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Visiting CIHEAM Chania

The Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania. MAICh is located 3 km south-east of Chania city centre, 13 km from the airport and 2 km from the port of Souda.


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The city center of Chania can be reached by bus No13. Buses leave every 20min and the bus stop is located outside the MAICh premises on the main street (Souda Avenue).

Tickets cost 1.20€ one way and will be available for purchase at MAICh's Restaurant. Please take into consideration that when the ticket is purchased on the bus the price rises for 0,50€.

Taxis to the city centre cost about 7-10€.

The port of Souda can also be reached by bus. Taxis to Souda cost approximately 3€. There is no direct bus service connecting the airport with MAICh. Taxi is the only means of transportation at an approximate cost of 17-20€.

Travelling to Chania

By airplane

Chania International Airport is the closest airport. Heraklion can be an alternative but a bus journey would take 3 hours.

There are direct charter and scheduled flights connecting Chania with many European cities carried out by RYANAIR  and Easyjet and others. Please contact your travel agent for details about charter flight schedules.

Domestic flights from the Athens International Airport are also frequent and are carried out by Olympics and Aegean Airlines.

By ferry

Ferries to Chania (Souda port) leave from Athens (Piraeus port) on a daily basis. The overnight/daytime trip with ANEK lines takes about 9 hours. Please check the web sites for ferry schedules. Also note that there is a direct bus service connecting Athens International Airport with Piraeus port. More information about public transport in Athens can be found here.

Chania can be reached by coach from the city of Herakleon situated 145 km (90 miles) from Chania. The bus fare is about 9 euros and takes about 2.5 hours. The taxi costs approximately 80 euros. Herakleon, being the biggest city of Crete, is directly connected with charter/scheduled flights with many European cities. Flights to/from Athens are also frequent. Ferries from Piraeus travel to Herakleon every day. The overnight/daytime trip with MINOAN lines takes between 7-8 hours.

Weather / Climate

The climate is relatively mild, Mediterranean. During the fall and winter months north and northwest winds dominate, while in the summer the ill winds make it enjoyable. But the divine gift of the eternal sunshine allows one to start their vacation from March and end it at the end of October.

Chania has the largest amount of water in Crete (65%), and for this there is rich vegetation of plants and fruitful trees (citrus trees, olives, vines etc.) as well as semitropicals. The very clean beaches of Chania win always the "blue flags" of Europe and are accessible for all ages throughout the year.