This majestuous gorge is considered one of the great attractions of Crete and many tourists want to visit it. But you must realise that it is a long (5 to 7 hours) walk on rough terrain so you will need to have a certain degree of fitness and walking experience in order to enjoy it. is situated in the National park of Samaria, in the White Mountains in West Crete.

This is a beautiful coastal walk leading to the steep hill that you can see to the East of Sougia. The walk is on a fairly good path with plenty of shade but it is quite long (4 hours) so going there and back in one day can be very tiring. An easier option is to find go by boat to Tripiti and return on foot to Sougia. Check with Captain George the day before you plan to go to see if you can arrange this.

It is worth spending a while exploring Lissos and soaking up its incredibly peaceful atmosphere. Beside the better-known Aesculap temple and Roman necropolis (on the western slope of the bowl) there are also two chapels. Agios Kyriakos has some nice frescoes and the chapel of the Panagia (close to the sea) shows how chapel builders “recycled” ancient (Roman in this case) sites and integrated them in their building: the chapel has several carved marble blocks in its walls.