I can now say that I have visited Crete in all four seasons. I was there in spring (early March), summer (full months of June and August), autumn (late September and late October) and in winter (late November-early December and also for New Year’s Eve). Each season is unique and has its own vibe and Crete is an all year round destination.

In spring, all flowers are in full bloom and the island is covered in green. There is plenty of sunshine, but also some days can be rainy. In the evening it can get cold, which is enhanced by the humidity. In summer… well… you know the drill: very hot and humid, 25+ degrees at night, aircon is a must, very crowded, planes landing  and taking off every 5 minutes and the list can continue. In autumn, the weather and the sea are perfect. You can get a very nice tan even at the end of October and the sea is still warm enough to go for a swim. Of course, you can have cloudy or rainy days, but that can happen in August too, trust me. Still a lot of tourists, but mostly adults or seniors (if it’s not holiday period for children). It can get chilly in the evenings, but I was staying outside in T-Shirt and shorts at 10 pm 😊.

In the winter… that is a different story 😊

First of all, it is very quiet. Meaning that there are not so many tourists and you can easily blend in with the locals. The vegetation starts to revive, after the scorching heat of the summer, covering the island in a green carpet. 

There are pros and cons, of course, and you will find below what I noticed.

PROS:

· Ah, so quiet 😊. You can enjoy a coffee or lunch/dinner without having to hurry to finish them, because there is a huge waiting line for a free table

· Less waiting time for food. The restaurants don’t have that many customers now and your food will be cooked much faster

· Still fresh food and made on the spot 

· No queues or crowds at the main tourist attractions, such as museums or archaeological sites. Sometimes you can be the only visitors.

· Free entry day once per month at almost all historical sites and museum (every first Sunday of the month, between 1st of November and 31st of March), 50% reduced price for some museums (such the Archaeological Museum in Heraklion)

· Siga-siga 😊enjoy Crete at its true flavour, far from the crowds and the rush from the summer months

· Still warm weather – around 20+ degrees Celsius during the day, around 13-14 at night

· Cheaper accommodation and plane tickets – I paid 200E/7nights for an apartment in the very center of Heraklion, pretty luxurious and modern. The same apartment, if booked during the summer, is around 100E/night. Plane tickets were around 120E roundtrip with Aegean Airlines (4 flights, connection in Athens) with carry-on trolley and personal item, bought 1 week before the inbound flight

· You can observe the locals, their daily routine outside the tourist season

· Less traffic 😊

· If you go in early December, you will see the Christmas lights and also the opening of the Christmas market. If you stay during the winter holidays, you will see the local traditions and the new year celebrations.

CONS:

· No direct flights ☹ now there are around 20 flights/day at Heraklion Airport (and not per hour, like in July or August). 3 flights to Thessaloniki (Aegean and Sky Express), 2 flights to Rhodes (Aegean and Sky Express), 1 flight to Amsterdam/ Lyon/ Larnaca / Aswan / Cologne / Prague depending on the day and the rest are to/from Athens with different airlines (Aegean, Sky Express, Volotea, Blue Bird Airways). Unless you are coming from the cities I mentioned earlier (Cologne, Prague, Lyon, Amsterdam), only way to get here is via connection in Athens or Thessaloniki. At Chania Airport, the average is around 9-10 flights/day, mostly Athens and Thessaloniki. There are only 5 gates available for boarding at domestic/Schengen area and only one for non-Schengen.

· Local bus routes are less frequent. Both urban/suburban and inter-city. If in the summer busses to Malia leave every 15-30 minutes, now there is one every hour. Urban buses to Heraklion airport are every 15-20 mins (compared to every 5 mins) and suburban buses are every hour. Some routes only have 1 or 2 buses/day and some routes are served only in specific days (such as Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday or only weekdays). In Chania, buses to/from the airport are corelated with the departures/arrivals. Renting a car from the airport is a must, otherwise it will be difficult to explore the island.

· Low availability for accommodation. Most hotels are closed for the winter – they usually undergo renovations and thorough cleaning for the next season. You can find mostly apartments in main cities’ centers and some small rooms in the villages around them, but expect cold rooms (especially those near the beach)

· The weather is a lottery. Yes, there is sunshine, but it can also be very windy. And wind brings cold. If the direction is from the sea, it also brings humidity, which makes it worse. You can also expect rain, drizzle or even fog. In the evenings it can get really cold.

· Low availability for restaurants. Most of them close at the end of October or mid-November (some are being renovated, for example) and you have few choices for lunch/dinner. Of course, tavernas and fast food restaurants, those that are mainly for the locals, are open all year round

· Closed shops, including supermarkets or small grocery stores (where you would normally buy water, snacks or cigarettes). For example, almost all stores from the main boulevard in Hersonissos were closed (souvenir, clothes, etc). Same in Heraklion and Agios Nikolaos, the souvenir shops from city centers were closed.

· For security reasons, gorges are closed and entrance is forbidden. 

· This is the “wedding season” in Crete. Wedding venues are few, so they usually choose a restaurant or a taverna for the party and they choose winter because now they find an available date. You can expect not to find a table at your favourite restaurant on Saturday evening 😊

· At 5:30 pm is already dark, museums and archaeological sites close at 3:30 pm. You can get bored easily

· Local authorities use this season to make repairs – such as streets, monuments, etc

Despite all these, Crete is beautiful even in winter 😊