Gorge hike
Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias.
Photo: Vassilis St / Pexels
Quick facts
- Region
- Rethymno
- Start town
- Plakias
- Typical duration
- 2–4 hours
- Type
- Gorge hike
Kotsifou is the gorge on the road inland from Plakias, dramatic from the car and walkable in short sections if you pick a safe pull-off. It is not a full-day hike like Samaria and it is not the Kourtaliotiko slot, which is the neighbouring canyon with the waterfall. The interest is the walls and a village beyond them. Walking on the road itself is a bad idea. Use a path or a viewpoint, then decide whether the day continues to Preveli.
Drive inland from Plakias toward the villages. Stop only in real lay-bys. If you want a proper walk, choose Kourtaliotiko’s path or Preveli instead.
It suits a scenic hour with the car. Skip any plan that puts pedestrians on the gorge road. The driving line is narrow.
Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias needs 2–4 hours from Plakias. The months that usually work are year round, slow after rain. The stones are the walk, so wear shoes you have already used and carry more water than a town morning needs. Rain and a closed gate change the plan. Have a shorter walk in mind before you leave Plakias. Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias is this gorge, with this start in Plakias. A shorter or longer gorge nearby is a different walk.
Is it worth it
Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias is worth the hours from Plakias when it suits a scenic hour with the car. It is not a full-day hike like Samaria and it is not the Kourtaliotiko slot, which is the neighbouring canyon with the waterfall. If that is the part your group will fight, leave it for another date.
What to bring
- Water and a hat, because Kotsifou is the gorge on the road inland from Plakias,
- Shoes that match the ground on Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias. Drive inland from Plakias toward the villages. Stop
- A layer for the start in Plakias. Year round, slow after rain still has cool mornings and wind.
- The return hour written down. Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias takes 2–4 hours, and a second plan the same day is how you miss it.
Tips
- Year round, slow after rain is the window to trust for Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias. Outside it, ask whether the day is even running.
- Leave Plakias with 2–4 hours clear. Drive inland from Plakias toward the villages. Stop only in real lay-bys.
- Search “Kotsifou gorge from Plakias Crete” and check that the meeting point really is Plakias.
Related tours
Gorge hikeKourtaliotiko gorge and Preveli
Rethymno5–7 hours
Kourtaliotiko is the dramatic road gorge south of Rethymno, with a short walk to a waterfall lookout, and Preveli is the palm beach at the river mouth below. Doing both is a coherent day because they share the same valley. The beach is a steep path down and a hotter path up. The gorge stop is brief. Neither is Samaria. The usual length is 5–7 hours, and the months that usually work are April to October. It suits a south-coast day from Rethymno. Skip the beach path with a buggy or with anyone who will struggle back up in the heat. The lookout alone is the easier version. Drive the Spili road south from Rethymno. The gorge car park comes first. Preveli beach is a separate turning toward the coast. Leave time for the climb.
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Preveli palm beach
Plakias4–6 hours
Preveli beach is the palm-backed shore where the Kourtaliotiko river meets the south coast. From Plakias it is a shorter approach than from Rethymno town. You still walk down to the sand and back up, unless you arrive by boat. The palms are real. The shade under them is limited once the beach fills. Fire has scarred the grove in living memory, so the photograph in your head may be fuller than the trees. The usual length is 4–6 hours, and the months that usually work are April to October. It suits swimmers who can handle the path or the boat. It is a poor midday choice for anyone who cannot climb out. Go earlier than the August coaches. From Plakias, drive toward Preveli or take a small boat along the coast. From Rethymno, the gorge road is the usual approach. Confirm the path is open.
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FamilyPlakias and Damnoni beach day
Plakias3–5 hours
Plakias has a long sandy town beach, and Damnoni is the smaller cove just east, with a short walk or drive between them. Together they make a family day that does not require a gorge or a cape. Shade is at the tavernas and under rented umbrellas. The south wind, when it blows, is the day to switch to a pool or the old town instead. The usual length is 3–5 hours, and the months that usually work are May to October. It suits families based in the south or a single beach day from Rethymno. It is not the famous palm beach. That is Preveli, with a path. Stay in Plakias and walk, or drive the south-coast road from Rethymno via the gorge. Damnoni is signed just before the town if you come from the east.
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FAQ
Questions.
- Plan on 2–4 hours from Plakias. It suits a scenic hour with the car.
- Year round, slow after rain. Outside those months the day is often closed, cancelled, or a different trip. Ask the day before you leave Plakias.
- Drive inland from Plakias toward the villages. Stop only in real lay-bys. If you want a proper walk, choose Kourtaliotiko’s path or Preveli instead.
- It suits a scenic hour with the car. Skip any plan that puts pedestrians on the gorge road. The driving line is narrow.
- Kotsifou gorge road from Plakias is worth the hours from Plakias when it suits a scenic hour with the car. It is not a full-day hike like Samaria and it is not the Kourtaliotiko slot, which is the neighbouring canyon with the waterfall. If that is the part your group will fight, leave it for another date.