The olive road · GREECE OLIVE OIL TOURS
Greece eats more olive oil per head than any country on earth and mills most of it on Crete. These 15 cover the big Kolymvari plants, the small family presses and the estate days that end at a long table, with prices and how far each one is from the port.
Drive a quad from Peninsula Resort with guide Stan or his multilingual team, following off-road routes above Agia Pelagia to an olive mill, the abandoned village of Achlada, and Fodele, El Greco’s birthplace. The $93 price covers one quad for up to two people, fuel, insurance, helmets, instruction, and olive oil tasting.
“Mr Sexy was amazing. A great experience. a must do”
Spend about 7.5 hours with a local English-speaking driver-guide such as Stavros, Ed, Mike, or Spyros. Visit an olive press, old villages, Lasithi windmills, Krasi’s ancient plane tree, Aposelemis Dam, Dikteon Cave, and optional Knossos. Expect a small group of up to 10, local tastings, hotel pickup, and a flexible pace.
“Mike was a brilliant guide who was enormously attentive and knowledgeable. His enthusiasm kept my kids engaged and they haven't stopped talking about the "best tour ever"! A fantastic way to get an insight into Crete.”
Spend about four and a half hours exploring The Governor Olive Mill near Corfu. Walk among ancient olive trees, learn how oil is made, and join a guided tasting with bread, feta, tomatoes, capers, yogurt, and wine. Pickup is available within 25 km, with guides such as Maria, Irene, or Erini and local drivers often adding extra island sights.
“Never attended olive oil degustation before, it was great expirience. The oldest olive tree in Corfu- very impressive!”
Spend seven hours in rural Crete with a local English-speaking guide, often Linda or Electra. Visit the ancient Olive Tree of Vouves, a bakery, cheese maker, honey and olive-oil producer, and family winery. Tastings include Cretan breads, cheeses, honey, olive oil, local delicacies, and up to 20 wines.
“Our guide was amazing. She truly loves her job. Very enthusiastic and knowledgeable”
Ride into Crete’s Lassithi Plateau with a multilingual guide, visiting Vidiani Monastery, Psychro Cave, Krasi village, and the Lyrakis olive farm. Expect mountain roads, a steep walk to Zeus Cave, local tastings, and an optional Cretan lunch. Guides such as Soula, Tania, and Eirini are praised for clear stories in English, French, and German.
“We enjoyed the variety of site visits - monastery, cave, village and Olive mill along with explanations throughout the day. There was an appropriate amount of time at each destination. Lunch at the Olive mill was delicious and a great way to end the tour. Faih, the bus driver, was amazing how she navigated the bus around the hair pin bends on the mountains and through narrow village streets. The perfect way to see a special part of Crete without the stress of driving!”
Visit Kleanthi Olive Farm in Skalani for a guided walk among ancient olive trees, a look at modern oil-making equipment, and a generous tasting of Kleanthi oils with bread, cheese, fruit, honey, herbs, and other Cretan foods. English-speaking guides such as Mary, Theodora, and Maria lead the experience.
“Super interesting guided tour, we have learnt a lot about olives and their processing. And of course, not to forget the local delicious food at the end of the tour! 😊”
Spend 10.5 to 11 hours exploring eastern Crete with a multilingual guide such as Soula, Nektarios, or Katerina. Visit Vidiani Monastery, hike to Psychro Cave, stop in Krasi, taste local olive products, and tour Knossos. The $58 price excludes €35 in site tickets and optional lunch.
“It was a fantastic trip from start to finish. Our guide Nektarios was extremely knowledgeable and you could just feel the passion he has for his job. Highly recommend! Thank you very much! Inga”
Leave Chania for the Kissamos hills with an English-speaking guide such as Andreas, Alex, or Kostas. Visit family-run wineries, taste Vidiano, Muscat of Spina, and international grapes, tour an olive oil factory, see a 3,000-year-old olive tree, and enjoy Cretan snacks during this six-hour outing.
“Incredible tour! Myself and my mum were fortunate enough to have an unintentional private tour as it was just the two of us. Our driver Alex was invaluable, so friendly and knowledgeable and couldn’t do more for us. The tour stops themselves were amazing and Alex checking up on how we were was so lovely. I would recommend anyone who comes to Crete to book the wine tour through this company as it fully exceeded our expectations!”
At Terra Creta in Kamisiana, near Kolymvari, an English-speaking guide leads you through olive harvesting, modern processing, grading, and bottling. You then taste three oils with bread and Greek accompaniments, learn how to store and use them, and browse travel-safe bottles, olives, and balsamic vinegar in the shop.
“Clear explanation of e growing and harvesting. Good explanation of production process. Nice tastings.”
Join a small tasting beneath the Acropolis for five Greek wines, five regional cheeses, olives, and bread rusks. Your English-speaking wine expert, such as Tonia, Theo, Anastasia, or Evalina, explains Greek grapes, wine regions, tasting technique, and the stories of Dionysus through a virtual vineyard tour.
“We learned a lot about Greek wine and history of Greek wine, Anastasia was a great teacher and very friendly. Highly recommended if you are into wine”
Spend 7 to 8 hours exploring Crete by luxury minivan, with stops at an olive oil press, Krasi, the Lasithi Plateau, Mochos, and Knossos Palace. Guides such as Marinos, Nikos, Nicos, and Angie add local stories and flexibility. Zeus Cave is currently closed for restoration, with reopening expected in summer 2026.
“Nico was our driver/guide. If you are taking this tour I would suggest that you ask for him by name. You will not regret it. We took seven guided tours while we were in Greece. Nico was by far the best guide we had. He was personable, knowledgeable, witty, funny etc.,etc. He made all of us feel like family right from the start of the tour. The tour itself was outstanding. The olive oil tour is a must see. The plateau was amazing. Knossos was busy but worth the line ups for sure.”
Travel from Chania by air-conditioned minibus to Anoskeli Winery and Olive Mill, taste Cretan wines and extra virgin olive oil, visit the ancient olive tree of Vouves, then sample more wine and food at family-run Manousakis Winery. English-speaking guides include sommelier Andreas and local guides such as Yannis, Alex, and Costas.
“This was a wonderful experience. It was great to see the beauty of the countryside. The wine and olive oil were fabulous. The tour was great. So glad we did this.”
Spend eight hours exploring Crete with guides such as George and Antonis. Visit an olive mill, organic winery, raki distillery, village taverna, and pottery studio. Taste olive oil, five wines, raki, local foods, and a generous lunch in a group limited to eight people.
“george our tour guide was such a cool guy who had a lot of knowledge about everything on the tour. it really was an amazing experience and all the food and wines/spirits were delicious. i would totally recommend it to everyone who likes good cretan/greek food and good wines and raki”
At Koronekes Olive Mill in Epano Archanes, you’ll walk among olive trees, see the machinery behind first cold pressing and cold extraction, and learn how to taste extra virgin olive oil. The private, English-language visit lasts about an hour and ends with tastings of three oils, two flavored oils, sweet vinegar, and petimezi.
“What an amazing experience, such wonderful and knowledgeable owners/hosts who obviously put their hearts and souls into making the best olive oil using the much more labor intensive method of hand sorting olives and pressing and not the much faster commercial centrifuge methods. We learned so much about what determines good and high quality olive oil.”
Spend 7 to 8 hours exploring western Crete in a small 4WD group. Visit the ancient olive tree at Vouves, taste oils and five local wines at Anoskeli, cross mountain roads, and eat a Cretan lunch at Milia Mountain Retreat. Guides such as Yiannis, Nikos, Dimitris, and Nasos add local history, food knowledge, and good company along the way.
“Amazing experience! Our guide was so interesting, funny and careful! Winetasting was great, restaurant was great too ❤️”
By what you do, not by what is nearest.
