April and May sees the greatest profusion of wild flowers in bloom in Crete, from low-growing ground covers to vividly colored orchids and it’s a wonderful time to walk through the gorges and nature pathways

MISTRAL FLOWER SHOW – WHO NEEDS CHELSEA?

At time of writing it’s Chelsea Flower Show week – one of the hardest events to get a ticket for in the UK Summer Season. And, let’s be honest, unless you go on preview day when His and Her Madge turn up it’s a complete bunfight. Worse still the prosecco and Pimms are eye-wateringly expensive, and you can’t find a place to sit down and park your potted plant for love nor debit card.

But who needs Chelsea when you can come on Walking Week at the Mistral and see the floribundance of delights that line the hillsides and byways of Western Crete. What’s more they’re not in a man-made garden or a tented Marquee but in their natural habitat. Anyway, as they say, a ‘picture is worth 1,000 words’ and the images on the page are courtesy of those who walked with us last week, so we’ll let them tell the tale.

*images courtesy to Ann, Jane, Madeleine, Mary, Mike, Roger, Ron, Sue

Our walkers were also very much in their natural habitat of mountain crags, gorges, river valleys and rocky coastlines. Not to mention their other home-from-home sitting in a shady taverna with a glass of something chilling and thrilling whilst tucking-in to a local delicacy or three!

Our Walking Weeks always sell out pretty quickly and it’s easy to see why. In spring the air is fresh, and the flora is wonderful. And nothing works up an appetite for a good lunch like a hike in the hills with the promise of a Mediterranean meal at the end of it. So what if you have a snooze in the van on the way back to the hotel for an afternoon swim to freshen up in time for dinner. – life doesn’t get much better.

In autumn the colours change and become mellow, the air more somnolent, the mountains a little quieter.

If you really want to do the flora of western Crete justice you should try and come at both ends of the season – you can always do it over a two-year period. Sadly our 2025 Autumn Walking Week is fully sold, but we do have both Spring and Autumn available to book for 2026.

CLICK HERE FOR DATES AND DETAILS