The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania is a day walk down a rocky gorge in the Sfakia region of southern Crete, and the coach trip from Chania brings walkers to the top of the trail. Walkers who want more days out on Crete can browse the tours in Greece hub.
Below, the page sets out what the hike includes, the route, the timing, the order of the day, the walkers it suits and the questions that come up.
What is the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania?
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania is a day walk down a gorge in the Sfakia area of southern Crete. Walkers join it from Chania by coach day trip, hire car or public bus. The path runs downhill to the village of Komitades.
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania starts with a pick-up in the city on one operator’s coach day trip. That operator drives about one hour, then the walk begins. A walking page on a Crete site names two other ways to reach Imbros. They are a hire car and the public bus on the Chania to Hora Sfakion route.
Wikipedia gives the Imbros Gorge a length of 11 km, close to Hora Sfakion in the south of Crete. Its course lies alongside the Samaria Gorge, and it ends at the village of Komitades. The hiking route is 8 km. Imbros village, where the walk starts, lies 780 metres up, at the south end of the Askyfou plain.
Wikipedia lists Chania as the regional capital, on Crete’s north-west shore. Wikivoyage ties its atmosphere to a Venetian and Turkish past. Sfakia is a mountain region in Crete’s south-west, within the same regional unit. Its capital, Hora Sfakion, sits 74 km south of Chania, near where the gorge ends.
One walking page ranks Imbros second among the gorge walks of Crete for popularity, behind Samaria. It says the path is easier underfoot and suits children. It adds that a good road serves the gorge and that no ferry trip is needed to get back. The walk also does not need a whole day.
A hiking blog calls the descent easy compared with other gorges and the hike short. A Norwegian hiking page says it suits families and walkers who want a calmer walk. Wikipedia says the gorges of Sfakia all end in the sea. One listing names the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania together with a village visit.
What does the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania include?
Two operators say the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania includes a bus, a tour leader and a coffee stop. Both add time on the coast for a swim or a meal, and the gorge ticket is paid separately.
Two operators list the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania as a bus trip with a pick-up. One lists a pick-up in Chania, a drop-off there and an air-conditioned bus. The other says its bus collects walkers at their hotels or set pick-up points. A walking page says a local tour takes care of all transport but leaves less flexibility.
Both operators name a tour leader for the walk, one of them a mountain tour leader. Both also plan a stop at the gorge for coffee or breakfast before the walk starts. One operator gives walkers own time for it on arrival. The other places the stop at the entrance.
After the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania, the bus continues to the coast. One operator names Frangokastello Beach or Chora Sfakion for a swim, and local taverns for a meal. The other names only Chora Sfakion, where walkers can swim or eat at a tavern or cafe overlooking the sea. Wikipedia says Hora Sfakion has a harbourfront of tavernas.
Each operator treats the gorge ticket as a separate payment for the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania. One lists the entrance under exclusions. The other says walkers pay it on the spot in cash. One operator names heart conditions and pregnancy among the cases for which the trip is not recommended.
The two operators differ on the length and the stops of the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania. One lists a walk of 9 km, while the other calls the gorge 8 km long. The first listing also names the ruins of a Venetian fortress with a view over Sfakia.
Where does the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania go?
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania runs south over the White Mountains to the village of Imbros. It then walks downhill through the gorge to the village of Komitades, close to the south coast of Crete.
The trip starts in Chania, a city in western Crete. Wikipedia says the road to Sfakia crosses the island from north to south through the village of Vryses. It then goes over the White Mountains, or Lefka Ori. Halfway lies the fertile plateau of Askifou, and the village of Imbros sits at its southern end.
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania starts at a village 52 km from the city, one walking page says. One operator lists a drive of one hour; a travel blog says an hour and a half. Imbros has cafes and tavernas with parking. The entrance ticket is bought at a small house, three to ten minutes away on foot.
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania covers 8 km, Wikipedia and one operator say, while another operator lists 9 km. Wikipedia gives the drop as 650 metres, and walking pages say about 600. Wikipedia says the floor is scree, the loose rock of a dry creek bed. One page says no stream runs through it.
Wikipedia says a mule trail once linked Chania and Chora Sfakion, and parts of the trail survive. The narrowest part measures 1.60 metres. One walking page notes a stone arch on the right near the end of the route. Walking pages also name oaks and cypresses along the path and spring flowers on the cliffs.
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania ends just before Komitades, where one walking page places a small cafe. One operator’s coach then drives on to Chora Sfakion, which a second walking page puts 5 km away. Another operator offers a swim at Frangokastello. Wikipedia puts that sandy beach 12 km east of Chora Sfakion.
When can visitors join the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania?
The gorge behind the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania is open all year, say Wikipedia and two walking pages. Heavy rain or snow stops the walk. Spring brings the flowers, and the pick-up in Chania is in the morning.
One walking page names spring and autumn as the pleasant times, from April to June and from October to November. Another page says April is the busiest month. Tour operators that cannot offer the Samaria Gorge, still closed in April, come to Imbros instead. It suggests a late start, around noon, to avoid the coach loads.
One walking page calls summer fine on the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania. The path is shaded and gently downhill, it says. It adds that the flowers on the cliffs are gone after June. A second page warns of limited shade in places and advises against starting at midday, when the heat is strongest.
Rain is the main warning. One walking page says not to walk on rainy days, because rocks can fall from cliffs. It adds that this matters less at Imbros than at Samaria, since vertical cliffs are not common there. The same writer has seen snow block the upper part, about 700 metres up, but only rarely in mid-winter.
For the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania, one operator sets pick-up between eight and half past eight. Its itinerary lists a quarter past eight in Chania. Arrival at the gorge is at twenty past ten, with time for coffee or breakfast. The hike starts at twenty to eleven.
That operator ends the hike at Komitades at one in the afternoon, depending on speed. It sets the walk at about three hours. Another operator says the walk takes two to three hours. The trip lasts about nine hours, with the return to Chania between six and half past six in the evening.
Walking pages give two and a half hours on average. One puts the stone arch about ninety minutes after the entrance booth. Both operators give a full refund if the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania is cancelled twenty-four hours before the start. One asks guests to reach the meeting point fifteen minutes early.
How does the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania work?
On the coach day trip, the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania follows one order, as two operators list it. Guests are picked up in Chania and stop for coffee at the entrance. They walk down to Komitades, then ride to Chora Sfakion for a meal or a swim.
The coach drives south to the village of Imbros. A walking page says a shallow green ravine leads for about a kilometre to the entrance booth. The path then descends gently to Komitades, where one operator says the coach waits. After the swim or the meal, the coach drives back to Chania.
Walkers who drive themselves on the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania park at Imbros. One walking page says the cafes and tavernas there have space for cars. The same page lists three ways to get the car back. A walker can climb back up the gorge, or ride a shared lift from Komitades with a local driver.
The third way uses the public bus. The walker leaves the car at Komitades and walks up towards Imbros. The bus from Chania then carries the walker back down to the junction. That page calls the Chania to Hora Sfakion buses infrequent, so they offer little flexibility.
Shoes come first when a walker plans the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania. The Norwegian page calls the ground rocky and uneven, so it asks for sturdy shoes with good grip. Wikipedia asks for shoes with ankle support. The hiking blog adds a hat and sunscreen for summer. The Norwegian page lists blister plasters and first aid.
The hiking blog says the trail has no water points. The Norwegian page names water points but still asks for extra water. The blog calls one litre enough in spring and autumn and asks for at least two in summer. It adds that taverns at both ends serve breakfast and lunch, and both pages ask for cash.
Do walkers need a tour leader on the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania? The hiking blog says no, because the trail is very clear, and it attaches a navigation file. The Norwegian page calls the path clearly marked and easy to follow. It adds that a tour with a tour leader is possible.
Who is the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania for?
The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania suits families with children, first-time gorge walkers and visitors without a car. A hiking blog rates the walk easy, and one operator rates its difficulty low.
One operator calls the walk easy enough to make the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania ideal for families with children. A walking page says the walk is easy to do with children. A travel blog tells of a six-year-old who walked the whole trail with rest stops.
First-time gorge walkers appear among the groups the pages name for this hike. A travel blog calls the route a fairly easy ramble that gives a taste of gorge walking. The pages do not agree on difficulty, though, because Wikipedia calls the gorge strenuous.
Visitors who do not drive can take an organised tour. A tour also removes the problem of getting back to a parked car, which the walking page raises for drivers.
Fit walkers have choices. The hiking blog says the route can be walked in reverse, with a mild uphill walk. The walking page calls the path never steep but stony, so each step needs attention. The blog also calls it a short hike with plenty of daylight hours.
Heart conditions and pregnancy are the two cases for which one operator advises against the trip. History draws other visitors to the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania. One walking page calls the walk nearly a pilgrimage for a number of visitors. The questions at the end of this page tell that story.
What else do visitors ask about the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania?
What happened in the Imbros Gorge in nineteen forty-one?
Wikipedia says the gorge saw thousands of British soldiers evacuated in the Second World War, bound for Egypt. Another walking page says Allied troops headed through the gorge to Hora Sfakion, where ships were due to collect them. Walkers on the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania pass through that same gorge on their way to Komitades.
That page mentions a monument in Hora Sfakion and calls the walk almost a pilgrimage for Australians and New Zealanders. A travel blog adds that the Maritime Museum in Chania shows photographs of the gorge and the soldiers.
How does the Samaria Gorge differ from the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania?
The Samaria Gorge lies in the same regional unit of Chania and is a national park and a biosphere reserve. Inside the park the route measures 13 km, with two more to Agia Roumeli. Wikipedia gives the time as five to seven hours, and at the Gates the sides close in to four metres.
Hikers then sail from Agia Roumeli to Sougia or Hora Sfakion, where a coach can take them back to Chania. It also says the Imbros walk is something like half of Samaria, and the two gorges run parallel.
What is Frangokastello, the castle east of Hora Sfakion?
Frangokastello is a castle and scattered settlement on the south coast of Crete, east of Hora Sfakion. The Venetians raised the castle in the fourteenth century to keep order in the rebellious Sfakia region and deter pirates. Locals who never saw it in a positive light named it Frangokastello, meaning the Castle of the Franks.
Tradition tells of the Drosoulites, marching shadows of soldiers at dawn each late spring, explained as a weather effect. One operator lists a swim at Frangokastello Beach or Hora Sfakion after the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania.
What is the kri-kri, and will walkers meet it on the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania?
Wikipedia treats the kri-kri as a feral goat and lists the names agrimi, Cretan goat and Cretan ibex. Its range is Greece alone: Crete itself and three small islands close to its coast. The peaks of the White Mountains are its last strongholds, and Wikipedia says hunting it is strictly prohibited.
A Norwegian hiking page says the goats near Komitades are used to people and rest along the road. A sighting on the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania is not certain, though that page calls goats common nearby.
Who was Daskalogiannis, and what ties him to the Imbros Gorge hike from Chania?
Ioannis Vlachos, better known as Daskalogiannis, led a Cretan revolt against Ottoman rule in the eighteenth century, Wikipedia says. Anopolis, near Hora Sfakion, was his birthplace; Hora Sfakion was a centre of resistance to Venetian and Ottoman rule. Promised Russian help never arrived, and he surrendered to the Turks hoping to ease the situation for his people.
He was put to death in Heraklion, and the airport of Chania bears his name to this day. The Imbros Gorge hike from Chania runs through Sfakia, his home region, where Anopolis has a memorial statue.