Times are exciting here in Europe. Since the 15th of June we are allowed to travel within the EU again. Countries are slowly opening up borders and relaxing their rules. Working in tourism, this is a great relief for me. Personally, I’m still not back in action, but at least I can now support others who work in tourism and support my mental health. I am starting to get a bit restless.
Although my international travel starts with a trip to my home country (very exotic), I also started looking into visiting the sun and the sea in Southern Europe. For some reason Crete kept popping back into my head. How cool would it be to walk through the Samaria Gorge and end the day with a dip in the beautiful water of the Mediterranean Sea. Unfortunately the flights to Greece weren’t so cheap. Airlines are still not operating full schedules and I guess people quickly snap up the good deals. And yet it kept appearing in my mind. Crete… Samaria… So I kept looking, found a reasonable price and thought “what the heck!” In July I’ll be spending 11 full days on Crete!
So now the travel planning starts. I’m flying into Chania and out of Heraklion, so I want to make my way across the North coast of the island and maybe do 3 stops from where I can do excursions. Along the way I’ll stay in hostels and perhaps a campground I found where you can rent a tent. I haven’t been so excited about travel in a while. Although I’m doing it on my own and have no idea if the backpacker scene is up and running again (the hostels all seems to have plenty of space), I can’t wait to explore some new terrain again.
From Chania there are many things I want to do. Number 1 of course is hiking through the Samaria Gorge. Then there are 2 beaches that are very worthwhile: Balos and Elafonissi. Before flying out of Heraklion I’d like to do a trip to Knossos and see the ruins of the Minoan civilization. Between these two cities, I thought of stopping in Rehtymno. That also give me 3 cities to enjoy. From these cities I may be able to take a day trip to a quieter town or a beach. I can’t wait to put my feet in the sea, soak in the sunshine, wander the tiny streets and finish the day with some tzatziki.
Crete in July is something I would usually probably advise against. Now tourism is only just starting up, so I really hope that I’m early enough to enjoy the island’s gems without crazy amounts of other tourists. Since bars and clubs aren’t open, I expect there to be a lot less party tourism. People all over the world have missed out on several months of income because of the lack of tourism and we’re probably the last industry to “get back to normal”. The 2020 tourism season won’t bring in the expected income for many businesses, big and small. Perhaps travelling during these Corona times is risky, as it can spread the disease again, but as someone who is out of work because of this, I’m happy to go and support the industry. With a bit of common sense and by adhering to the local rules we can make sure we are responsible travellers and we can still enjoy our summer.