Grecotel partners with Aspire and Travel Weekly to host charity hike in Crete

Grecotel Hotels & Resorts has partnered with sister titles Aspire and Travel Weekly to host a charity hike initiative in Crete aimed at combining travel, purpose and social impact.

The luxury hotel brand will recruit eight UK-based agents to join the two-day hike, with participants scaling the island’s tallest mountain, Mount Psiloritis, and traversing Samaria Gorge, the second-longest gorge in Europe.

The trek will raise vital funds and awareness for Breast Cancer Now, the UK’s leading research and support charity for breast cancer.

The event will take place from September 28-30 and will be led by Konstantinos Savathrakis, owner of outdoor activity specialist Creative Adventures, which offers exclusive and tailor-made excursions throughout Crete.

The hike will also be attended by Kostas Sinis, Grecotel’s director of UK and luxury, and a member of the Aspire team.

Participants will stay at Grecotel Creta Palace in Rethymno for the duration of the trip.

Day one of the trip will see the group trek for six miles to Crete’s highest peak, with 2,456 metres of elevation. The six-hour hike will see agents ascend Mount Psiloritis to enjoy 360-degree views of the island. On descent, the group will hike through rugged, scenic trails to the traditional village of Anogeia where they will enjoy a typical Cretan feast of ‘antikristo’ lamb and authentic semolina dessert ‘galaktoboureko’.

On day two, agents will embark on a full-day, 10-mile hike through the Samaria Gorge, which forms part of the White Mountains National Park. The challenging trek will see the group traverse cliff faces, forests and riverbeds as well as the famous ’Iron Gates’, the narrowest point of the gorge at only three metres wide.

The hike will conclude in the coastal village of Agia Roumeli with a swim in the Libyan Sea. The group will dine in a traditional seaside taverna, before boarding a ferry to Sfakia, followed by a late-evening return to Rethymno.

“This initiative goes far beyond a typical familiarisation trip," said Sinis. "It is an opportunity for travel professionals to connect with a meaningful cause, experience a side of Crete that many visitors miss, and bring home a powerful story that blends tourism with impact.”

Agents keen to attend the charity hike should explain why they wish to join the challenge using this form. Participants will be responsible for their own fundraising.