Cook in Crete is a tailor made culinary tour of Chania. It’s fun, friendly and professional, offering a unique experience of the local food and culture.


Crete is the southernmost and largest of the Greek islands where food and travel have intersected for thousands of years. Chania is a destination that promises many culinary delights and surprises.


All tours are escorted by experts, fluent in English, who love good food and travel!


Your culinary travel experience in Chania will include everything from visiting a local farmers market, wine, tsikoudia (A Cretan speciality - a strong distilled spirit made from the must-residue of the wine-press), goat cheese and olive oil tasting, as well as attending food and wine festivals on the island.


You will get up-close-and-personal with the wine and cheese makers and other local producers and learn how to select the perfect wine for your meal.


And not only do you learn to make traditional Cretan dishes, under the guidance of local top chef Ioannis Kaloutsis, but then you get to enjoy them with a fantastic view of the sea.


Our small groups of eight persons make for a friendly atmosphere. There are no long lines or packed tour buses. You get to experience Chania the way this historical city was meant to be seen.


Week mornings will be dedicated to cooking traditional lunches using seasonal organic ingredients from local farmers.


As for the actual cooking experience, it’s 100 percent hands-on. Our chefs take you to local organic vegetable, fish and meat markets to choose the ingredients you need to prepare your dishes.


Our chefs will show you how to select the best quality products. You will also learn how to pair the 4-5 course meals you have prepared to equally terrific wine.


Each tour includes the following

Four hands-on cooking lessons taught by local chefs
Visits with local organic wine and food producers
Wine, tsikoudia (a strong distilled spirit made from the must-residue of the wine-press), olive oil and cheese tasting
Tours in the countryside, vineyards and local cultural sites
Greek dancing lesson

Schedule

Please note: The actual day of the activities may change, while new activities may be added according to the season


Day One:

Arrival, pickup from airport or ferry port
Check in at Akrimios Hotel
Welcome dinner to meet the chefs and your host


Day Two:

Breakfast
Visit the local farmers market
Cooking lesson and lunch
Afternoon at leisure
Guided tour of an old oil press, olive oil tasting




Day Three:

Breakfast
Cooking lesson and lunch
Afternoon at leisure
Enjoy one of the best panoramic views of Chania at sunset from the hilltop park of Venizelos’ tombs. It is also the site of the 16th century church of the Prophet Elijah


Day Four:

Breakfast
A tour of the countryside
Cooking lesson and lunch
Greek dancing lesson
Dinner overlooking the sea


Day Five:

Breakfast
Visit local goat cheese producer, tasting
Guided tour of tsikoudia (a strong distilled spirit made from the must-residue of the wine-press), tasting
Guided tour of Dourakis Winery, an up and coming wine producer in the region. You’ll explore the vineyard, the winery and the wine over lunch
Afternoon at leisure


Day Six:

Breakfast
Visit a 5,000-year-old olive tree – one of the oldest in the world
Guided tour of Crete’s biggest Botanical Park, a green oasis home to hundreds of species of fruit trees and herbs
Cooking lesson and lunch
Farewell Dinner


Day Seven:

Breakfast
Check out and departure (transportation to airport or ferry port)



Our culinary expert
Ioannis Kaloutsis is one of Greece’s most talented chefs and a true ambassador of the Cretan diet. His cuisine features indigenous Cretan ingredients and his recipes are regularly featured in the local, German and American media.

Having gained tremendous experience and having built an impressive reputation abroad, his passion for cooking brought him back to his native Chania. It is here where he embarked on a personal challenge to promote the local cuisine.


Accomodation
Your accommodation will be in the Akrimios Hotel, where we have selected apartments with spectacular views of the sea. The hotel, which is just 11km from Chania’s famous Venetian port, boasts a small private beach. It’s also a short drive from other sandy beaches.