A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip joins a Venetian harbour with a freshwater lake. Other Crete day trips are listed on our tours in Greece page for comparison.
This page covers the drive, Lake Kournas, the old town, the Fortezza, Chania, the season and the questions asked.
What is a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, and how does it work?
Operators sell the Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip as a full-day coach tour across western Crete. An air-conditioned bus takes you from your hotel to Chania, Lake Kournas and Rethymno. It drives you back in the evening.
The idea is simple: three places in one day, with no driving on your side. One operator page promises a day without the stress of driving, navigation or parking. From Malia, Stalis, Hersonissos or Analipsi, the same page says, the west is across the island.
A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip leaves you free time at each stop. One operator page lists transport, guided commentary and free time at each location. Lunch, drinks and pedal boat hire at the lake are left to you.
The order of the stops differs between operators. Four pages go from Chania to the lake and end in Rethymno. Another page visits Chania, then Rethymno, then the lake. One shorter listing names only the old town of Rethymno and the lake. It lasts from 4 to 8 hours.
A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip runs on set days, and the guiding language follows the day. One page lists Tuesday and Friday for English, German and French, and Thursday for Polish. A second page lists Wednesday and Saturday for English, French and German. One listing adds a mobile app with a city map and cultural content.
How long is a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, and where does it start?
On operator pages, a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip lasts 10 to 13 hours, depending on the pick-up point. The day begins in the morning, at your hotel or at a nearby pick-up point.
The hours of a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip split differently by operator. One page plans about two hours in Chania and one and a half at the lake. Rethymno gets 1.5 to 2 hours. Another page gives Chania 2 hours 30 minutes, the lake 1 hour 20 minutes and Rethymno 1 hour 30 minutes.
The morning begins early. One timetable starts pick-up at 7:00 in Sissi. It works along the coast through Malia and Hersonissos to Heraklion, and ends at 8:55. A second page lists pick-up from 7:30 to 9:30, with a 30-minute coffee and restroom stop at 9:50.
A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip picks you up near your own hotel. One page names Agia Pelagia, Ammoudara, Karteros, Kokkini Hani, Gouves, Analipsi, Anissaras, Hersonissos, Stalis and Malia. A third operator covers Agia Pelagia and the villages of Ammoudi, Ligaria, Mades and Mononaftis.
A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip ends where it began, at the hotels of the morning. One page puts the return at about 8:00 in the evening, within a window from 7:30 to 8:30. Another says the drive back takes about two hours, depending on traffic and on your hotel.
How far is the drive on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, and which road does it use?
A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip runs on National Road 90, marked E75, along the north coast of Crete. Chania lies 60 km from Rethymno and 138 km from Heraklion. The coach covers a long stretch of this one road.
Wikipedia lists National Road 90 under a second name, VOAK, short for Northern Crete Highway. It joins Kissamos in the west to Siteia in the east. The towns on its route include Agios Nikolaos, Heraklion, Rethymno and Chania.
A distance table puts Georgioupolis 39 km from Chania and 21 km from Rethymno. Destination Crete places the lake barely 4 km from Georgioupolis. Wikipedia puts the lake in Chania’s regional unit, right beside the Rethymno border. So on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip the lake stop falls between the two towns.
One operator timetable lists a 30-minute rest stop at ten to ten. The same timetable shows Chania at half past eleven. It allows an hour to drive from Chania to the lake, and half an hour from the lake to Rethymno.
Wikivoyage warns drivers that the highway is steep and twisty, with limits dropping to 40 km/h in places. A second operator says the bus passes almost half of the northern coast of Crete before it reaches the west. That ride is a big part of a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip from the Heraklion side.
What is Lake Kournas, and what do you see there on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Crete has one natural freshwater lake, Lake Kournas, according to Wikipedia and a Greek travel site. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip stops on its shore, with the White Mountains behind it. Its perimeter measures 3.5 km.
A Greek travel site gives the lake an area of 57.9 hectares. Its maximum dimensions are 1,087 metres long and 880 metres wide. The same page estimates the maximum depth at 22.5 metres.
Destination Crete says the lake rises in winter and falls in summer. Low water uncovers sandy shores and the Amati spring that feeds the lake. Two operator pages list a sandy beach on the shore. You see that sand on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip.
The lake is protected under the Natura network. Wikipedia notes a nature preserve on its southwest side. Destination Crete lists ducks, moorhens, cormorants and herons. Wikipedia names the terrapins as a reason the lake is known today. One operator page tells visitors to look for freshwater turtles.
A girl with blond hair is said to appear on moonlit nights. In one version she is the only survivor of a flood. The lake was once called Korisia. Wikipedia says Kournas village stands high on a hill above the lake. It overlooks the shore you visit on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip.
What does the old town of Rethymno offer on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
The old town of Rethymno is a web of Venetian and Ottoman lanes between the old harbour and the Fortezza. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip gives you about ninety minutes to walk it.
Wikipedia credits the Venetians with nearly the whole old town you see now. Its list covers sixteenth-century houses, arches over doors, stairways of stone and Byzantine traces. On a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, two trip pages date the buildings to the Venetian and Ottoman eras.
The Rimondi Fountain stands in the old Venetian centre. It dates from the early seventeenth century and carries the name of the governor Alvise Rimondi. Water still pours from its three lion heads. One trip page leads walkers from the Piazza Rimondi to the Loggia.
Venetians built the Loggia in the sixteenth century as a meeting place for nobles. Ottoman rulers turned it into a mosque. The Neratze Mosque was a Venetian church until the mid-seventeenth century and now holds the municipal Odeon. One page for a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip adds the Veli Pasha mosque, now a palaeontological museum.
The Venetian harbour is the seaward end of the old town. Its lighthouse dates from the nineteenth century, when Crete was an Ottoman province under Egyptian control. It is the second-largest Egyptian lighthouse still standing on the island. On a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, one page lines the waterfront with cafes and tavernas.
What is the Fortezza of Rethymno, and how does it fit into a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Rethymno’s citadel, the Fortezza, was raised by the Venetians in the late sixteenth century on Paleokastro hill. On a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, trip pages show it from the road. They also name it as the landmark of the old town.
Wikipedia says Paleokastro hill, meaning “Old Castle”, once held the acropolis of ancient Rhithymna. The Venetians built the fortress after the Ottomans sacked the city. The engineer Sforza Pallavicini designed it, and more than 107,000 Cretans took part in the work.
The walls run about 1.3 kilometres around an irregular plan, with four bastions named after saints. The Fortezza had no ditch, and Wikipedia calls its ramparts rather low. In the mid-seventeenth century the townspeople took refuge inside during an Ottoman siege.
Inside, the Mosque of Sultan Ibrahim stands where the Cathedral of St Nicolas once stood. The Erofili open-air theatre sits in the St Elias Bastion. Further buildings include water cisterns, an armoury and two powder magazines. The Archaeological Museum of Rethymno sits in an Ottoman defence work by the main gate.
The fortress fits a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip as a sight more than a stop. One trip page says narrow alleys link the old harbour to the Fortezza. Another shows it from the highway as the coach nears town. No trip page we read lists a visit inside, so ask your operator.
Wikipedia says the public can visit the Fortezza. The country’s Ministry of Culture and Sports looks after it. Trip pages give roughly ninety minutes in town. That time splits between the lanes, the harbour and the ramparts of the Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip.
What does the town of Chania add to a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Chania adds a Venetian harbour town with a lighthouse, a mosque and cobbled lanes. On a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip it is the first big stop. Operator pages give the stop about two hours, or two and a half.
Beside the old harbour lies the walled old town. Venetian walls, begun in the sixteenth century, once ringed it. Of those walls, just the east and west stretches remain. One operator page calls Chania the Venice of Crete. It lists the Venetian lighthouse, the old port and the Janissaries Mosque.
Look for the Chania Lighthouse at the old Venetian harbour. The tower dates to the nineteenth century. The Ottoman mosque of the Janissaries also stands on the harbour and now serves as an exhibition hall. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip shows you Venetian and Ottoman Chania side by side.
Topanas was the Christian quarter in Ottoman times. Its narrow alleys hold restored buildings now used for lodging, dining, shopping and nightlife. The indoor market borders the old town and dates from the early twentieth century. Tourists and locals alike shop there.
Chania’s past reaches further back than Venice. The town was once Kydonia, and excavations in the Kasteli district of the old town found a Minoan settlement. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip gives you the old town and its seafront as a free-time stop. Then the coach moves on to the lake.
What can you do at the lake during a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
At the lake you can swim, rent a pedal boat, walk the shore or sit at a waterside taverna. Two operator pages give a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip around ninety minutes there.
A third page lists a couple of hours at the lake. Swimming is the main draw. The water is calm, and a sandy beach lies beside it. In summer a strip of sand also forms along the road by the tavernas. Sun beds and umbrellas can be rented there.
Boats are the second draw on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip. Both operator pages list boat rental. One adds a catamaran outing, and the other names SUP rental. Hire is optional and sits outside the trip itself. The lake is used mainly for paddle and pedal boats, which keeps it quiet.
Wildlife adds to the lake time. One operator page mentions freshwater turtles if you are lucky. A family-travel page lists terrapins, water snakes, ducks, herons, cormorants and dragonflies. Stay out of the reeds, because birds nest there.
A path follows about two thirds of the shore, and the southwest side is a nature reserve. Children like the tiny fish that nibble bare feet in the shallows. One operator page warns that time at each stop is limited. On a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, pick your lake activities before you arrive.
How does a guided Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip compare with a rental car or the public bus?
The guided Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip gives you a coach, a driver and a tour guide. A rental car gives you freedom, and the public bus links the towns.
One operator page promises a day with no driving, no navigation and no parking worries. Three trip pages list an air-conditioned coach. Two pages add that a tour guide talks through the towns on the road.
A rental car suits a driver who wants a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip on any day. Hiring a car is easy with the usual documents. A travel source warns that driving in Crete can be challenging, even on the main east-west highway.
Chania adds a parking problem. Its travel entry says parking is difficult and the rules are enforced. Cars are not permitted at all in much of the old town.
The public bus is the plain option if you build your own Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip. Regular lines reach Rethymno from Chania and from Heraklion. On weekdays the bus runs about every hour, though times vary by day or season. The Heraklion to Rethymno ride lasts roughly eighty minutes.
The lake lies near the village of Kournas, outside both towns, so a bus rider must check the last stretch. The coach drives you to the shore and back, and you plan nothing yourself.
Group versions of a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip run on set days. Two pages list Wednesday and Saturday, and a third lists Tuesday and Friday. Private versions of the route also exist. One page offers a car or minivan on any day, with a tour guide.
Which season, heat and crowds suit a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Operator pages run a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip from April to October. Spring and early autumn bring thinner crowds, while summer offers the swimming but brings the crowds and the heat.
Chania’s travel entry describes the April to October season as dry and hot, with a clear sky. It names June to August as the peak season. The Meltemi, a seasonal wind from the north, can cool the hot days.
A lake page gives summer temperatures of 25 to 35 degrees Celsius. It calls the shore hot and busy, with crowded afternoons. On a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip, the swim becomes a welcome stop. The same page describes autumn as warm water and thinner crowds.
The lake page also advises arriving before 10:00 in high season, to avoid tour buses. One coach timetable reaches the lake at 2:40, inside the afternoons that page calls crowded.
The lake itself changes with the months. Another source says the water rises to the steps below the road in winter or spring, and the beaches disappear. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip in early spring therefore meets higher water and less sand.
Rethymno feels the season too. A travel source calls the town very touristic in the main summer season. Shops and visitors are everywhere, more so near the beach.
What else do travellers ask about a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Which clothes and gear do you need for a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Plan for three kinds of ground: cobbled lanes, hot sun and lake water. Two operators list the same four basics: water, sunscreen, a hat and comfortable walking shoes. One adds swimwear and a towel for the lake stop, plus a camera charger.
The old town of Chania has narrow cobbled streets, and Rethymno has winding cobbled lanes too. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip keeps you on your feet, so sturdy soles matter. One review site also lists sunglasses and breathable clothing. A lake page recommends water shoes for the pebbly shore and slippery docks.
Are children and non-swimmers fine on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
One travel magazine calls the lake water calm and shallow, which suits children and non-swimmers. Another lake page mentions shallow entry points. Keep young children within arm’s reach anyway. One review site asks you to weigh the long coach hours for young children.
One listing welcomes a buggy for infants and young children. A review site advises against non-folding strollers. One operator counts children from five to twelve years old as a separate group. Infants up to four years old travel on a parent’s lap. Ask your own operator about age rules.
Where does pick-up happen, and when does a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip start?
Operators collect you from your hotel or from the nearest pick-up point. One timetable runs its hotel pick-ups from 7:30 until 9:30 in the morning. The exact place and time reach you by message or email, and one operator sends them the day before.
That page asks you to be ready ten minutes before the pick-up time, and it warns that times shift slightly. A Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip starts early in the morning, as one operator puts it. Keep your phone charged and within reach on the morning of the trip.
How much free time and where does lunch fit on a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip?
Operators leave free time at each stop to walk, shop and eat at your own pace. Two operator pages say lunch is not included. One timetable puts lunch at a traditional waterside tavern at the lake.
Another operator lists a tavern lunch in Rethymno, in Chania or at the lake as optional. A third lists local snacks and drinks at selected stops. One listing keeps food and drinks off the vehicle, so finish your snack at each stop. Two operators ask for water in your bag. Check which rule your operator follows.
What happens to a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip when the weather turns?
Cancellation for weather is rare. One operator calls a schedule change or a cancellation extremely rare. It names two causes: heavy rain when the season opens or closes, and other force majeure situations.
That operator promises to tell you as soon as possible. A review site adds that the provider is not responsible for the weather. Check the forecast and dress for it. A lake page lists a light waterproof layer for spring and autumn showers. Pack that layer for a Rethymno and Kournas Lake day trip in those seasons.