Trips & tickets
Coach to Omalos in the White Mountains and breakfast, then the walk down the gorge at your own pace to the village of Agia Roumeli.
The 16 km gorge from Chania with a hiking guide carrying radios, a safety briefing before you start and the ferry from Agia Roumeli.
The same gorge day with pickup in Rethymno and a guide.
The full GetYourGuide listing for the Samaria Gorge — organised hikes with transfers, guided walks and private trips from Chania, Rethymno and Heraklion, with live prices.
The Samaria Gorge runs down from the White Mountains of south-west Crete to the sea at Agia Roumeli. The walk is one way, downhill, and ends on a coast with no road out — so every visit needs a way to the top and a boat back along the coast.
That is why most people book an organised trip: a coach to the start, the park ticket, and the boat and coach home. Guided hikes and private transfers are the alternatives compared here.
Plan it properly
Planning the Samaria Gorge logistics: KTEL buses from Chania to Xyloskalo (05:00, 07:45, 08:45), the €10.00 NECCA ticket, entry for the full route from 07:00 to 13:00, weather closures, and the 17:30 boat from Agia Roumeli to Chora Sfakion or Sougia with buses back to Chania.
What the Samaria Gorge walk is really like: about 16 km from Xyloskalo at 1,227 m down to the sea, 6–7 hours on a rocky path with river crossings, springs and toilets along the way, the Gates where the walls stand four metres apart, the park rules and the safety advice every hiker should know.
The southern end of the Samaria Gorge: the Gates, where the walls stand four metres apart and rise almost 300 m, the 'easy way' walk up from Agia Roumeli (about 1.5 km to the Gates), the village with no road, the ANENDYK boats along the south coast, and the national park's story from 1962.
The gorge
Photographs licensed from Shutterstock.
From 1 May to 31 October, 7 am to 4 pm, with entrances at Xyloskalo and Agia Roumeli.
About 16 km: 13 km of path inside the gorge plus 3 km from the south entrance to Agia Roumeli. An average crossing takes 6–7 hours.
Buses run from Chania to Xyloskalo at the top; the return from Agia Roumeli is by boat.
Yes. The 'easy way' starts at Agia Roumeli, reached by ferry, and walks up from the south end towards the Iron Gates.