Why You Must Visit Rethymno, Crete: A Complete Guide

Quick answer: Rethymno is Crete’s most authentic Venetian and Ottoman old town, sitting on the north coast between Heraklion (80km) and Chania (70km). It has no airport, which keeps it quieter than the island’s other hubs. Highlights include the 1573 Fortezza citadel, the Rimondi Fountain, a 13-kilometre sandy beach, and day trips to Arkadi Monastery and Preveli Beach. It makes an ideal base for exploring Minoan Crete.

Rethymno, Crete at a Glance

Easy to skip past on your way between the busy coastal cities of Heraklion and Chania, Rethymno Old Town and its Venetian harbor is a delight and deserving of more than a fleeting visit. It’s a lovely town to wander through its narrow alleyways full of shops and restaurants. It’s impossible not to be charmed by Rethymno, but I was surprised to learn of the many aspects of its interesting and storied past.

Rethymno (also spelled Rethymnon) sits on Crete’s north coast between Heraklion and Chania, and it’s the island’s most authentic city, a place where tourism is just one part of daily life. This guide covers Rethymno’s Venetian old town, its top sights, day trips, and where to stay.

Rethymno lacks its own airport, so it escapes the package-tourist crowds that dominate Heraklion and Chania.

Ruled successively by Romans, Byzantines, Venetians, and Ottomans before joining the modern Greek state, its old town layers all four eras into one compact, walkable cityscape.

Rethymno and Chania both have Venetian old towns, but they suit different travellers. Chania has a larger harbour, more polished restoration, and easier transport links since it has its own airport. Rethymno is quieter, less crowded in peak season, and keeps more of its lived-in, local character since tourism hasn’t taken over daily life the way it has in Chania.

🔸  Choose Rethymno if you want fewer crowds and a slower, more authentic pace

🔸  Choose Chania if you want easier flight access and a bigger range of restaurants and shops

🔸  Many visitors base themselves in one and day-trip to the other, since they’re only 70km apart.

On our Minoan Tour we stay in Chania because it’s a lovely introduction to Crete and has a UNESCO World Heritage Minoan site as well as a fantastic new archaeological museum, but we also base ourselves in Rethymno – because it is a delightful base and a necessary one for our visit to Ancient Eleutherna and Arkadi Monastery.

The old town is a maze of marble-cobbled alleyways lined with 13th-century Venetian townhouses, cafes, and bougainvillea-draped courtyards.

It is particularly lovely in the late afternoon and evening when the day-trippers have returned to Chania or Heraklion.

Built in 1573 on Paleokastro Hill, this Venetian citadel later housed the Ottoman-era Mosque of Sultan Ibrahim, which was converted from the cathedral of Saint Nicholas.

Entry costs about €4, and it’s open 8 am–8 pm in high season, 8 am–5 pm in low season.

Set on Petychaki Square, this Venetian public fountain bears the Rimondi family crest and lion-headed spouts.

Once Crete’s third-busiest port, it’s now lined with tavernas; the stone lighthouse at its end was added under Egyptian administration in the early 19th century.

All four restaurants along the harbor are equally good:

🔸Erotokritos Seaside Restaurant (€15–35)

🔸Cavo D’oro Restaurant (€20–45)

🔸Zefyros (€20–45)

🔸Taverna Knossos (€15–40)

The fresh fish of the day is always good, but so are some of the more traditional Greek dishes like stuffed vegetables and pastitsio. Just pick one – you won’t be disappointed!

Built by Venetian-Veronese architect Michele Sanmicheli, this former debating hall has been part of the Archaeological Museum of Rethymno since 1991.

The only surviving section of the 16th-century city walls marks the entrance to the old town.

The main shopping artery since Venetian times.

Apart from gelato, I don’t make many purchases when I’m out wandering alleys full of shops, but I did succumb to the jewellery in Rethymno which I think is more finely wrought than in Chania.

Surely one of the great pleasures of the Greek islands! Rethymno’s alleys are all the more memorable for the masses of bougainvillea and flowering vines above and beside Venetian doors and windows.

We stay in an old palazzo right in the heart of the Old Town whose walls are covered in bougainvillea and whose stone walls and arched doorways reflect the building’s 16th-century origins.

Operating from the same Venetian house since 1960, visitors can watch traditional phyllo made by hand.

Byzantine and modern Greek churches appear throughout the old town.

A 13-kilometre sandy stretch with loungers, lifeguards, and beach bars starting where the old town ends.

Dating to 1600 as the Augustinian church of Santa Maria before its Ottoman conversion, its 27-metre minaret dominates the skyline.

Housed in the former Church of San Francesco (1530), covering Minoan through Venetian periods.

Five rooms on rural Cretan life plus a wartime exhibit level. This was my husband’s favorite place in Rethymno and he’s not a museum fan! 

 I met a lovely weaver there who had woven and sewn the most extraordinary scenes of everyday rural Cretan life. It was such a pleasure to sit beside her and watch her work as she told me about the villages and festivals she was weaving and sewing.

A 16th-century church significant to the 1866 struggle for Greek independence resistance.

💡 Arkadi Monastery + Melidoni Cave Combined Day Trip Tip

TIP: Combine your visit to Arkadi Monastery with nearby Melidoni Cave, a short drive away, known for its stalactites and its own role in Cretan resistance history. This pairing makes an efficient half-day itinerary before continuing to Preveli or Kourtaliotiko Gorge in the afternoon.

A 17th-century monastery that sheltered over 5,000 Allied soldiers in WWII; Preveli Beach’s palm-lined lagoon sits nearby, 36km from Rethymno.

A 25km drive from Rethymno, with 15-metre waterfalls reachable via steps, no hiking required.

Ancient Eleutherna (also known as Appollonia) is an archaeological site and museum 8km from Arkadi Monastery, ideal to combine in one day.

A shorter, easier alternative to Samaria Gorge near the village of Chromonastiri, reachable by local tourist train, good for a half-day nature stop

🛋️  Best Hotel in Rethymno Town: Lines Concept Accommodation – save yourself a bucket of money and book this new (opened Jan 2023) amazing 3-star Apart-hotel. Already one of the most popular hotels in Rethymno, with marble bathrooms, contemporary rooms, sea views from your balcony, parking at the side, and an 8-10 min walk to the Old Town – incredible value.

🛋️  Best Hotel in Rethymno Town: Palazzino Di Corina-a gracious and very pretty hotel in the Old Town with an outdoor swimming pool, lovely breakfast areas under terraces, family rooms, room service, and an airport shuttle. It’s not hard to see why this lovely 4-star hotel is so popular.

🛋️  Best Luxury Hotel: Nautilux Rethymno – a new ultra-modern and hi-tech 5-star property on the beach. Rooms have private hot tubs or plunge pools, and the hotel’s indoor and outdoor pools are spectacular, and its terraced area and spa get rave reviews from guests.

🛋️  Best Adults-Only Hotel: Amalen Suites Adults Only – finally – a sophisticated, beautiful adults-only hotel in, rather than outside of, Rethymno. It’s all stone, water, and glass. The rooms have wooden ceilings, free-standing baths, and private pools. Completely luxurious and romantic!

🛋️  Best Apart-Hotel: Porta Squero Premium Suites – opened in April 2023. It’s 400 m from the city center, 250m from the Fortress, and close to Rethymno Beach. Grab an apartment with sea views from the terrace and enjoy these luxurious, light, and contemporary, generous spaces with wifi, air-con, a washing machine, a kitchen, and a walk-in shower.

There is no direct connection from Athens to Rethymno; travellers fly into Heraklion or Chania, or take the ferry, then drive or take the bus the remaining 70–80km.

I have scooted between Chania and Rethymno (not fun), and also taken the bus, which is quick and easy, and there is an air-conditioned waiting lounge in Rethymno at the bus station.

It’s about a 10-minute walk from the bus station to the old town.

Visiting Rethymno with a specialist guide adds context that’s easy to miss when traveling independently, particularly around how the Venetian, Ottoman, and Minoan layers of Crete connect.

On our Secrets of the Labyrinth: Minoan Crete Tour with Santorini and Athens, a 13-day small-group journey led by a specialist Minoan archaeologist, Rethymno serves as a base for exploring the island’s Venetian harbours, ancient cemeteries such as Armenoi, and traditional pottery workshops.

My favorite thing in Rethymno, apart from wandering its lovely alleyways, is that Rethymno treasure, Mr. Giorgos Hatziparaschos. He is one of the last bakers to make Greek filo (phyllos) sheets by hand. His workshop is the same now as it was when he began working from the Venetian house (30 Vernardou Street) in 1960. He’s turned 90, so make sure you watch him at work on your next visit!

Our tour also visits all four UNESCO-listed Minoan palaces open to the public on Crete, before continuing to Santorini and Athens. Departures run in Spring and Fall.

Why book Rethymno with a guide rather than visiting independently:

🔸  A specialist Minoan archaeologist explains how Rethymno’s Venetian and Ottoman layers relate to the island’s earlier Minoan civilisation, context that’s hard to piece together from signage alone.

🔸  Small-group access (maximum of 12 travelers) to sites and workshops that get crowded with independent tourists in peak season.

🔸  Logistics, transfers between Rethymno, Heraklion, and onward to Santorini and Athens are handled, removing the ferry and rental car planning independent travellers need to manage.