A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania is a day with two halves: a pickup and a drive across north-west Crete, then a boat from the port of Kissamos to the lagoon. The rest of the trip is easy to plan with our other tours in Greece.
This page covers what the tour includes, the length and start time, the pickup from Chania and Rethymno, the drive to Kissamos, the old town of Chania, Rethymno, the town of Kissamos, the Gramvousa peninsula, the boat ticket, the crossing, the day on the beach, what to bring and the questions travellers ask.
What does a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania include?
A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania covers a whole day. It has a bus from your hotel to the port of Kissamos and a boat ticket. It adds a stop at Gramvousa, a stop at Balos and the ride back.
One operator lists three things in a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania. They are a hotel pickup with the drop-off back in Chania. Then come an air-conditioned bus and a stop at Gramvousa and at Balos. The boat ticket and a municipality fee sit outside that listing. Guests pay both in cash on the bus.
Another operator starts the day with a pickup from hotels or from set pickup points. The bus then drives west across Crete to the port of Kissamos, where the ferry waits for the group.
Not every offer is a bus day. A third operator, based in Kissamos, sells the boat ticket alone. It also sells a second version with the boat ticket and a bus transfer. So the same boat trip comes in two forms: ticket only, or ticket plus bus.
On the water, a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania has two swim stops. At Gramvousa, guests can swim or snorkel, or hike up to the castle at the top of the island. At Balos, the stop is for swimming and relaxing at the lagoon.
One operator’s ferry also has a self-service kitchen with meals and snacks, deck chairs and a lounge.
How long is a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, and when does it start?
A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania fills a whole day. One operator puts it at about 11 hours, and another starts the pickup between 8 and 9:20 in the morning.
The operator with the morning pickup gives a full timetable. The group reaches the port of Kissamos at 10 in the morning. The boat leaves at 20 past 10 and arrives at Gramvousa at half past 11.
At half past 1 after noon, the boat leaves Gramvousa. It leaves Balos at half past 4 and docks at Kissamos at a quarter to 6. The return to the hotel falls between half past 6 and half past 7 in the evening.
The time ashore is long. On its Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, that listing allows 2 hours at Gramvousa. It allows 3 hours at Balos. The operator with the 11-hour day states the same stops. It gives about 2 hours at Gramvousa and about 3 hours at Balos.
That second operator sets off from Kissamos at about half past 10. Its ferry is back in port at 20 to 6 in the evening. The group is in Chania again at about half past 6.
The sailing itself is short. Two operators describe the boat ride from Kissamos as about an hour.
A boat-only operator at the small port of Falassarna runs a daily cruise. It runs from 12 noon to 6 in the evening. The sailing takes 45 to 60 minutes. Then come 2 hours 30 minutes at Balos and about 1 hour 30 minutes at Gramvousa.
Compared with that, a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania adds the bus hours at both ends.
How does the pickup from Chania and Rethymno work?
A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania starts on land. One operator lists bus pickups in Chania from 8 in the morning to 9:20. The bus then drives west to the port of Kissamos.
The listing for a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania asks guests to give the hotel name and address. A voucher with the pickup point and time arrives a day before. The operator wants guests at the pickup spot 15 minutes early. A booking after 9 in the evening for the next day needs a message first.
A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania with a bus adds the pickup. Two separate tours come from one Kissamos agency: a boat ticket alone, and a ticket bundled with a bus transfer.
Another operator collects guests from hotels or at its own pickup points and drives west to Kissamos Kasteli. An escort explains the cruise on the way and handles the boat tickets, so guests skip the ticket office lines. That operator also runs pickups from Almyrida and Kalyves on Mondays and Fridays, for a minimum of 4 participants.
Rethymno lies about 70 kilometres east of Chania, in the neighbouring regional unit. One operator lists a Rethymno departure next to its Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.
A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania ends with the same bus. In one schedule the return to Kissamos lands just before 6 in the evening. Hotel drop-offs run from half past 6 to half past 7. Another operator gives about half past 6 for the return to Chania.
What is the drive from Chania to the port of Kissamos like?
On a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, the bus covers 41 kilometres west to the port of Kissamos. That is the distance Wikipedia gives between the city and the port, on the shore of north-western Crete.
The short name Kastelli for Kissamos refers to an earlier Venetian castle in the town. The operators use both names: one writes the port of Kissamos, another says Kissamos Kasteli. Both mean the same harbour.
The road for a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania follows the coast. Wikipedia describes a highway along the north coast of Crete that links the four large cities. It says the section from Chania to Kolymvari is at motorway standard and calls the sections west to Kissamos unfinished.
Kolymvari sits on the Gulf of Chania, where the Rodopou peninsula ends. One agency in Kissamos lists a private transfer route through Kolimbari, Tavronitis, Malame, Gerani, Platanias, Agia Marina, Stalos and Kalamaki.
The municipality of Kissamos is the westernmost piece of the Chania regional unit, with Platanias to its east.
Drive time is a separate question from distance. One agency based in Kissamos calls its office an hour from Chania airport. Wikipedia places that airport 14 kilometres from the city and says it is named after Daskalogiannis, a hero from Sfakia.
In one schedule, the bus reaches the port at 10 in the morning. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania sails 20 minutes after that.
What is the old town of Chania?
Chania’s old town forms the historic core of the city. It faces the sea at the old harbour on Crete’s north-west shore. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania begins in this city.
Before a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, it helps to know the layout. The whole urban area grew around the old town. The sea forms its northern border. Venetian walls once surrounded it. Work on them began in the sixteenth century, and only the eastern and western parts have survived.
Kasteli is the middle district of the old town. It stands on a small hill next to the seafront and has been inhabited since Neolithic times. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania fills the whole day. A walk through these lanes fits the evening before or the evening after the trip.
The old town centres on Eleftherios Venizelos Square, also called Syntrivani. That name derives from a Turkish word meaning fountain. Next to the square lies the Topanas district. Its narrow alleys and old buildings now hold hotels, restaurants, shops and bars. It is a popular place from April to October.
The harbour stands out. Historical buildings line the waterfront streets of Akti Tompazi and Akti Kountouriotou, and the marina quay of Akti Enoseos. The Chania Lighthouse stands on the old Venetian harbour and dates from the nineteenth century. Travellers who book a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania can stroll along this waterfront first.
In the early twentieth century, Crete became part of Greece. The Greek flag first rose over Fort Firka in the Old Harbour. The old town also holds the Folklore Museum and the Nautical Museum of Crete. Both give a rainy-day or evening plan after a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.
What is Rethymno?
Rethymno, a Cretan city with over 35,000 inhabitants, sits roughly 70 kilometres from Chania, towards the east. Its regional unit takes the city’s name, and one operator lists a separate Balos and Gramvousa day tour from there.
Rethymno began to grow after Venetian rulers made it their commercial stop. Venice, as a republic, raised almost the entire old town that visitors walk today. It counts as one of the well-preserved old towns in Crete. The buildings date from the sixteenth century. It also has arched doorways, stone staircases, a small Venetian harbour and narrow streets.
The town’s Venetian citadel is called the Fortezza. It is one of the well-preserved castles in Crete. Other monuments include the Neradje Mosque, now the Municipal Odeon arts centre, the Great Gate, Piazza Rimondi and the Loggia. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania takes a full day, so these sights keep for a second day.
Visitors find an Archaeological Museum in town, plus the Museum of Sea Life. A wine festival takes place each year at the start of July. Another festival, on 7 and 8 November, remembers the destruction of the Arkadi Monastery. A museum or a festival in Rethymno pairs well with a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.
The town earns its living mainly from tourism. Agriculture also matters, especially olive oil. Chania and Rethymno are two separate towns about 70 kilometres apart. Between them, they give a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania two towns to explore on land.
What is Kissamos?
Kissamos is a Greek town at the western end of Crete. It heads a municipality of the same name. On a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, one operator’s itinerary sends the bus to its port. The boat waits there.
Chania is the regional unit that contains the town. The former Kissamos Province once took in the island’s north-western corner. Two more names, Kastelli Kissamou and Kastelli alone, come from a Venetian castle that stood there. One operator’s listing for a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania calls the port Kissamos Kasteli.
It is a fishing harbour and a port. A regular ferry links it with the Peloponnese via Kythira. Counted from the west, it is the first main port of Crete. The town museum occupies a building that was once the Venetian governor’s palace. Important finds include mosaics from Roman times, when the city was called Kisamos.
The town is old. The ancient writer Strabo described Cisamus as the naval arsenal of Aptera, a city on which it depended. After the Venetian conquest of Crete, Kissamos became a Latin Church diocese. An Orthodox bishopric still exists there. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania starts its sea leg from this old harbour town.
The municipality is larger than the town. It formed when three older municipalities joined: Kissamos, Inachori and Mythimna. Together they cover about 341 square kilometres at the extreme western end of Crete. Its land includes the Gramvousa peninsula, plus the islets next to it. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania sails to them.
What is the Gramvousa peninsula?
The Gramvousa peninsula is a headland jutting out of the north-western shore of Crete, in the Chania area. Kissamos Bay is closed off on its western side by this peninsula. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania heads for the islands off its coast.
Rodopos is the neighbouring peninsula, and Gramvousa lies further west. The “three heads” of Crete are three headlands of the Chania regional unit. They are Gramvousa with a peak of 725 metres, Rodopos with 730 metres and Akrotiri with 505 metres.
Two small uninhabited islands lie off the coast of the peninsula. Their names are Imeri Gramvousa and Agria Gramvousa, which mean Tame Gramvousa and Wild Gramvousa. Wild Gramvousa lies straight north of its neighbour and is far less welcoming. Today Imeri Gramvousa is the popular tourist island of the two.
The municipality of Kissamos administers both islands. That is the same municipality that holds the port of a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.
The lagoon in a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania lies between Gramvousa island and Crete. An islet there forms part of a cape called Cape Tigani, Greek for “frying pan”. Further north, on the Korykon cape, a small Roman town of ancient times, Agnion, left ruins.
One operator’s listing calls Gramvousa an important bird habitat in the eastern Mediterranean. It names over 100 bird species and 400 kinds of plants. That is worth knowing before a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania. The same listing describes the boat trip as a journey through the westernmost point of Crete.
What does the boat ticket cover on the way to Balos?
On a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, the boat ticket pays for the sea part of the day. That is the cruise from the port of Kissamos to Gramvousa and Balos. One operator lists it as a separate item, handed over to the staff aboard the coach in cash.
A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania splits the day into a land part and a sea part. One operator’s listing names the pickup, the air-conditioned bus and the stops at Gramvousa and Balos as included. It lists the ticket for the boat and the municipal fee as extras. Both are settled in cash with the coach staff.
Another operator describes a simple routine. Its escort collects the money for the boat tickets on the bus. That way travellers avoid queueing at the ticket offices. At the port, the Gramvousa ferry is waiting. On a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, the ticket is handled before anyone steps on board.
Food is a separate matter on a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania. This operator says the self-service restaurant on the Balos boat charges extra and takes credit cards only. Bring a card for the restaurant and cash for the ticket, as the listings state.
The ticket also comes in other forms. One seller lists a boat ticket alone for travellers who reach Kissamos port themselves. Another listing joins the ticket and a bus transfer in one item. A third listing from the same seller starts at Falassarna port, on a smaller boat with fewer people.
What is the boat crossing like?
The crossing on a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania is short. One operator describes an hour-long trip from Kissamos to the islands. Another operator’s smaller boat from Falassarna needs 45 to 60 minutes.
The port of Kissamos lies in the north-west of Crete. Wikipedia lists the Gramvousa peninsula and the Gulf of Kissamos among the peninsulas and gulfs along that coast. Wikipedia places the Gramvousa peninsula on the west edge of that bay. The two Gramvousa islands lie off its coast.
One listing calls the Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania a sail through the westernmost point of Crete.
On the big ferry, one operator describes a kitchen with self-service dishes, meals and snacks. Travellers sit on a deck chair or in the lounge. Microphones tell the story of the island in different languages. The cliff edges of Crete show how the land has risen. The operator says this change has happened over 2,000 years.
Which stop comes first on a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania depends on the boat. On one operator’s ferry, the first call is Gramvousa, then Balos, and then the ferry returns to Kissamos. The operator from Falassarna sails to Balos first and ends at Gramvousa. Its boat sells water, soft drinks, ice cream and sandwiches.
The boats differ from seller to seller. The large ferry carries the crowd. One seller lists semi-private and private cruises on smaller boats, and sailing boats for one-day trips. A booking portal also lists private trips on RIB boats, a type of rigid inflatable boat. Check which boat your Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania uses.
Falassarna has one more point. Its operator says the ship is smaller, so travellers are more comfortable. It lists only 45 minutes on the boat. It adds that the small port has easy free parking.
What does a day at Balos beach involve?
A day at Balos beach on a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania means about three hours ashore. Two operators state a Balos stop of three hours, and the shallow lagoon fills that time with swimming.
The lagoon on a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania is Balos. Wikipedia places that lagoon where the coast of Crete faces the island of Gramvousa. A Cretan beaches site lists white sand and describes shallow, warm sea water. The same site says the water turns deeper and colder past the rocks at each edge.
The beach stop is also the time for snorkelling. One operator lists swimming and snorkelling at Balos and at Gramvousa on its day tour from Chania. Stop lengths differ between operators. Read the times on your own voucher before you plan a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.
The Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania needs little planning for food and drink. The Cretan beaches site places a canteen at the parking area above the lagoon. Water is sold there and at the bars on the ferries. It adds that canteens and umbrellas have appeared in recent years and lists beds among the facilities.
Walkers take a different route. The same site describes a dirt road from Kaliviani to a parking area about ten kilometres along. A one-kilometre walk follows. One operator states that its boat gives access to the Balos lagoon. On a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, the beach day starts at the water’s edge.
What do you need to bring on the tour?
For a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania, one operator asks guests to bring sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat. Another operator adds comfortable sports shoes, and two operators collect the boat fee in cash.
The sun list for a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania is filed as a know-before-you-go note. Sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat are the three items it names. A day built around an open beach and a boat deck gives each of them a clear job.
Shoes have their own reason. One operator names comfortable sports shoes for walking up to the top of the Venetian fortress on Gramvousa. Pack them in the bag you carry on board. The walk starts once the boat reaches that island.
Money needs a plan. Two operators say guests hand over the boat fee in cash while on the bus. One of them states that its boat has a self-service restaurant. Food there is paid by credit card only. Another operator, sailing from Falassarna, sells snacks aboard: water, soft drinks, ice cream, sandwiches.
Water is easy to buy. The canteen above the beach sells it, and so do the ferry bars. A full bottle from home is a choice.
Keep the voucher with you as well. One operator states that the voucher arrives one day before the tour. It names where and when the pickup happens. The voucher and the cash are the two papers to carry on a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.
What else do travellers ask about a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania?
Is Falassarna another beach near the Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania?
Yes. Falassarna lies on the western end of Crete, a harbour town under Kissamos in Chania. It has long sandy beaches.
A CNN poll ranked Falassarna beach among the top 100 beaches in the world. An ancient city once stood here, and its port made it a sea power. The closed harbour joins the sea through two artificial channels. Imposing sandstone towers and bastions survive from the old city.
What is Cape Tigani at Balos?
The name Tigani means frying pan in Greek. Between Gramvousa island and the Cretan coast sits the Balos lagoon. An islet in that lagoon helps form Cape Tigani. A Kissamos tourism site calls Tigani a small rocky peninsula. Land links it to Crete only along a thin strip.
Wikipedia adds that the Korykon cape lies north of Balos. Ruins of a small ancient Roman city stand there.
How big is Crete, the island behind the Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania?
Greece has no bigger island than Crete, and none with more people. Only Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus and Corsica top it among Mediterranean islands.
Measured west to east, Crete is 260 km long, but its north-south width is small. Measured from the Peloponnese, Crete is approximately 100 km further south. Crete and its islets make up a Greek region, the one that lies furthest south of the thirteen.
The Gramvousa islets lie off north-western Crete. A Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania therefore covers one small corner of the island.
What does the sea do to a Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania?
One operator says its captain can change the order or the stops for wind and sea conditions. The same operator cancels when the sea is too rough and moves the booking to a new date.
Another operator’s terms cover a cancellation or delay caused by bad weather. They also say it is not responsible for route changes caused by the weather. Sailing days, then, follow the sea.
How early do you need to reach the port for the Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania?
One operator that sails from the port of Kissamos asks passengers to be at the port 40 minutes before departure. Its terms say passengers must be on board 15 minutes before departure. The ticket is personal and valid only for the journey it was issued for. Anyone who misses the boat has no claim to a refund of the ticket.
The pages we read do not name the spot where the ticket is checked. Confirm it with your operator before the day of the Balos and Gramvousa boat tour from Chania.