6 Day Vegan, Mediterranean Culinary Tours in Greece

Day 1, Sunday - Arrival

• Arrival the Heraklion International Airport (HER) Reception at the airport. Transportation to the hotel. Accommodation at fine 3-star hotel center of Heraklion city.
• Dinner at traditional restaurant with variety of Cretan vegetarian Mediterranean specialties.

Day 2, Monday - Excursion, food tasting, market visit

• Today we visit the palace of Knossos. When visiting the island of Crete someone must see the ancient palace of Knossos, built 3.500 years ago. Combination of archaeological discoveries and food tasting. The visit starts at 9:00 and lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• After visiting the palace, we drive back to the city and visit the farmers' market. The visit will take approximately an hour and, after ending the visit, we will walk the central market of the city to taste special cheeses in a small cheese shop. Later, have break for lunch accompanied with ouzo (anise) with a variety of vegetarian dishes at one of the traditional Mezedopolion of the street.
• We end our walk after lunch visiting and tasting the famous loukoumades, Cretan style doughnuts, sprinkled with honey and sesame.

Day 3, Tuesday - Excursion, food tasting

• After breakfast, take a drive through the vineyards and small villages of the Heraklion region.
• Visit the 16th century monastery of Arkadi, and Margarites a small village famous for producing ceramics.
• Next, you'll visit the city of Rethymnon, a city seeped in history and an attractive place to wander through its narrow streets and marvel at Venetian and Turkish architecture that house its restaurants, cafés and shops.
• After browsing the shops and a coffee break, where you can mingle with the locals, you'll drive to the natural springs of Argyroupolis, a site boasting attractive cascades and an idyllic setting for lunch, where you'll enjoy Cretan vegetable and cheese specialties.
• After lunch, you'll return to Heraklion.
• Dinner at traditional restaurant at the heart of the city. You will enjoy local vegetarian specialties along with some raki and local wine.

Day 4, Wednesday - Wine tasting, food tasting

• Spend the day with locals and the city of Heraklion
• We will drive to a village near Heraklion and visit small fine quality family wineries, depending on the season, we may have the chance join the way to make the Cretan snap, Raki or Tsikoudia. Drink Raki and homemade, chemical free, unique wines and spend the day with the locals as you join them on their daily life and have lunch at a local home.
• Go back to the hotel in the afternoon.
• Dinner at local traditional restaurant in the center of Heraklion with variety of vegetarian and vegan specialties.

Day 5, Thursday - Excursion, food tasting

• Combination of culture, food and history, Gortys will be your first stop. In the ruined capital city of the Roman province that included not only Crete but also much of North Africa you will find an impressive theater; the Basilica of St. Titus, the eponymous saint that converted the island to Christianity and was the first bishop; the Odeon; and the Law code.
• Continue driving to visit the palace of Phaestos the second most significant archaeological site of the Minoan civilization. Phaestos is located at the southern region of the prefecture of Heraklion in the valley of Messaras. The site of the ancient city is very impressive and the palace compound, although not as extensively restored as the compound of Knossos, offers a detailed insight of the everyday life of such a historically remote period. According to mythology, the king of Phaestos was Rodamanthis, brother of king Minos of Knossos, and superior judge of the underworld.
• Lunch will be in the fishing village of Kokkinos Pyrgos at the sea front restaurant of Kokkinos Pyrgos consisting of fresh sea food for the pesco-vegetarians and fresh local greens specialties.
• Back to Heraklion later in the afternoon.
• Dinner at local restaurant with a variety of vegetarian local Mediterranean foods.

Day 6, Friday - Departure

• Breakfast and drive to the Heraklion International Airport (HER) for the flight back home.

This retreat will take place on the beautiful island of Crete, in Greece.

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In Crete, a meal is not only a celebration, but also a culmination of various events. Enjoy culinary explorations that blend all the secrets particular of the region of Crete and let yourself enjoy and learn about them first-hand, alongside the locals. Going from one region of Crete to another changes not only what you eat, but how you eat it, how its prepared and what accompanies it. Each region is a mystery unto itself. Immerse yourself in the fantastic flavors and mouth-watering smells of regional Crete.

It is believed that the most authentic way to experience and understand the heritage of Cretan culture, nutrition, history, way of life, and its people, is in the company of a local scholar, walking through streets which are alive with religion, art and history, immersing in the architecture, learning about the life, traditions, and customs of Cretan people, past and present. You will sample some of the finest meals, as well as fruit and vegetables, in the world. You will drink selected spirits (ouzo, raki, liquors) and wines that will elevate your spirit and help you relax, and relish the excellent traditional cooking in some of the less obvious restaurants that Porto Club will point you out.

Follow Porto Club's vegetarian lead, come on a route of adventure, travel and wonder as you explore the mysteries, flavors and customs particular to various Cretan regions on your unique and authentic Cretan vegetarian food holiday. Porto Club can promise you that you will not be part of any tourist trail or the sheep following mentality. Their aim has always been to offer quality not quantity, so Porto Club remains small but perfectly formed. They offer a unique opportunity to experience at first hand the authentic Cretan regional cooking techniques and recipes that have been developed and handed down over generations.

All of the ingredients you will use are bought each morning from local open market and so, you will be working with fresh fruit and vegetables in season. Throughout your cooking sessions, you will learn about the ingredients and the traditions around the dishes. You will learn the passion of the Cretan kitchen and, most importantly, you will have a lot of fun and enjoyment doing it. Your week in Crete will be as much a hands-on cooking experience as a cultural one. George will introduce you to the philosophy of local cooking and its traditions.

You will learn about the history of Cretan cuisine and how it was influenced by its occupation for more than 2000 years. You will learn the inspirations behind the Cretan dishes, the methods employed by local producers, how to make a variety of Cretan dishes from simple ingredients you can find back home, how very few ingredients can be the basis for 6 or 7 dishes. You will learn how to prepare traditional Cretan dishes adapted to vegetarian requirements but never compromising on flavor as well as the cooking techniques and methods used to create the dishes.

Cretan bakery and desserts

• Cookies: On Crete, these cookies are traditionally made and served over the Christmas and New Year's holiday season. They are enjoyed at other times of year as well, but in December and January, they come together to create a fabulous collection of tastes and textures.
• Kalitsounia: These sweet cheese pastries are an Easter favourite on the island of Crete.
• Kouloura: These sweet breads are an Easter favourite as well on the island of Crete.
• Kourabiethes: Kourabiethes (also kourambiedes) are traditional celebration cookies, served at Christmas, New Year's, weddings, and baptisms. Toasted almond shortbread-type cookies topped with a generous coating of confectioner's sugar, they melt in the mouth.
• Melomakarouna: Melomakarona are a Christmas tradition in Greece (but enjoyed at other times of the year). All over Greece, kitchens will be filled with the wonderful smell of these spice cookies that will adorn tables, be given as hostess gifts, and eaten in huge quantities.
• Pastries: these cookies are traditionally made and served over the Easter holiday season.
• Pies: Crete is famous for its cuisine and mostly of its traditional Kalitsounia, which are small pies that can be filled with different fillings, such as cheese (tyropitakia) or greens and wild herbs (Hortopitakia). These unique delicacies are served across the entire island and are a very tasteful and healthy snack you can enjoy any time of the day, as an appetizer or light meal.
• Spoon sweets: Spoon sweets are healthy confections, visually pleasing, distinctive, and extremely versatile. Offering them to guests is a wonderful tradition and a sign of "sweet" hospitality. Nowadays they are used as healthy spreads, in baked goods, and to top ice cream, cakes, and yogurt. Spoon sweets reflect the spirit of the Cretan and Greek hospitality. Spoon sweets are a traditional offering in Greek homes. Spoon sweets are fruits, preserved in syrup. They are commonly known as "spoon sweets" which translates to sweet of the spoon. due to the traditional way of serving the sweets on a well-filled teaspoon accompanied by cold water.

Cretan dishes

• Casseroles
• Dolmadakia vine leaf wraps stuffed with sorrel, pumpkin flowers
• Ladera
• Mageirefta
• Moussakas
• Saganaki (fried cheese)
• Sfakiani (stuffed pitta)
• Soups
• Stuffed peppers, tomatoes, courgettes and Aubergines (Papoutsakia)

For vegetarian and vegan

Simple, basic, without over spicing and without a distortion of taste, and quite delicious. A Cretan housewife never counts out of weighs ingredients. If you ask her how much flour is needed to make a certain dish, she will reply "as much as needed". Cretan cooking has its roots way back in Ancient Minoan times. We know that Minoans used olive oil just as Cretans do today. Porto Club knows that they stored their cereals and they enriched their meals with the pure wine just as Cretans do today. Olive oil, fresh vegetables, wild greens, and fruits are the elements of the Cretan Mediterranean diet with a beneficial action which Cretans are in the habit of purchasing and consuming fresh. The freshness of these products guarantees the quality of the foods and viability of the vitamins and physiochemical substances they contain.

• 4 lunches accompanied by water and local wine
• 5 dinners accompanied by water and local wine
• 5 nights hotel accommodation at fine 3-star hotel city centre at city of Heraklion
• A welcome drink and snack on arrival at the airport
• A visit to archaeological sites of Gortys, Phaestos and Knossos
• A gastronomic walking tour of Heraklion
• A gastronomic walking tour of Rethymnon
• All transport to and from the excursions
• Daily breakfast
• Return transfers to / from Heraklion International Airport (HER)

• Anything not mentioned in itinerary
• Entrance fees at archaeological / historical sites
• Guide fees
• Tips

Recommended Airports

• A reservation requires a deposit of 30% of the total price.
• The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
• The rest of the payment should be paid on arrival.