Wine, Olive Oil, and Honey Tour with Winemaker

Olive oil, wine, honey bees, villages, vineyards, oh my! This is a tour for non-tourists, this is the real deal Cretan experience and the culmination of our life in Crete. You’ll be immersed in Cretan culture and learn all about our customs and traditions. 

We start the day learning everything we need to know about olive oil. Over 50% of the island of Crete is covered with olive trees. It is the most important product here both for our economy and our cuisine. At Melissakis Olive Oil Mill, we will learn how olive oil is made in the modern method. We will also learn the varying methods of production and quality levels. Have you ever wondered what Extra Virgin Olive Oil means? You’ll find out! In their tasting area, we’ll get a chance to sample different oils and other Cretan products. 

New in 2025, we’ll also be visiting our nephew and his sheep! We’re very proud to include a stop at our nephew Niko’s sheep stable where you will see how they milk the sheep and make cheese. A cheese tasting follows. If there a new baby lamb, you’ll have a chance to cuddle up with them. 

Next we welcome you to our village home up in the mountains. Since we moved to Crete in 2013, Vasili has been revitalizing his grandfather’s vineyards and working the land. In 2017, he also started beekeeping.  This year, we built a wine tasting area among the vines to welcome our guests.

Trek up to the bees in your protective suits. Vasili will need your help opening up the bee boxes and finding the queen. He’ll explain the bee keeping and honey making process. 

Next have a seat in the vineyards for wine tasting and lunch. From our vineyards, all you see is mountains, sky, and trees. All you hear is birds chirping and sheep baaing. It’s an escape from it all. 

In the vineyards, you’ll taste the wine that those vines produced. Vasili has been experimenting with different blends and different wine styles, he’ll explain the process behind each. 

Finally, you’ll lend a hand to create the lunch spread of local Cretan products and traditional foods. Everyone will get a task from either chopping up vegetables, filling up wine from the barrels, or retrieving honey. 

Before you go, you’ll have a chance to purchase honey, fill up a bottle of wine from the barrels, cork it yourself, and take it home.

Pick up starts at 9:30am. Pick up is from your hotel or villa. If you’re staying in the pedestrian area of Chania, a pick up location will be emailed to you. We may ask that you meet in a central location to best serve all guests.

Group size is maximum 8 people. 

Contact us for groups larger than 8.

Duration is approximately 7 hours.

Price per person is 150€. 

We recommend closed-toe shoes and long pants for this tour. This tour operates rain or shine. Some aspects of the tour are subject to weather conditions. Accommodations will be made.