Chania, Crete

Our port was changed from Kusedasi to Chania in Crete. Looking on line at excursions and stuff, I don't see that there is much to do there other than a 5 hour round trip bus ride to Heraklion. Does anyone have any ideas? We are stopping there in 3 days.

Your ship will probably port in Souda. If your own cruise line does not offer a cheap or free shuttle into Chania, there is a local bus that stops at the port and takes pax to Chania (for a couple euros) when there are cruise ships in port.

Chania is a pretty enough little town to walk around for a few hours. The harbor area and the small-ish old town around it are the best parts. There is a small archaeological museum, and an interesting food market. I cannot recall much else of interest but if you wanted to make an easy day of it, I could see having a pleasant lunch overlooking the harbor after whiling away a couple of hours there....

Iraklion is, IMO, too far away for a reasonable daytrip from Chania unless you had a burning desire to see the (much, much better) museum there. The city itself is uninspiring.

Chania us a really nice town with a port area lined with bars and restaurants. I'm sure there are WWII tours if you are interested in that.

I agree with Cruisemom, Heraklion is a long drive away. You could always hire a car and take a drive into the mountains which are very pretty.

I agree with the others. Find a bus of some sort into Chania town. It probably will drop you off outside a local market building (and picks back up at the same location). Just enjoy a nice slow paced day of walking around and having a nice meal and drink or two. The waterfront/harbor is nice and peaceful in the early morning.

Loved it so much were going back for a land trip. Busses run every 15 minutes from the cruise gates to just outside the market. Market was decent, we then made our way down leather central to the harbour. There were glass bottom boat tours for €10, horse and carriage tours, we stopped for a beer (or two) at the harbour. Friends of ours hit the beach. The sail out if Souda is spectacular. And goes on for miles.

We were thinking about renting a car here for our stop in November. What would be good to see with a rental car or is the city itself a better destination ?

We stayed in north west Crete in summer 2014, but that us a long way from Chania. A few years ago I also went to Almyryda which is a resort area not too far from Chania. The interior of Crete us really pretty and I remember there was a lake with a couple of restaurants not too far. However, we visited Spring/summer, so not sure how many places remain open in the winter.

Having a car would give you more scope to see some if the island.

We were thinking about renting a car here for our stop in November. What would be good to see with a rental car or is the city itself a better destination ?

If you're into this sort of thing, there's a WWII historic cemetary near Souda, which is where the ship will likely dock.

There have been posts about private tours from Chania by car -- you might look for some of those ideas if you are thinking of renting a car. Crete is a large island and there is a lot to see in the vicinity. Chania is nice enough but (IMO) not anything unique. I happen to like Rethimnon (another Venetian town) much better, but there are other, more rural sites -- as well as Minoan ruins -- to see if that's more interesting to you.

I got a tour book to research sites, but I am not sure how far we can travel in the cruise time. The WWII memorial sounds right up our alley. I know there is a difference between the time it will take and the mileage so what would be the farthest you would recommend going?

Being there for three days is actually a bonus. We love Crete. Why not pre-arrange a car rental, pack an overnight bag, and tour the eastern or western part of the island? No reason to be stuck on the ship. Spend one night, perhaps two on the island. Go along the coast, into the mountains, whatever.

Get yourself a tour book from the library (or buy one) and read up on things to do, places to go. It is very easy to drive on the island. This will be far better than any ships tour with 40 other people...especially when it comes to avoiding the tourist traps.