Author Archives: Jean

Samaria 2018 opening

Posted on 20/04/2018 by Jean

As of today (20th of April) the official position of the Samaria National Park governing body is that they will open the gorge of Samaria on the 1st May. Things might change but please don’t ask me. I’ll post a … Continue reading →

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Finally Chania airport has a website

Posted on 12/04/2017 by Jean

Good news, the airport of Chania finally has a website! It’s very new and still a little rough around the edges (some information is still sparse, photos of Chania are much too contrasty and a 176 words sentence in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

A look back at the tourist season 2016

Posted on 21/10/2016 by Jean

The tourist season 2016 is winding down and by early November most charter flights to Crete will have taken the last tourists away. It seems that most Cretans who have businesses in tourism have had a satisfying season. Crete and … Continue reading →

Posted in The Greek crisis, Tourism | 2 Comments

Discover Rethymnon… on Foot

Posted on 17/05/2016 by Jean

The seventh book in the series Discover…on Foot has recently been published. It covers short walks in and around Rethymnon and follows the successful formula of former publications, with good maps, plenty of illustrations and informative text. I think that … Continue reading →

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Samaria gorge 2016

Posted on 09/04/2016 by Jean

Because of the mild and very dry winter there has been little damage to the path that runs through the gorge of Samaria and not much water in the river. As the good weather looks set to continue it seems … Continue reading →

Posted in Tourism, Walks | 2 Comments

The Cretan Way – A 28-day walk by Luca Gianotti

Posted on 01/04/2016 by Jean

A long awaited book finally got published last week: “The Cretan Way – A 28-day walk” is the brainchild of Luca Gianotti, an Italian walking guide. Rather than trying to paraphrase what the book is about here is an excerpt … Continue reading →

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My personal 5 ‘must see’ places in Crete

Posted on 22/03/2016 by Jean

Crete has so much to offer for all tastes and so much choice can be confusing to a newcomer. Here is my personal list of what I consider the five ‘must see’ places of Crete and why I chose them. … Continue reading →

Posted in Places, Tourism | 5 Comments

Samaria gorge visitors trends

Posted on 01/10/2015 by Jean

The National Park of Samaria has just closed for the season 2015 and visitors statistics are out. It seems that the recovery in the number of visitors to the gorge of Samaria suffered a small setback this year. The visitors … Continue reading →

Posted in Tourism | 18 Comments

Cretan holiday villa rentals

Posted on 22/06/2015 by Jean

Amid the continuing talk of Greek crisis and all the foreign press hype about the country falling apart it is refreshing to see that local entrepreneurs are not afraid to embark on new and ambitious business ideas. Based in Chania, … Continue reading →

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Flower of the month | June | Verbascum macrurum

Posted on 14/06/2015 by Jean

If you drive on country roads in Crete in June you are bound  to notice the spectacular Verbascum macrorum growing along the roadsides. The plant can reach heights of up to 1.5m and is widespread in Crete and the southern … Continue reading →

Posted in Flowers | Leave a comment