Take hikes.

Crete is blessed with incredible hiking trails, from West to East. Here are a few tips and some info:

• It's home to at least 400 beautiful gorges, each unique in their own way and Nature. The longest and most-famed one is the Samaria Gorge. I have written about it in the Things To Do list, as well as for a few other gorges I have had the chance to hike and totally recommend, such as Aradena, Trafoulas, etc.

• Crete is part of the E4 and E6 European trails. Both of them cover large areas and go from mountain to sea, passing through villages, plateaus, lakes and rivers. For example, a wonderful hiking idea is starting from Ayia Roumeli (south Chania region) and going East towards the sand dunes of Agios Pavlos, doing the E4. Then continuing on to Loutro (you can spend the night there), then on to Marmara, Aradena Gorge and Glyka Nera, ending in Sfakia. The scenery is as wild as it can get!

• Another great idea that combines hiking and mountaineering is doing the three highest mountains of Crete. The Lefka Ori (White Mountains) in the West, Psiloritis in central Crete and Mt Diktis in the East. All of them offer endless hiking opportunities in truly spectacular grounds and viewpoints. Note that these mountains get a lot of snow and rough weather during the winter and early spring months.

• For more info on the trails, visit the following websites: alltrails.com, wikiloc.com, as well as the Strava mobile application in order to keep track of your trails.