Walk up to this ancient Minoan sacred cave, which is believed to be the birthplace of Zeus, where his mother Rhea hid him to protect him from his father Kronos.
After the hike to the Cave of Zeus, a satisfying lunch is warranted. You get to try incredible, locally sourced, genuinly traditional Cretan food while you are enjoying the view of the Lasithi Plateau.
Visit the the stone-built windmills at Seli Ambelou, which are one of the most remarkable set of windmills that survive on Crete and are located at the Northern entrance of the Lasithi Plateau.
Walk the cobblestoned streets and enjoy a refresing beverage under the 2400-year-old plane tree, also known as the Writers' Tree where famous Greek writers and people of the Spirit would often sit under and seek inspiration.
The guest not only gets to see how olive oil is produced today, but also how it was produced in the era of low tech, which gave it the name "press" that we still use today. Trying different olive oils is also available at no extra cost.
Visit the Knosos Palace where Zeus's son, Minoas, intertwined his name with the oldest civilization in Europe. This Bronze Age archaeological site was a major center of the Minoan civilization and is known for its association with the Greek myth of Theseus and the minotaur.
Our tour with Kostas was the best day of our vacation! He brought us to non-touristy spots to see (and taste!) the real Crete. He surprised with with excellent snacks too! Traffic got in the way of some of the itinerary and we had to change plans a bit, but we still had an excellent time and enjoyed everything we got to see with Kostas!
We had such a wonderful experience exploring Crete with Kostas. He was incredibly knowledgeable and made the entire tour feel personal and engaging. We learned so much about the history and culture of the island, and one of our favorite parts was learning about the traditional process of making olive oil — such a unique and memorable experience. Kostas was friendly, informative, and made sure we had time to enjoy each stop without ever feeling rushed. It felt much more personal than a typical tour, and we truly appreciated the care he put into the experience. Highly recommend!
When our Mediterranean cruise changed its itinerary from Santorini to Heraklion, Crete, a few months before departure, we were extremely disappointed. Santorini was one of the main reasons we booked the cruise. Looking back now, however, we wouldn't change a thing. Our experience with Stagakis Grand Prestige—and especially our driver and guide, Kostas—was one of the highlights of our entire trip. This tour exceeded every expectation we had, and Kostas was the reason why. His knowledge of Crete's history, mythology, culture, and daily life brought the island to life in a way that no guidebook ever could. Throughout the day, we stopped at several beautiful locations around the island. Every time we returned to the spacious, comfortable vehicle, Kostas surprised us with another homemade treat. The food alone felt like a culinary tour of Crete! Many of the delicious specialties were prepared by his mother, and each one gave us a taste of authentic Cretan hospitality. The absolute highlight for our family—my husband, our 10-year-old daughter, and myself—was visiting the Cave of Zeus. We had researched it beforehand and thought it would be interesting because of its connection to Greek mythology, but it far exceeded our expectations. The walk up to the cave is steep and takes about 15–20 minutes, but the views along the way are worth it. Once inside, we were amazed by the beautiful stalactites and stalagmites. The cave is well lit and surprisingly open, so it never felt claustrophobic. We were especially grateful to visit since it had only recently reopened after being closed for some time. Other memorable stops included seeing the picturesque windmills, enjoying a delicious lunch, visiting the charming village of Krasi to admire its magnificent plane tree and drink refreshing spring water, learning about traditional olive oil production, and tasting some of the best olive oil we've ever had. We ended the day at the Palace of Knossos, which was the perfect conclusion to an unforgettable experience. The ruins are fascinating, beautiful, and remarkably well preserved. What began as a major disappointment turned into one of the best days of our vacation. We are incredibly grateful for this experience and cannot recommend Stagakis Grand Prestige and Kostas highly enough. If you're visiting Crete, this is an experience you should not miss.
Kostas was excellent. Helpful, knowledgeable, flexible, and entertaining. He also gave us homemade delicious treats.
What a guy! Kostas is a true goldmine of knowledge and charisma. Smart, funny, sassy. He made our time in Heraklion SO worthwhile! He took us on a ride around the sights, fed us homemade delicacies traditional in Crete, made us laugh, learn and enjoy ourselves wholeheartedly. He is a great thinker and he had us at the edge of our seats while he explained, educated, and debated with us. We had the BEST experience ever with him and we couldn’t get enough of how he sees Crete and the world. Not just five stars but all the stars in the solar system for him.💫 ⭐️✨🌟💫🌟✨⭐️💫 Kosta, tell me when your YouTube channel is ready so I can subscribe and get a little more of that wisdom, please. 🙂💡
I love this dude so much! He taught me many life lessons and taught all of us many things. Talking to him was a pleasure and I would definitely recommend this if you want a day full of fun and laughs!
Kostas is definitely the best tour guide in Greece. He knows a lot about the history and mythology, and he also has lots of evidence to support what he is saying. If you are taking a tour in Crete, definitely try and book Kostas.
Excellent historical tour. Kostas was very knowledgeable and hospitable. Sharing the local history and significant insights into what makes Crete a treasure to visit. His personal touch to the entire day made the tour even more enjoyable. Thank you Kostas. For those planning to visit Crete, our time with Kostas was very enjoyable and well worth your consideration.
My husband and I took a private tour with Kostas and he DID NOT DISAPPOINT!!! If there were more stars to give we would give him the extra! His knowledge of the island, the vegetation , olive groves... interspersed with personal stories gave us an adventure of a lifetime. He was an excellent driver on the rickety roads while we sat in his very comfortable van. He didn't just drive us from place to place, he filled the day with real life experiences and gave us specialty delights along the stops keeping us hydrated with cold water bottles. It was evident that he takes pride in his heritage as a Cretan. We laughed, we really listened, and even though he does this everyday we felt like he gave us all the attention making us feel special...not just paying customers. All in all it was enlightening and personal in a free form style. HIGHLY RECOMMEND KOSTAS if you ever visit Crete! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My guide made our trip the best I’ve ever been on! We ate the best food and saw the best views! Best guide and tour ever! I honestly couldn’t have had a trip better than this!
Great trip made more special by Kostas! He knows all about Crete-brought us to special eateries-even brought honey and special foods as part of our experience - he let us see harvesting of walnuts - stop to watch sheep on the hillsides - taught us all about olives - the trip was tailored made for us…and he helped us take lots of family photos! Hire Kostas and you will have a very special trip Indeed!
Kostas was BY FAR the highlight of our trip to Greece. In addition to the fascinating sights included in the tour, he pointed out local treasures and points of interest that most tour guides would not have shared with tourists. The personal touch in everything he did was unmistakeable; everyone felt cared for by him. If you can, I highly recommend you book a private tour if your group is of some size. We did so and got some delightful stops with local businesses thrown in, giving us a feel for what it might be like to actually live in Crete. Thank you Kostas. You’re definitely #1 for us!!
Our group of 7 American travelers visited Crete in September of 2024. Our tour with Kostas from Stagakis Grand Prestige was a highlight of the trip! The van was very spacious, clean, and comfortable for 7 adults. Kostas is an excellent driver and tour guide! He is very knowledgeable of the Greek mythology and history associated with the island and he speaks flawless English. Kostas also had cold bottled water available as well as local snack at each stop. We highly recommend Stagakis Grand Prestige if you're looking for a great day on Crete! We made a travel vlog of our time on Crete for those who want to see our experience. The tour with Stagakis Grand Prestige starts at approximately the 20 minute mark. Seach Youtube for @CarryUsAway to see our channel, as Tripadvisor will not let us post the link. Efcharistó Kostas!
Amazing tour with Kostas! He was so knowledgeable and very attentive to the needs of our family! The van was very comfortable and spotless! We greatly enjoyed our tour from youngest (11yrs) to our oldest (79yrs). Would not hesitate to book again! He was very pleasant and truly went above and beyond to make our trip memorable.
My family had the pleasure of taking this tour with Kostas, and it was an experience to remember! From start to finish, he was knowledgeable, friendly, and incredibly engaging. Not only was he well-informed, but he also had a great sense of humor and knew how to keep everyone engaged. He took the time to answer all of our questions, ensured we were comfortable, and even gave us fantastic local recommendations. If you're looking for a guide who goes above and beyond to create an enjoyable and insightful experience, you found him! Highly recommend!
Great experience. From the initial booking right through until he said goodbye with laughs smiles the knowledge of the tour operator was unbelievable. We had to change a couple things on the fly and they were very accommodating.
This was a trip worth taking. Kostas is very knowledgeable and was a great host telling us about the history of Crete. The views are breathtaking and the trip was a lot of fun. Kostas went the extra mile with extra stops and many treats of local delights during our ride. Highly recommended!
We had a fantastic day with Kostas while in Crete. He picked us up from the port in his immaculate and incredibly comfortable van and kept us entertained all day. Zeus' cave is completely worth the hike up the small mountain and down into the cave. (See attached photos) Kostas took us to a great restaurant for lunch and made excellent recommendations on what menu items to order. He made road side stops several times for photo opportunities, shopping and fresh walnuts off the tree. The treats he shared with us (prepared by his mother) were absolutely delicious. Kostas completely catered the tour to what we wanted to see and do. He took great care to ensure my 82 year old mother could participate in as much of our day as possible and when she couldn't, he took her to a small cafe to have a coffee/tea and wait for us. It's only been six months since we were there but I'm already trying to plan a trip back to Crete so we can spend another day with Kostas. I highly recommend Kostas for a tour in Crete. You won't regret it!
Kostas was an amazing tour guide!!! I highly recommend him to all! We will be back with the kids soon and plan on taking them on this tour! 5 stars all the way!
We did two tours with Kostas and both were totally amazing. The locations visited were breathtaking, we took so many photos. Our limo bus was clean, comfortable and our tour operator was totally awesome. I highly recommend Kostas and his tour company.
We are a group of 7 friends who were very lucky to do an exceptional tour in Crete with the guide Kostas. He is excellent, professional, kind and explained everything with lots of patience and knowledge. He made us feel very happy with many surprises. All of us said: he is the best guide we have ever met..
It was quite an incredible experience. Kostas was super friendly and made us feel at home. His domain expertise is great. We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly, regretted that it had to end. We wish him the very best.
Lefteris was very accommodating, pleasant and patience with my sister and I. It was our first time in Crete and we loved every moment of our trip not to mention we got to enjoy a little taste of traditional treats made by his family. I would highly recommend this trip. I want to thank you for your hospitality and can’t wait to come back.
Kostas was delightful and helped us uncover the authentic beauty of Crete on our 9 hour private journey together! The Tour exceeded our expectations and Kostas over-delivered a memorable experience! There was never a dull moment with Kostas & we cannot wait to return to Crete!
Kostas provided our group of 13 an incredible guest experience from start to end! We were coming off the cruise ship spending the day in Crete. Kostas’ passion for Crete, its history, food, culture, and people was evident in how he orchestrated the tour! He was attentive to our needs & even accommodated our request to add a stop to an Olive Oil factory. Kostas was punctual for our 8am pick-up time and return to ship. His driver navigated the winding roads safely in a manner respecting the comfort of his passengers. Overall the tour was informative, passionate, friendly, funny, and insightful. There were also a couple of nice surprises along the way! It was certainly a highlight of our entire trip to Greece! Thank you Kostas!
Kostas was extremely knowledgeable, and quite literally brought a taste of home to share with each of the Tour members. A variety of snacks and insights homegrown(made) directly from Crete. Was willing to go at the pace of the tour, which we certainly appreciated. Would highly recommend
The tour with Kostas was absolutely amazing! I can’t recommend it enough. He’s extremely knowledgeable and hilarious. We were a group of 13 people and his banter back and forth with us made the trip. Make sure to ask about his dads honey you won’t regret it!
As a big group of 13 i have to memtion that all of us had the most incredible experience with Kostas. He was absolutely perfect, attentive to every detail, making sure we felt comfortable and fully immersed in the local culture. We couldn’t be happier that we ended up with him as our guide; he truly made the entire day unforgettable for us. His knowledge and passion for the area really shone through, and we’re so grateful for the experience. VERY highly recommend!
I just came back from Greece to play beautiful, I want to introduce a local tour guide, he is very interesting and knowledge, and very enthusiastic along the way you will not feel bored very very good one, so anyone who wants to go there to play can book a date with him to chat and you will know I gave him five stars
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