Where to start walking or cycling - Plakias

For those new to Crete Plakias is recommend as a starting point. This is a small resort on the south coast of Crete which is an excellent base for both walking and cycling with a wide range of paths and tracks in quiet countryside. These are within easy reach of the village and range from level tracks alongside the aqueducts to mountain ridges. Private transport is generally not needed.

The best time to visit this area is in April and May when the spring flowers are in full bloom. Early March can be wet and cold and July and August can be very hot with strong winds developing every day. The summer migrant birds arrive in late March or early April with the first tourists.

Plakias sits at one end of a broad sandy bay with a small harbour and beach front cafes.To the east the shore forms a series of rocky bays and sandy inlets with cliffs rising into a line of hills. Inland from this is a broad agricultural area with olive groves. This then rises steeply into a long ridge of limestone mountains with peaks of 900 metres to 1200 metres. This ridge is cut by three gorges, two of which have roads which provide the main access from Rethimnon.

To the west of Plakias the olive groves climb steeply from the sea up to the mountains and there is another good bathing beach at Souda Bay, also known as Freshwater Bay, two kilometres along the shore track. Further west the olive groves are squeezed out as the mountains climb from the shore.

The resort has a good range of small shops - bakers, butchers, fruit and vegetable, groceries and chemists as well as car hire and several money exchanges. A post office operates from a caravan on the sea front in July and August.

Plakias is a new resort built beside a fishing harbour.

The older villages of Selia and Mirthios and Mariou sit half way up the mountain side, between two and three kilometres form Plakias, and the east-west road runs at this level. These are predominantly of old stone houses with a living room above animal sheds and store rooms. Newer concrete buildings are expanding the villages but mostly they remain very compact with narrow stepped alleyways winding steeply between the houses.

Accommodation in Plakias

There is a lot of new development in Plakias and it is unlikely to be full even in the high season. Buses are often met by the owners of accommodation who have vacancies. There is a full range of hotels and up-to-date information can usually be obtained from any travel agent. Half board or bed and breakfast accommodation is also available in the village, but most visitors stay in rooms. These are modern concrete buildings, mostly high ceilinged and airy with balconies. The centre of the village follows the Cretan tradition of tightly packed buildings with only narrow streets between them.

It is cheaper for two single people to share a two-roomed apartment which will usually include a cooking ring and a fridge. A group of people will often find an apartment the best value for money. Out of season prices may be lower by negotiation, July and August prices higher. Prices change a lot from year to year. Hot water almost always comes from solar panels. A cloudy week out of season will result in no hot showers, even in most hotels.

Transport from Plakias

The cheapest way of extending your walking range is to get the 07.00 hours bus in the morning from the seafront to Lefkogia, Frati or Koxare. Buses also run west through Selia in the summer months but not out of season. Coach tours are much more expensive.

Mountain bikes can be hired by the day or by the week from several shops in the village.

Map of routes 1 - 10

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