living in crete

October / November see the last of the direct flights going back to the UK & Europe and from November to March Crete returns to its old rhythms of life.

Some hotels in the towns stay open during the winter months, but there is little winter tourism and beach resorts close down.

There are no direct flights to the island from Europe between November and March but there are regular domestic flights to and from Athens.

The towns and villages are still very much alive and busy in the winter months as the locals go about their daily business. On the roads there are numerous pick-up trucks loaded with olives, firewood or livestock as well as the usual traffic, but with hardly a hire-car in sight!
Nightlife changes from the summer scene of beach bars and outdoor tavernas to trendy indoor town cafes and restaurants, and cozy village cafeneons and tavernas with wood-burning stoves or open fireplaces.

Cretans turn to their fields and gather their olive and orange harvests. Nearly every Cretan family owns at least one olive grove on the island. Weekends are often spent away from the towns as people head for their 'horio' (village) to gather their olives, or to visit relatives.

The weather is changeable. November and December tend to be reasonably mild, with January and February generally the coldest months. Crete has some very heavy rainfall and spectacular storms during the winter months, but invariably the sun always comes out at some point and there are glorious warm sunny days too. Temperatures vary at sea level it can be as low as 2°C or as high as 25°C plus.

There are regular snowfalls in the mountain villages and the White Mountains are usually snow-covered from November to April. If you are in Crete in winter a trip up to the snow is a must.

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