10 Things to do in Vamos That You Shouldn't Miss

We drive towards the picturesque village of Maxairoi. We meet Kostas & Litsa who will introduce us to the processes of herbs collection, herbs oil extraction and making of essential oils. Litsa learns us ways of using the herbs in our daily life and their healing benefits. After that, we drive to the mountain village of Ramni to visit the local cheese maker. We watch Yiannis on duty, making his "graviera", the most typical Cretan cheese from sheep's milk & taste different kind of cheeses: graviera, anthotyros, myzithra. This brings us to the necessary first raki of the day! (Available : 01/11 to 14/06) Then we drive to the small village of Hiliomoudou, to visit Vasilis, the last person in Western Crete, who makes sheep and goat bells. We watch Vassilis working and enjoy a second raki! We continue to our last stop, an amazing view tavern with authentic Cretan dishes cooked by Eleftheria, with vegetables from her garden.

In this tour we walk through the wildflowers, greens and herbs garden of Manolis….a small paradise land. We learn about the herbs, their healing advantages and the best ways to use them. We will enjoy the panoramic view towards the White Mountains from unique balconies and the end of the walk we will find ourselves tasting vegetables and fruits from the garden together with authentic local wine & cheese!

In this tour we will follow the path of the Olive oil history in our area. We will visit an organic olive farm, a modern olive oil factory and other two old stone mills of a very interesting architecture. Amazing landscapes, local monuments & stories, top olive oil tasting and delicious homemade Cretan food will accompany us though the tour.

If you are interested in Cretan cuisine, Greek food, or you are just crazy about cooking, we invite you to join our traditional cooking lessons.You cook, taste and enjoy local recipes and prepare delicious dishes with the guidance and assistance of our professional cook Mrs. Koula.All dishes are made of genuine, pure Cretan products such as olive oil, vegetables, cheese, meat, wine, etc. and of course all the ingredients are fresh and local. Combine your visit to Crete with a journey through the Cretan Cuisine!

We start from the local Olive Oil factory. The taste of pure local oil is followed by the explanation of the secrets of Cretan virgin olive oil. Question will be answered such as: what virgin olive oil means? Why olive oil? Why the Cretan olive oil is better than the Spanish and Italian one? After, we visit Stavros the bee-keeper close to the mountain village of Embrosneros. We will wear the bee-keeper's costumes, open the hives and see the bees, including the Queen, and discover all the secrets of bee-keeping. At the end we will taste honey with cheese and drink the first raki of the day! After that we drive really high up, to the pastures of Yiorgis the shepherd. Under the oak trees Yiorgis milks his sheep with the valuable assistance of his dog! And then prepares "tyrozoulia", the freshest cottage cheese you will ever taste! Meanwhile lamb will be boiling in the vat and will become, along with traditional "pilafi" rice, our meal... in the heart of the mountains!

Olives and olive oil are, since the dawn of civilisation, two of the most important elements of Cretan life and culture. Let's "walk" together the Olive Path! First stop at the olive grove of Takis, a local farmer who uses organic methods of cultivating. We will walk with him under the olive trees introducing us to the secrets and the difficulties of cultivating olive trees, we will taste his excellent olive oil at his hospitable small house in the olive grove. Next stop the olive mill of the Melissakis family. We will have the opportunity to discuss the modern methods of olive oil extraction, the important things to check when buying olive oil, we will have olive oil tasting and we will discover some of the cosmetics based on olive oil. Next stop is the Monastery of St. George, an impressive architectural monument, the most important in the whole of Apokoronas. Finally, we will enjoy the lunch at Stavroula’s cozy tavern, who cooks local recipes using the ingredients of her own garden

Visiting Crete involves traveling in flavors. During your stay in our island you might have tasted some Cretan specialties: kaltsounia (small pies filled with fresh mynzithra cheese – soft local cheese), lamp with wild herbs, rabbit stiphado, the famous 'dako" (the barley rusk soaked in olive oil and tomato). Wine, olive oil, wild herbs, cheese, dairy products, meat, all local products raised in Cretan mother land. Pure products that enrich the flavor of your meze. However, the production really plays a staring role. Join us in a visit to some of the local producers, an experience which will also enrich your knowledge about the Cretan "quality food".