoir, to the coast. Along the coast (with a short walk through the sand), we cycle back to Zorbas.

Length: approximately 71 km
Altitude difference: about 1100 meters

Longer cycling routes

Route 5 (full day):

Our starting point is Zorbas. From there we first cycle along the coast before we start a considerable climb. We cycle through different villages to a cave. Here we park the bike and walk down to have a look at the cave. There is also a church, where we also look around. Then we climb further to the next village, where we take a rest on a nice square with a beautiful view over the valley and Dia island. This village has an old water source, where the bottles can be filled.

Then we continue the trip (we keep climbing for a while) to the next village and a number of old windmills. Here we put the bike down and climb a bit up the mountain for a beautiful view of the different mountain ranges around us. After this we descend via an off-road path to the next village. Via the road and a number of other villages we cycle to a cave church, where we have our last break. Then we prepare for the last part: descending through the olive fields back to Zorbas. All together a nice bike ride with a touch of Unknown Crete and a lot of culture.

Length: approximately 50 km
Altitude difference: about 800 meters

Cycling on Crete

Route 6 (Syllamos track, all day):

The route starts at Zorbas and takes us inland via the old road along the sea. Now that we are nicely warmed up, we are ready for a big climb along olive fields and in the depth we see a gorge. Then we descend through a number of villages and we cycle under an old Venetian aqueduct. We park the bicycle and walk to a church from where we have a beautiful view of the aqueduct. We continue the road, off-road, through the vineyards to the next village, with a beautiful view of Juchta. On the road we cycle through a beautiful area, shady and along a river, to a town. We cycle through this beautiful town, with nice coloured houses. After this we cycle, descending and climbing, to a last village before we start the descent back to Zorbas.

Length: approximately 50 km
Height difference: about 900 meters

More information

Hiking and walking on Crete: A real nice way to see the island is to go hiking or walking. We offer different walks for all types of people. Whether you’re an experienced hiker or whether you like to have a more real relaxed walk, we have it all! We have walking trails that you can discover yourself, but we also offer hiking tours on Crete with a guide. Although we focus on the unknown and self-marked routes, you can certainly come to us for the well-known gorges like Samaria and Imbros.

Bicycle on Crete: A great way to see the nature and culture of Crete. We have a variety of bicycling (eMTB) options. We organize different bicycle excursions, as well as for the more experienced cyclist, as for the recreational cyclist and the off-road mountain biker.

Holiday information

News and photo page: On Crete News you find the latest pictures, so you are always informed about our activities. You will also find an extensive collection of photo albums and photo books of our excursions, both in summer and winter. These pictures of the last years were taken by us and our guests of Zorbas Island and give you a great impression of staying on Crete.

Excursions on Crete: Here you find a lot of information about excursions during your holiday on Crete like: car and bike rental, car and accommodation, diving, cycling, hiking, hiking combinations on Crete, Greek cooking lesson, playing golf, boat trips, horseback riding, outdoor activities, sailing, jeep safari, fishing, group excursions, weekly excursion programs or fly-drive.

To give you an impression about your holiday at Zorbas Island on Crete, we created a short “Zorbas Island” Movie for you: If you got 5 minutes for holidays to Crete

Holiday information Crete Zorbas Island: For renting apartments and holiday homes, all your excursions and cheap flights to Crete. If you are looking for apartment rental and accommodation on Crete, you have come to the right place. We have a variety of apartments, suitable for families, singles, couples or more people travelling together. We can help you to organize your holiday on Crete Greece to your wishes. An active outdoor vacation, active holidays, a beach holiday, or a combination of both we can all realize for you.

In case you like more information, please send an email to zorbasisland@gmail.com