15 Day Trips from Heraklion in Greece Worth Booking

1-Day Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Guided, Santorini Tours & Activities, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion/Crete: Santorini Island Guided Day Trip

/ August 12, 2026

1.From Heraklion/Crete: Santorini Island Guided Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 1,448 reviews · 9 - 14 hours · from $200Our pick

Full-day Santorini trip from Heraklion with guided Oia and Fira, fast ferry and coach transfers, plus optional hot-spring boat.

“Really well organised transfers from hotel to port. Ferry crossing was seamless and coach connections really good. Our guide was fantastic, both throughout the transfers and ahead of the visits to Oia and Fira with some great tips on the best way to get the most out of our time there.”

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Crete Tours & Activities, Day Trips from Heraklion, Full-Day, Lunch Experiences, Safari, Tour Reviews

Full-Day Land Rover Safari from Heraklion with Lunch

/ August 12, 2026

2.Full-Day Land Rover Safari from Heraklion with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,351 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $113Top rated

Land Rover safari from Heraklion into Crete’s mountains for villages, shepherd life, Zeus mythology spots, and a proper tavern lunch with wine.

“A wonderful small group experience. Great visit from pick-up to drop-off! Small group experience with 7 of us - fantastic guide (funny, welcoming, inclusive, felt like family!). Entire day was magical - would do it again if we ever make it back to Crete.”

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Balos & Elafonisi Boat Trips, Day Trips from Heraklion, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Heraklion: Elafonisi Beach Day Tour with Pickup

/ August 12, 2026

3.Elafonisi Beach Day Tour with Pickup

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 731 reviews · 13 hours · from $64

Pink sand and clear Aegean water at Elafonisi with pickup from Heraklion, a guided scenic ride, and 4.5 hours on the beach.

“Amazing trip to Elafonisi Beach. Our tour guide, Emmanouela, was absolutely amazing (she even spoke 5 languages so don’t worry she’ll probably have you covered if you’re a tourist like us) she made the trip to the beach really interesting and enjoyable with her knowledge of Crete, the culture, history etc. A memory we’ll never forget thanks to her. Take care and enjoy life ;)”

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Balos & Elafonisi Boat Trips, Boat Tours in Heraklion, Cruises & Boat Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion: Cruise to Balos Lagoon and Chania Old Town

/ August 12, 2026

4.Cruise to Balos Lagoon and Chania Old Town

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 526 reviews · 14.5 - 16 hours · from $88

From Heraklion, cruise to Balos Lagoon and Gramvousa, then explore Chania’s Venetian harbor on a full-day outing.

“Great day, worth the early start, Balos is beautiful, guide was great and informative. The only thing that let it down was the bus, the seats were so uncomfortable and for such a long journey it would have been better if the seats were more comfortable. The coach driver George was great tho!”

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1-Day Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Hiking & Trekking, Samaria Gorge & Hiking Trips, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion: Samaria Gorge & Agia Roumeli Hiking Day Trip

/ August 12, 2026

5.Samaria Gorge & Agia Roumeli Hiking Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 422 reviews · 15.5 - 17.5 hours · from $58

Hike Samaria Gorge from Heraklion, swim at Agia Roumeli, and sail back by ferry from Sfakia on a long day trip.

“The experience was great, I had the chance to explore a part of Crete that is completely different and the guide, Maria, was really helpful during this trip.”

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City Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Historical Tours, Knossos Palace Tickets & Tours, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Heraklion: Historical Center City Tour & Knossos Palace

/ September 7, 2026

6.Historical Center City Tour & Knossos Palace

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 340 reviews · 7 hours - 510 minutes · from $47

A guided day trip from Heraklion to Knossos Palace and the Old Town, with coach comfort, time to roam, and optional museum time.

“Excellent way to spend half a day in Knossos learning and seeing the minimal capital city and get to see city center at Heraklion to get your bearings when you arrive in Crete.”

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Day Trips from Heraklion, Guided, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Samaria Gorge & Hiking Trips, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion,Agia Pelagia,Malia: Samaria Gorge Guided Trip

/ September 2, 2026

7.From Heraklion,Agia Pelagia,Malia: Samaria Gorge Guided Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 298 reviews · 12 - 14 hours · from $53

Guided Samaria Gorge trek from Omalos, with thousand-year forests, Agia Roumeli swim time, and a scenic ferry to Sfakia.

“If like walking around new places and beautiful landscapes, then this trip it's a must. I have to admit it not easy and you should pack a lot of patience and good shoes to get through the gorge, but in the end it will all be worth it. The guide was very friendly and walked with us until the end (actually he started a bit later to be able to check on travelers who maybe had issues, but caught us close to the finish line). You shouldn't forget your sunscreen and some bottles of water. There are springs at resting spots so you can refill the bottles. You finish at…”

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Day Trips from Heraklion, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Heraklion: Chania Town, Kournas Lake, and Rethymno Tour

/ August 31, 2026

8.Chania Town, Kournas Lake, and Rethymno Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 288 reviews · 11 - 13.5 hours · from $56

West Crete day trip from Heraklion with Chania, Kournas Lake and Rethymno. Venetian streets, lake pedal boat, big value.

“We really enjoyed our day tour. The amount of time in each location was nice. The trip was well planned and we really enjoyed our time in Chania Town, Kournas Lake and Rethymno. Our visit to Rethymno was a pleasant surprise. We feel the quaint town is a must see.”

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Boat Tours in Heraklion, Cruises & Boat Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Evening Experiences, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Sunset Boat Cruises, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion: Sunset Cruise to Dia Island

/ August 31, 2026

9.Sunset Cruise to Dia Island

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 259 reviews · 5.5 hours · from $82

Sunset sailing from Heraklion to Dia Island for 5.5 hours of swimming, snorkeling, snacks, and time in Dia’s quiet bays.

“It was a great activity, the guides were amazing and make us feel welcome in the boat. Also the place and the water in the island were amazing very clean and unique I really recomend this activity”

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Crete Boat Trips, Crete Tours & Activities, Cruises & Boat Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Tour Reviews

Black Rose Pirate Boat: 5-Hour Trip from Heraklion

/ August 31, 2026

10.Black Rose Pirate Boat: 5-Hour Trip from Heraklion

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 168 reviews · 4 hours · from $69

Pirate-themed Black Rose cruise from Hersonissos to Sissi and Stalis, with snorkel stops, BBQ lunch, and family fun.

“A brilliant day out - staff were great, boat had plenty of space on our visit, food provided was fine, and we were very lucky to have amazing weather. Great atmosphere with music playing while you sail, and the swim and beach stops were good. Would recommend.”

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Crete Tours & Activities, Day Trips from Heraklion, Private Drivers, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Heraklion: Santorini Day Tour with Optional Transfer

/ August 31, 2026

11.Santorini Day Tour with Optional Transfer

★★★★★★★★★★4.1 · 154 reviews · 14 hours · from $199

Heraklion to Santorini in 14 hours: guided ferry, time in Oia and Fira, and an optional volcano hot-springs swim.

“It was like military precision....everything was as described in the plan details- what time to get tickets, where to get tickets, what times the boats left. beautiful trip and perfect in October...I can bet it would be a little chaotic and hot in summer months. my only criticism would be, that because we chose to do the volcano trip, there was literally 30 mins in Fira...and that was not enough.”

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Day Trips from Heraklion, Evening Experiences, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Off-Road & Quad Tours, Quad & Jeep Tours in Heraklion, Safari, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Heraklion: Quad Safari Wild Crete Evening Tour

/ August 12, 2026

12.Quad Safari Wild Crete Evening Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 149 reviews · 4 hours · from $89

Evening quad safari in Crete with Skotino Cave, Voritsi off-road, olive oil and rakokazano stops, then a mountaintop sunset.

“Really glad we did this experience, it was great value for money. Andreas was very knowledgable and happy to answer any questions. You felt safe on the quads and saw amazing views. The stop off at the olive oil factory was a nice touch and loved meeting the local people. Would do it again! Thank you”

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Day Trips from Heraklion, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Off-Road & Quad Tours, Quad & Jeep Tours in Heraklion, Safari, Tour Reviews, Tours

From Heraklion: Quad Safari Wild Crete Day Tour

/ August 31, 2026

13.Quad Safari Wild Crete Day Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 148 reviews · 6 hours · from $99

A 6-hour quad safari from Heraklion with coastal riding, monastery and olive oil stops, a real Cretan lunch, plus a cave and swim.

“I would highly recommend using Wild Crete Safari. It was a great experience, able to see many beautiful places with a knowledgeable tour guide.”

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1-Day Tours, Crete Tours & Activities, Day Trips from Heraklion, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion: Day Trip to Matala Hippie Beach and Caves

/ September 7, 2026

14.Day Trip to Matala Hippie Beach and Caves

★★★★★★★★★★4.1 · 148 reviews · 8 hours · from $37

Heraklion to Matala for swimming, snorkeling, and caves, plus hippie-town time, on an 8-hour guided day trip with optional cave entry.

“Was erg leuk om te zien, leuk toeritisch plaatsje. Bus vond ik wel verouderd”

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Boat Tours in Heraklion, Cruises & Boat Tours, Day Trips from Heraklion, Heraklion Tours & Activities, Spinalonga & Elounda Boat Trips, Tour Reviews

From Heraklion: Elounda, Kolokitha, and Spinalonga Boat Trip

/ August 21, 2026

15.Elounda, Kolokitha, and Spinalonga Boat Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 92 reviews · 270 minutes - 12 hours · from $34Best value

Elounda boat trip from Heraklion: Kolokytha swim, Spinalonga views, BBQ lunch, olive oil tasting, and free time in Agios Nikolaos.

“Really good experience and well worth the cost. Personally I thought you got a lot for the money. With transfers it was a full days excursion. Spinalonga was lovely, the tour was really informative. €20 for entry but for a UNESCO site - that’s pretty good. Lovely Olive oil co-op and factory. Also very interesting and reasonably priced if you decide to buy (no hard sell just delicious). I recommend wearing proper closed toe footwear. I wore sandals and would have been more comfortable with trainers or shoes but that was a personal recommendation. Overall great day, great tour guide and great coach driver too. 10/10.”

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