In total there are around 6,000 islands in Greece although only 200 or so are inhabited by humans – some of the others support populations of goats, or a few olive trees, but many are not much more than a large rock. Largest of them all is Crete. It actually comes fifth in the entire Mediterranean for size, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus and Corsica. It’s also 54th in terms of population with somewhere around 620,000 locals – which represents around 6% of the total population of Greece.

Elongated in shape Crete runs for around 260 kms (160 miles) from east to west. At it’s widest it is 60 km and narrows to 12 km near Lerapatra. It’s a meeting point for the sea of Crete, the Aegean, the Libyan Sea and the Myrtoan sea. It’s nearer to Africa than it is to Athens.

It’s size and geographical location mean that for millennia it has been attracting visitors from all points of the compass. Historically they came to trade or stop-off on there way to Asia. Today they come to chill-out on the beaches, hike the gorges and while away time in waterfront tavernas.

Because of its size Crete takes time to discover. Especially as on the main east-west road along the north of the island the traffic can be quite tricky around Heraklion. To drive from one end to the other easily takes at least 4 hours and often more. As we’re the western end that’s the area we most visit.

As you can see we’re lucky we can fly our guests into and out of Chania airport as Heraklion is a bit of a stretch. To visit Knossos from the Mistral is really quite a long-day out, especially on a coach with one of the local agency trips that stop at a variety of hotels to collect and drop off.

But we’d love you to see all of Crete – so here’s an idea. Why not book a week at the Mistral, take off for a week in a hire car on a Cretan road trip to see Knossos, Spinalonga, Phaistos, Gortys etc., then come back for a second week with us – you’ll need the rest after all that driving. We can help you plan an itinerary and stopping places en route.