There are 2 ways to get to Balos lagoon.

By road. Drive by Car and then walk. Only gets you to Balos Beach .

By sea. Use different boats available.

The master Weather factor. All boat trips are subject to weather conditions and should be reconfirmed the night before travelling. The trip is on open waters and long distance and safety is a major issue.

Boat departures and sailing is regulated by coast guard to enhance safety. On rough weather conditions  small boats are not allowed to sail.

Balos by car

The final part of the road trip to Balos is a 11km bumpy dirt track (with rocks and thick gravel) leading to the parking space above Balos and then half hour walking downhill (sensible shoes highly recommended) on the paved path to get to Balos beach.

Please consider

Rented cars insurance is not valid to go on this dirt track road and car hire companies do not want their cars to go to Balos because of the bad road condition.

On high season (July and August) the track is very busy with cars and the parking space might be full up so one has to park on the dirt track, sometimes far from the beginning of the path.

There are limited sun-beds available at Balos and only one cantine run by the municipality for food and drink. You are advised to take with you, hat, sun-block, beach towels, food and enough water along with your camera (suggest you take a panoramic photo from the top of the mountain on the right just off the path). It is usually too windy at Balos for a beach portable umbrella, so do not bother carrying one.

Balos By boat

One can use the large boats available at kisamos port. They take about one hour (11 miles) journey to reach Balos lagoon and Gramvousa island. They depart from around 10:00 and return around 18:00. They take from 600 people up to 1100 on the large roll on boat. One can get good food and drink on the boat. Some will take people on shore at Balos in groups of 40 using large barge boats. There is even one called Balos express that departs at noon 12:00 and visits exclusively Balos lagoon. The idea is to spend time in Balos off the peak time hours (11:00 to 15:00).

The ticket is around 27 € per person for the day trip. These boats are very large and depart on any weather conditions. They are good if you have sea sickness issues but you have to queue to get in and out and to do anything. In our experience, most of our villa guests tend to avoid these large boats for being the mass touristy way of getting there and seek for alternatives.

There is a smaller boat called Petalida (mob. 696949187598) that takes around 40 people and departs every afternoon from Falasarna small fishing harbor.  Ticket is 27 €.

You might need: Something for windy weather on deck. If you have sea sickness issues avoid dairy and eat light at breakfast. Also take travel sickness pills 1 hour before travelling.

Balos by Private boat hire

This exclusive way of experiencing Balos is ideal but not everyone can afford it. Roughly budget from 80 € to 100 € or more per person and take your pick of boat. If you are small numbers and cannot afford this, your only other option is to ask if you could be matched with other passengers to make up the numbers to go on a trip. This requires very good communication with the boat manager up to the night before trip is scheduled.

Your best choice is boats that sail from Kisamos port nearest to Balos. Some boats are available from Chania harbor or Kolymbari harbor. The long distance and consequently cost of fuel, travelling time and weather conditions is a something one has to consider very seriously when weighing this option.

Yacht hire. There is only 1 yacht available for hire from Kisamos port.

Balos Star is a 19 meters ship with double-engine (650hp each) boat, with a 25 m/ per hour speed. Boat can take up to 12 people. Prices start at around 750 € for the day for a group of around 10 and can vary depending on food / villa mini bus transfers required or special requests (birthday parties).

Indicative itinerary:

Your starting point is at Kissamos Harbour and after embarking at 10am, you will sail for 45 minutes at a speed of 20-25 knots to the crystal blue waters of Balos Bay.

Indicative day Itinerary is here:

After arriving at Gramvousa Island, you may decide to walk up the small path leading to the top of the island and be amazed by the stunning views from the castle. The castle was built by the Venetians on the edge of the cliff and was later conquered by the notorious Barba Rossa who turned Gramvousa into a pirate village. Legend says that the treasure of the pirate is still buried somewhere on the island.

Then back to the boat where the captain will prepare a light snack with wine, beer and refreshments that will cool you off from all the walking.

Next stop: Balos Lagoon where you can swim and snorkel from the boat in the clear turquoise sea or take a long, leisurely walk along the pink sandy beach that surrounds the lagoon.

Your amazing trip finishes at around 5.30pm with minds and souls in absolute tranquility.

The day trip Balos lagoon is also available with Smaller size speed boats that can take from 5 and up to 10 people and prices start at around 450 € per day for an exclusive trip

Fishing trips

Enjoy a unique experience fishing in the crystal clear waters of the bay of Kissamos. Passengers have the opportunity to fish with our equipment and then enjoy dinner and a drink of their choice. Our cruise ends in the early evening when it returns to the port of Kissamos.

There are more yacht options departing from Chania harbor.

Rib boat

There is an increasing amount of boats of this kind available.

Prices start at 350€ and go up to 850€ depending on the boat and the group size.

Rib boats can go fast and can have tent for shade but are generally small boats and very weather dependent. Also it is vital that you check that they are licensed and insured.

Sailing boat

Currently available from Kisamos port.

It can take up to 7 people and prices start from about 450 € for up to 6 people (vary to seasonality) , kids go free or half price depending on age. Includes finger food and limited drinks.

Pine honey on the other hand, has density and viscosity while smell and taste are reminiscent of pine sap.
Pine honey has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, it stimulates the immune system and helps in the cure of several dermatological, degenerative and autoimmune diseases.
The raw, unprocessed, unfiltered honey is the healthiest because it preserves all its beneficial compounds unaltered.

A visit to our apiary will familiarize you with other, extremely beneficial products produced by the same honeybee, like the Pollen, the Royal jelly and Propolis, rich in vitamins, proteins and flavonoids.

We aim to provide you, with an experience of the honeybee world and how it affects your every day life!

You will be guided by a honeybee enthusiast, and you will have the chance to see that there is much more to a honeybee than meets the eye. We are a three generations family of beekeepers and we try to keep it small scale. We love bee keeping and do not believe in the industrialization of the honeybee.

We will do our best to give you a first-hand experience, of how a mega brain that is a bee colony is organized, witnessing through a glass-hive the absolute order and progress that defines the colony and in the process of the event, we will explain to you, everything there is to know about the amazing life of the bee Queen and how it controls the entire colony.

Special aspects of the honeybee life will be unfolded before you, as –for example- how the Royal Jelly transforms a common larva to a Queen, how the colony has extreme similarities with the human society when it comes to policy, how much of your daily food gets in your plate just because of the honeybee pollination (about 35% of all plants that produce edible fruit, would be extinct without the bees) and many other bizarre things that will amaze you!

Please contact your Concierge for a quote on the whole event or a price per person for larger groups. Prices include the guided walk around, a presentation of an actual colony through a glass hive and a Q&A session to answer any questions you might have about the extraordinary world of a honeybee.

Of course you will get a taste of our artisan honey, pollen, royal jelly, propolis and rakomelo (honey and raki – a local alcohol drink), produced by the very hives that you will visit.

Protective nets and one use plastic gloves will be provided at the apiary.

Guests are advised to wear long sleeves and long trousers. It would be strongly recommended that visitors would not wear any kind of perfume.

The whole event normally lasts about1 hour, but depending on the interest of the participants it can be extended.