Plan a Trip to Greece: Schedule a Walking Holiday

If you are in the mood to escape to a place that emphasises ancient history and a beautiful and majestic landscape, you will want to put on your hiking or walking shoes and book a walking tour of Greece. However, Greece is a sizable place for a hiker or walker to explore. Therefore, you need to narrow down your holiday choices.

Planning a Walking Journey in Greece

Most of the holidays that are featured for trekkers include such places as West Crete, the Cyclades Islands, Athens and its isles of Hydra and Poros, and Corfu and Paxos. All the self-guided walking journeys are scheduled for seven nights and are offered either throughout the year or during specific periods of the year.

For example, if you want to take a jaunt through West Crete, this walking holiday is offered from the beginning of April to almost the end of October. This coastal walk enables trekkers to behold the beautiful Libyan sea whilst walking past ancient sites such as fortresses.

For this particular journey, hikers arrive in the serene seaside town of Paleochora via taxi. The larger southwest coast village is home to rocky and sandy shores as well an impressive Venetian fortification. If you visit the area in the middle of May or mid-October, you can take a ferry from Paleochora. This particular adventure will lead you to the Elafonissi Lagoon. From the lagoon, you will walk back to Paleochora via sandy shores. The walk finally concludes at Kyros Beach where you will take a taxi back to your accommodation.

Visiting Ancient Lissos

Needless to say, walking holidays in Greece from Hooked on Cycling will leave you hooked on walking. For example, one of the coastal walks that you will take on the West Crete excursion will begin, again, at Paleochora. Following a dirt trail, you will be greeted by a remote wilderness. Walkers continue the journey up a coastal trail that features a splendid view of the sea. During the sojourn, participants pass the once-bustling harbor of ancient Lissos, which was significant to the economy of early Elyros, a city that held a population of around 30,000 people at the time.

During those times, people travelled to Lissos to enjoy the therapeutic quality of the waters. You can enjoy some therapy yourself by taking a swim in the same waters before you continue your journey to Sougia by way of a lovely gorge.

Walking Over a Mountainous Landscape

Mountain walking is included in this trip as well with the path spanning from Sougia to the Omalos plateau. Walkers begin at sea level and ascend up to 1000 metres. This particular hike involves trekking through the Irini Gorge. Whilst the incline is challenging, it is not too precipitous. From the Irini Gorge, walkers trek up the steeper Figou Gorge.

Be prepared to witness striking views of the surrounding landscape. This montane walk concludes at the AgiosTheodoros (a chapel). A minibus collects walkers and returns them to their hotel, which is a property located on the Omalos plain. From your hotel room, you can see spectacular views of the White Mountains.