Discover Chania: Old Town, Garden and Culture

From the cobbled lanes of the walled Old Town to the city garden with its small zoo and museums dedicated to archaeology and seafaring, Chania reveals its many sides. Restored houses from different periods line streets with a Venetian character, while exhibitions tell stories of finds from the region and the history of seafaring. This gives you the chance to explore walks, crafts and culture as different focuses for your stay.

City Garden: Green Space and Cretan Wildlife

Chania Municipal Garden has a small zoo with animals native to Crete. Its history dates back to 1870, when the garden was laid out to European standards and became the city’s first public project. Its wildlife and history give the garden two distinct facets—a blend of nature and urban history that sets it apart from the lanes and exhibition halls.

Old Town Lanes and Leathercraft

The walled quarters of the Old Town preserve their Venetian charm. Narrow, cobbled lanes lined with restored houses from different periods invite you to take a stroll. If you are interested in architectural history, you will find not just one style, but houses from different eras within a cohesive Old Town setting.

In the Stivanadika quarter, shops work with leather and make a range of leather goods. This craft offers a different focus from the Old Town’s architecture: here, the focus is on working with a material and the goods made from it, rather than on houses and lanes. When choosing a holiday apartment in Chania, you can first consider what you want your stay to centre on—walks through the Old Town, an interest in crafts, the city garden or exhibitions.

Archaeology and Maritime History

The Archaeological Museum of Chania is located in Chalepa, in a distinctive building regarded as a city landmark. Its permanent exhibition spans three halls on the ground floor and another on the upper floor. It features archaeological finds from the Chania region dating from different periods. The exhibition’s layout across several halls and levels is part of the experience, as is its collection spanning a broad range of time periods.

The Nautical Museum offers a different perspective on time: its exhibitions are arranged chronologically, from the Bronze Age to the present day. Together, the two museums cover distinct subjects—archaeological finds from the region on the one hand, and the development of maritime history on the other. If you like to plan your stay around cultural attractions, these interests can help you decide which experiences to focus on.

The Wider Chania Destination

The wider Chania destination also encompasses landscapes and historic sites beyond the city’s cultural offerings. Akrotiri has small coves and beaches suitable for relaxation and tourism. In Akrotiri’s northern hills, nature remains largely undisturbed by human activity; the landscape is home to rich, partly endemic flora as well as land and sea caves with endemic invertebrates. The region’s attractions range from coastal spots to distinctive habitats.

The wider region also offers its own archaeological perspectives: at the acropolis of Falassarna, mainly Archaic finds were excavated from the central area of the ancient Temple of Demeter. Theriso has a different historical story. During the 1905 Revolution under Eleftherios Venizelos, the historic village served as the headquarters of the Cretan rebels. The six-kilometre-long Eleftherios Venizelos Gorge leads to Theriso. The Historical and Folklore Museum of Theriso is housed in the former headquarters of Eleftherios Venizelos and the Theriso Movement of 1905.

Discover more destinations: Kolymvari, Provarma, Rapaniana, Tavronitis, Katochori, Kandanos, Theriso, Melissourgeio.

For the wider travel overview: Chania.