Heraklion Olive Grove And Dragon Fruit Farm Private Tour

On arrival, the site was very quiet. Just before 3, we called both numbers available and rang the 3 door bells. No answer. We fully expected to be stood-up! At 3pm, a lady came to the gate. She seemed surprised to see us. We were shown the older dragon fruit plants with a brief explanation and then taken to see the younger plants (between 1 to 3 years old). All in all, must have taken about 20 minutes - there was no sense of urgency or pace. It was very slow. We were seated on the verandah, at the large table, with another small family who had joined for the tour. The view was beautiful. After waiting a while, we were given tasters - much like the photos shown; 3 jams, bread, honey, olives and olive oil and some iced dragon flower tea. These were left on the table for us to share and our host left. There was no more input given. We wondered about leaving but assumed that the gate was locked. Eventually, when she returned, we said goodbye, realised the gate wasn't locked, and left. Unfortunately, I cannot recognise the place we visited from the positive reviews that have been left by others. I have learned more about dragon fruit farming from a 4.5 minute video on YouTube since our visit. The olive growing process did not feature and the only snails we learned about were the ones that live on the dragon fruit but are not harmful to the plants. The tour took up an afternoon, including the drive and waiting around, which could have been spent far better on something else.

It was very difficult to get there. We waited for an hour. Nobody showed up at the meeting point, nobody answered the phone when we called. Don't go there, it's a scam!

Been on many Viator trips and fantastic but this one didn’t seem true to reviews. There were mentions of excellent guide called Alex and lengthy tour. We had Maria the owner show us briefly dragon fruit and olive trees with minimum explanation. No official guide and no one asked to see tickets. Tasting of jams, fruit and tea was fun. Obviously didn’t cost much but… think I’d read somewhere entry free so not sure what advantage of going through Viator was if no Viator guide. Be warned clicking on location link via Viator app takes you about a mile away. We had reset the location via address and then was more accurate. Hasn’t deterred me using the company for other trips and would recommend but I had higher expectations😂

We had a terrible experience. We showed up at our scheduled booking, no one was around and the gates were closed. We walked around the neighborhood to try and find anyone, no one was there. We tried calling, no answer. Finally, someone exited the home/building and informed us that tours were cancelled due to weather. No one had attempted to contact us to inform us of this, which in itself was frustrating because we wouldn’t have wasted €50 on cab fare to get there. She told us to request a refund on Viator, so we submitted a request only for the owner to deny it! Even though no services were provided! Viator’s customer service has been unhelpful- they said they can’t reverse the decision without operator approval. All we wanted was our refund because the tour was cancelled by them. So be aware, this place may be closed, not inform you in advance, have you waste time and money to travel out there, and still charge you for the tour that you never got to go on.

Alex was incredibly knowledgable regarding his farm. He is very attentive to all in attendance and is is a good explainer. He made it easy to understand the history behind olives and dragon fruit whilst answering everyone’s questions. Great value for money and would highly recommend to anyone travelling to Crete.

Really lovely way to spend an hour or two. Very informative and interesting. Various bits and bobs growing there. Made the error of having lunch just before we went in the village up the road so literally couldn’t face all the lovely things to taste after the tour so go hungry!!!

Really great experience with very nice host Alex. Very friendly and speaks very good english. The fruits where not in season in July, that would have been nice to know ahead. But very lively and informative sightseeing. Icetea of homemade tea, very good as starter. Tasting afterwords with good bread, oliveoil, marmelades (dragonfruit, pomegranate, olivegel), al homemade and organic. Al tasted very deliscious.

The sweetest nicest experience, the host was very welcoming and sweet, had a feeling that we were just visiting greek home, family, the place is very cozy, everything provided for tasting was great, tasty and flavourful. True hospitality, the guide was very friendly and caring, the history of the farm is very interesting and lovely. Very thankful and lucky to visit such an amazing place

Quick farm tour and then a nice tasting of the olive oils, marmalades, olives, and tea. Alex was a very nice host and answered all of our questions about the olive oil process. Seeing the dragon fruit plants was fun, too. All items tasted are available for purchase and we bought some to take home with us. We booked this the day before and it was a fun, short excursion (we were done in an hour).

Lovely and earnst perspective on the colour of the olive farm and how a pivot to dragon fruit was so important.

The owner is nice The owner is very nice., provide a lot of information and the food for us👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

Such a great find in Heraklion. Alex was so enthusiastic and knowledgeable in telling us the history of his farming background with dragon fruit, and his family long history of olive and grape growing. He showed us the progression on his dragon fruit project. So interesting and inspiring. We had a tasting of lemon honey, passion fruit jam , pomegranate jam, olive jam, extra virgin olive oil and olive oil with garlic. There was bread to dip with For dessert, we had yogurt with candied Bergamot. While we were there, there were several groups of people that came and bought Products. This is such a hidden gem, fast getting discovered.

Alex graciously shares his family’s vineyard!! Very informative with delicious samplings in a beautiful location!! Highly recommend

We went and did the tour today and had an excellent time! We learned a lot and it was so nice to see how passionate Alex is about the farm. Afterwards we enjoyed samples of everything and the entire experience was beyond our expectations. We highly recommend!

We enjoyed this quaint and unique experience of seeing an olive grove and dragon fruit farm. After hearing a history of the farm itself as well as how the olives and dragon fruits are farmed, we gathered on the farms porch overlooking the grove and ocean and sampled all of the products. It was a tasty assortment of foods and the host was very welcoming. All of this for a very affordable price. Locating the farm entrance can be tricky however there is a sign out front that makes it easy to spot that you can also see on Google Maps. Overall, we would definitely recommend!

Super fun activity, very well put together, learned just the right amount about the dragon fruit and olive oil. The tasting was very good!

"My girlfriend Sophie and I recently had the pleasure of visiting this private traditional olive grove and dragon fruit farm in Crete, and it was a truly delightful experience. The farm is beautiful, with so much to see, and the samples we tasted were bursting with flavors I've never experienced before. It was a real treat for the senses! What made the visit even more special was the owner and host, Alex. His passion for the farm and his extensive knowledge were evident, and he made the whole experience incredibly engaging and informative. He went above and beyond to ensure we had a memorable time. We highly recommend this unique experience to anyone visiting Crete. It's a fantastic way to connect with the local culture and taste some truly exceptional products. Thank you, Alex, for a wonderful day!"

This was a great short afternoon tour! We got a view of the dragonfruit and olive tree farm, and heard about how the family takes care of all of the plants. The snacks we had were all delicious as well. It was a beautiful view and we had a great time. I highly recommend taking a taxi over public transport! The mountains are all around so the bus does not get very close to the farm itself.

Great opportunity to learn more about olive tree farming, a key industry on the island of Crete, and the innovation of bringing dragonfruit plants to Crete! A wonderful tasting afterwards of farm grown products. Alex was a wonderful host and guide.

The tour was about 45 minutes but we stayed at the farm for an hour. Alex was very friendly and helped our taxi driver find his farm. Alex’s English was great and the tour was informative from an agricultural, historial, and cultural perspective. The price was a deal considering that we were also treated to bread, honey, olives, olive oil, olive oil jam and dragon fruit jam, and dragon fruit tea from the farm. It was cold outside but that was due to the time of year. Make sure to ask your driver to come back in an hour to pick you up. We could not get a ride back with rideshare apps (probably due to it being off season and a little inland).

Interesting little tour of the farm with some history and a really lovely light lunch of olives, bread, tomatoes and of course dragon fruit and delicious olive oil, also some very interesting and tasty olive and dragonfruit marmalades. We were also offered espresso and some nice dragonfruit flower tea. Our tour guide Alex was very lovely and kind despite us being so late! We bought some marmalade and olive oil to take home. Highly worth a visit, though I recommend if you are coming with your own car that you approach from the Heraklion / sea side as if you try to come in from inland or knossus palace you will go through some very narrow, steep and sharp corners, not to mention some questionable road choices from Google maps.

Alex was very informative and added some humour. We were really interested in the farm and especially dragon fruit. The farm is family run and the family were delightful. After the tour we all sat at a big canopied table and saw a short film, then were able to taste all the delicious produce they grow and make. We bought organic virgin olive oil (which made it safely to the UK in my hold luggage), lemon infused honey and dragon fruit jam. Thank you so much Alex and family 😊

Great experience, we had a tour around the olive trees and dragon fruits, then we were greeted with a late lunch, the hospitality was on another level, thank you once again Alex

Alex was amazing - informative - friendly & the tour was great! I have no idea how he makes any money at that cost. It's worth three times what he's charging. The dragon fruit addition to the farm was interesting. Lots of taste testing. Buy his products!!! Support local.

Visiting Heraklion with family of 4 including two kids. We were looking for a local experience in Heraklion. We stumbled upon this Cretan Dragan activity on Viator and I must say the entire experience was amazing and this is what all 4 of us including another 10 people on the tour with us had to say. Alex and his wife were amazing with the entire experience. Day before the activity Alex emailed us with the exact coordinates and also confirmed that there is parking right next to the place. We get there, and right at the gate he greeted us all individually and welcomed us in. There were two other families there as well and we all exchanged hellos. He has a table under the shade that can easily fit 15 people with chairs. He served everyone with iced tea and coffee or espresso while we waited for him to setup everything and also anyone who was still on their way. The tour itself was amazing and he explained everything in detail. He takes you in just a little bit into the farm for you to feel the farm experience and the trees. He showed the olive farm and the dragon fruit farming. He explained how his family ventured from olive farming to expand to dragon fruit farming. My kids loved the entire experience. After the small your we weren't back to the big table under the shade where we spend another 45min to an hour just eating all the amazing fresh food Alex and his wife had prepared. Honestly I wish I had come with an appetite. We ate all marmalades, olives, cheese, draganfruit, honey. He also has his fresh farm olive and marmalade on sale for a very reasonable price so we snagged a few. There is no pressure or tactic for any tipping etc which is appreciated. If you like the experience then support him and his work by buying one of the fresh food items he is selling sourced right from the farm you are standing in. Overall, we had an amazing time and our entire group did as well. My kids loved it which I wasn't sure how that was going to go but I am glad we did. I honestly do not know why Alex and Creta Dragan are not visited more often but I wish Alex and his family all the best and I am sure he will have many more happy families that will love his experience as much as we did. Thank you to Alex and his wife for making a memorable experience for us.

Very informative tour about the olives and dragon fruit. Also, Mr. Alex was very accommodating and friendly. After the tour, you get to try their local products and its amazing!! The dragon fruit marmalade and tea is incredible. We highly recommend the tour.

A truly fascinating farm with a friendly and welcoming owner. The visit was both educational and enjoyable—the owner took the time to share interesting stories and insights about the farm. Highly recommended for anyone looking for an authentic and memorable experience.

This was a trip highlight! The tour was brief but packed with information and the tasting with espresso was wonderful! Enjoyed by both kids and grownups!

We chose just the basic option of a wee tour and olive oil tasting but it still felt abundant. Lovely views, aromatic coffee, marmalade, olive oil, olives, bread - if you have a few hours to spare we recommend this little farm with welcoming hosts.

An absolute must! Aleks, the owner, is lovely and makes a real effort in showing around his farm. He is extremely knowledgable and really engaging. The tasting at the end of the tour was certainly a highlight. We went with our toddler and Alwks made us feel so welcome! I could not recommend this experience highly enough!

We had such a great time at the farm. Alex the farmer was very friendly an lovely man. At the farm was a beautiful view over the cretan hills. Johanna :)

We had a very interesting tour from Alex through his olive and dragon fruit farm. He took a lot of time to answer all of our questions and we were then allowed to drink an espresso on his terrace with a beautiful view and try his oil and olives

Very welcoming host. He was extremely informative and provided the best information on his farm, as well as his country, that we had experienced during our six day trip to Crete. We felt very welcomed.

My wife and I loved this tour. It’s a small family owned olive tree and dragon fruit farm. The owner, Alex and his mom, Maria greeted us. We learned about the farm, the harvesting, and then afterwards we were served fresh olives, tomatoes, bread, drinks and dessert. Alex and his mom are truly genuine and warm hearted people. We loved the authentic experience.

Wir hatten eine schlechte Erfahrung hier gemacht, wir waren pünktlich am Treffpunkt ankommen doch alles war verschlossen und niemand war zu sehen. Wir haben uns dann entschieden zu klingeln und wurden dann über die Sprechanlage abgewiesen da die Tour abgesagt wurde ohne das wir eine Mitteilung bekommen haben da der Mann der die Tour macht scheinbar nicht Zuhause ist und uns sonst auch keiner weiterhelfen kann. Wir sind also eine halbe Stunde umsonst dort hingefahren für nix und unser Geld vielleicht auch weg …

Unfortunately, we cannot agree with the other positive reviews. The reception was still halfway okay. It started with a tea made from various spices. We drank in a small group of eight people, excluding the lady who led the tour. 20 minutes of waiting, without seeing her or hearing anything from her. After that, we went to the dragon fruit trees. Here, something was explained in about 10–15 minutes. We were allowed to see the ripe dragon fruits, look at the plants, or even touch them. This was really interesting. After that, we went straight to the tasting. Small but nice samples, beautifully arranged, including two types of dragon fruit. For this, I am giving one star. Now comes the big sad part and what we found very disappointing: We learned absolutely nothing about or from the olives and their trees. They did not address it at all, even though it was in the description. Likewise, we are still waiting for the Greek coffee or espresso, which was also part of the offer. During or after the tasting, we were alone the entire time. The lady was not present, nor did she say or ask anything about the products she had listed for sale. Two hours were scheduled for the event. After 60 minutes, we all left the event together. Conclusion: You can do it, you don't have to do it, and you certainly shouldn't expect too much. P.S.: The profile picture for the event also has nothing to do with the plantation – very far removed from reality.

The supposed approx. 2-hour tour was already over after one hour and that incl. tasting. There really wasn't that much to see, honestly. Due to illness, the wife took over the tour, which the husband usually does, which perhaps resulted in fewer explanations. The tasting itself was quite good, but of course it was only intended to sell oil and jams. A small jar of jam for 10€ is not exactly cheap. The dragon fruit tea, which is also sold, was unfortunately not included in the tasting. Without your own car, the farm is difficult to reach. We took a taxi there and a bus back, but we also had to walk for about 30 minutes through the midday heat to the bus stop. For the price, it was still a nice event.

We were very satisfied with the small tour of the dragon fruit farm. The whole thing lasted a good hour with a very good tasting of olives, olive oil, various jams, and tea, and all of it homemade! Highly recommended for a mini-excursion! We took the bus from Heraklion and walked the way to the farm. Approx. 20 min walk.

Loving family atmosphere, personal and informative tour

Very interesting and informative visit. Very good products. Our host told us about his family history and his crops. Too bad the suitcase isn't bigger 😅. Highly recommended without hesitation. Thanks a million 🙏🏻

A very interesting and entertaining tour with a subsequent delicious tasting of oil, jams, and honey. Opportunity to buy regional products. Total duration approx. 1 hour. Highly recommended

We had a very good time in this olive grove followed by a good tasting, I recommend it!

Unbelievable estate, very well-kept,60 varieties of dragon, owner and wife very hospitable.I will visit again whenever I go to Crete!

Simply wonderful... absolutely recommended... Very nice host. One felt immediately warmly welcomed. After a short tour of the farm, we were allowed to sit at the table and taste our own products (3 different jams, oils, olives, very delicious bread, etc.). Simply fantastic and great value for money (5€ per person, to be paid to the host). Cash payment only! We would come back anytime.

The farm is somewhat hidden and parking is very limited. However, Alex is very nice, gives a 15-minute tour of his property, and answers all questions. Afterward, a short tasting of their specialties. Not strenuous and ideal for a short visit.

Authentic tour and explanation on a small farm; guide Alex was very nice, followed by tastings and purchasing options. Overall positive if you want to get to know the people and the country.

We were warmly welcomed and had a brief and informative explanation of everything that has offered. It was very accommodating to us that we did not have to walk so much and could just enjoy the impressions, this wonderful place. Afterwards there were still various treats that you could buy if you wanted. It was all worth his money. Thank you again for that. Best regards Karin and friends.

Very warm welcome. Detailed explanations, generous tasting, very nice experience to do with family even if children do not understand English

We had the chance to visit this olive grove on Easter Sunday we were alone and had an unforgettable experience, the host is adorable and his explanations very clear. Thank you again for this incredible memory. I highly recommend