Hania Province

The west of Crete stands apart in so many ways. A land of giant mountains, grandiose legends and memorials to great battles past, it is presided over by the romantic port city of Hania, once Venice’s jewel of a capital and now filled with boutique hotels, interesting shops and some of Greece’s best restaurants. The region also boasts the grandest gorge in Europe, impressive west-coast beaches, Europe’s southernmost possession (tranquil Gavdos, a remote island nearer to Africa than to Greece), and mountain villages that are like a step back in time. The steep mountains that ripple across the west and into the southern sea guarantee that the region generally remains untouched by the excesses of tourism. If you want to see beautiful and traditional Crete, Hania and the west is definitely the place.