Pottery Village of Margarites - The monastery of Arkadi & The Gorge of Patsos

Inclusions / Exclusions

Mobile ticket
Offered in: English, French
Lunch (vegetarian option included)
Lots of raki and laughter :)
All taxes, fees and handling charges
Entrance to the monastery
Local driver / guide
Learn about the religion of Crete
Transport by air-conditioned car / mini bus
English or French speaking guide
Walk in the beautiful gorge of Patsos
Hotel pick up and drop off (Only Rethymno district)

The guide will not enter with you in the Monastery of Arkadi

Overview

We will start our tour by visiting a beautiful well-hidden village, Margarites. The tradition of pottery goes back many generations in this village and you will be able to have a small demonstration of pottery.After a 20' drive, we will continue to the religious part of our tour. Our goal is to make you familiar with our culture and religious customs. Arkadi Monastery is perhaps the best known monastery on Crete due to the Holocaust of 1866.Let’s explore together the nature of Crete. The gorge of Patsos is a small yet magnificent gorge, which begins at Ano Assites. The whole area around the gorge is of particular natural beauty. If the weather does not permit our entrance to the gorge, we may visit a very interesting museum and archeological site in the nearby ancient village of Eleftherna. Enjoy a traditional lunch in the local taverna.

Pickup points

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Pickup details

Private pick-up at each client’s hotel, only in the district of Rethymno Pick up time depending on the hotel ... Read more ▼

Meeting points

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Itinerary

Margarites Gorge

We will start our tour by visiting a beautiful well-hidden village, Margarites. The tradition of pottery has been an integral part of this village for many generations; there are lots of locals who still keep the tradition alive, up to this day, by transforming the traditional practice of pottery into modern art. In Margarites, we will meet our friend Yorgos, a local, who will show you how the pots are hand thrown. A demonstration of his art will follow, that will certainly stay “carved” in our memory. The village itself has a unique architecture and some lovely narrow winding streets, making it worth being explored. So, let’s wander through the quiet village of Margarites, enjoy the hundreds of colors that lie before our eyes and then enjoy a traditional coffee at a small “kafeneio”.

2 hours
Monastery of Arkadi

After a 25' drive, you will continue to the religious part of the tour. The goal is to make you familiar with Cretan culture and religious customs. Arkadi Monastery is perhaps the best known monastery on Crete due to the Holocaust of 1866. However, its location and impressive architecture make it all more special. It is a large fortified complex built during the end of the period of Venetian rule. We will escort you to explore this magnificent monument, but since our guides are not official, it is forbidden to have a tour inside historical monuments.

1 hour
St. Anthony Gorge (Gorge of Patsos)

Let’s explore together the nature of Crete. The gorge of Patsos is a small yet magnificent gorge, which begins at Ano Assites. In the gorge one can see rare species of flora and fauna, which are protected by European legislation. In particular, there are 80 species of flora, of which 4 are protected, 24 species of fauna, of which 11 are protected and 16 species of birds, of which 8 are protected. You are going to enjoy a small picnic at the facilities of the gorge, as you are watching a spring of running water near the river. A beautiful attraction of the gorge is the cavernous church of St. Anthony in the rocky walls, a former temple of Hermes. Usually, to complete the route, we will hike for about half an hour (until a certain point that the gorge becomes difficult... after 20-30 min), but depending on the weather and the physical condition of the travelers, we could hike a little bit more or less.

1 hour

Additional Info

Public transportation options are available nearby
Specialized infant seats are available
Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness

Free Cancellation

June 11100% refund

June 12No refund

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Reviews

4.9

15 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

5 stars

13
4 stars

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We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her We had a great experience touring New York City with Jonathan. He's a great tour guide and he made it very memorable and enjoyable. The tour was also super informative and I'm glad to have had a great tour guide during my visit in NYC. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking for a tour her

Reviews by TravelOne travelers

Showing 1-5 of 13 reviews with 5 stars

So may different styles of pottery

Published on Apr, 2024

Lots of pottery shops - each one seems to have it's own style, so visit them all. Some are tacky, some are whacky, some are upmarket Three had working potters to watch Prices vary from shop to shop Also good to find restaurant - we ate at Taverna Vernada

Excellent and varied tour

Published on Sep, 2022

Excellent and varied tour to the countryside (village, monastery and Amari valley) At Patsos gorge, nice hike along the river: depending on your ability, you can have an easy walk to the st anthony cave only or walk further out. Had an excellent lunch at a countryside taverna, excellent meatballs in a fragrant tomato sauce, goat and local cheese pastry with mint and honey desert! I recommend for a day out of the city!

Amazing Tour, Tottaly Recommended!

Published on Apr, 2022

Really well organized tour, our guide was excellent, friendly and well prepared. The places were beautiful, Arkadi Monastery with its long history, the village very unique and the hike was the right length, not exhausting, but long enough to create a good appetite for the tavern afterwards. The Food in the tavern was very nice, with classic Cretan Cuisine (also vegetarian dishes available, which is not always standard in Greece). Again, totally recommended for someone who wants to do something different and learn a little bit more about the Cretan history and Cretan way of life.

Awesome tour! What a lovely place!

Published on Mar, 2022

Our tour with Vincent was simply amazing!!! Margarites is such a beautiful village full of pottery art! The history of Arkadi is shocking and it is a place everyone should visit white in Crete We did the winery tour and the tasting was just what we needed. The walk through the gorge was a perfect closing for the tour. We really really suggest you give it a try!

Wonderful guide, magical places

Published on Jul, 2019

I took this trip with my mother on our visit to Crete and it really was a highlight. Our lovely guide Vincent was an excellent careful driver, and even though air con was an option we drove with the windows down so that we could smell the beautiful thyme/pine/herb-y mountain air of Crete. Margarites was wonderful, and Vincent was careful to make sure we arrived in between busloads of other tourists so we had the whole village to ourselves, and the demonstration was done in the best, most traditional pottery in town. We weren't keen on doing the whole gorge hike as we're not very athletic and wanted a chill day, so we stopped off at the Eleftherna museum in addition to everything else. The Arkadi Monastery was incredibly moving, and Vincent told us the history of the place before we went in, which made it all even more meaningful. He's a natural storyteller and makes everything so interesting and emotionally resonate - a really fantastic guide. Last, we did the gorge, including lunch in the most wonderful traditional taverna. You can also visit the little church in the gorge and, if you're spiritually minded, I recommend taking a little something as an offering - or, as we did, some change for the candles. The gorge was shady and full of streams, and we did a short hike that wasn't too taxing but did go fairly high up. I would thoroughly and wholeheartedly recommend taking this tour, and if we had had time to take more tours with this company we would do again. Being just us and the guide was a real luxury as well, as we could follow al our little whims and curiosities about the places we were in without having to rush. Eleven out of ten, what a great day!

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Pottery Village of Margarites - The monastery of Arkadi & The Gorge of Patsos | 6 hours

Inclusions / Exclusions

Overview

Pickup points

Open in Google Maps

Meeting points

End point

Itinerary

Margarites Gorge

Monastery of Arkadi

St. Anthony Gorge (Gorge of Patsos)

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Additional Info

Free Cancellation

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