A private transfer from Chania Airport to Paleochora covers 89.8 km (55.8 mi) in about 1 hr 38 min and costs a fixed fare from €135 per vehicle, not per person.
One booking covers the journey in either direction: arrival from Chania Airport, or the departure run back from Paleochora at the same fixed fare.
Fares are per vehicle, not per person, and cover the whole car, so a family of four pays once. The price you see is the price confirmed on your voucher; it does not change with traffic, time of day, or a delayed flight.
| Vehicle | Typical models | Passengers | Bags | Fare | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
SUV | Skoda Karoq | up to 4 | 4 | €135 |
|
Minivan | Peugeot Traveller, Mercedes Vito | up to 8 | 8 | €169 |
|
Minibus | Mercedes Sprinter | up to 18 | 18 | €259 |
The same fare applies in both directions: Paleochora back to Chania Airport costs the same as the arrival leg. Child and booster seats are added at booking, at no extra charge.
Your driver meets you inside the arrivals hall at Chania Airport, holding a sign with your name and the company name on it. Your transfer starts there rather than at a taxi rank, so there is no queue and no fare to agree on the spot.
Chania International Airport (CHQ) sits on the Akrotiri peninsula, on high ground east of the city. Chania International Airport handled 1,574,043 international arrivals in 2025, which makes it the island's second gateway after Heraklion and the natural entry point for western Crete.
The airport's position matters for what happens next. The road down from Akrotiri joins the national road just east of Chania, so Rethymno, Georgioupolis and the whole north coast run east without entering the city, while Platanias, Kissamos and the west coast run through or around it.
Chania Airport is a single-terminal airport, so the walk from baggage reclaim to the meeting point is short even when several flights land together.
Inside the arrivals hall, at the exit, where your driver waits with a name board.
Look for the board rather than heading for the taxi rank. If your flight arrives late at night, the driver is still there: the pickup is set against the flight, not the schedule.
Give us your flight number at booking. Your pickup is scheduled against that flight, and we track it, so a delayed landing moves the pickup rather than costing you the transfer.
Tell us as early as you can when a flight is cancelled or rerouted, so the driver can be reassigned.
Paleochora is a town on the south-west coast of Crete, built across a short peninsula with a beach on each side: sand to the west, shingle to the east. Paleochora is the largest settlement on this coast and the one with a full range of shops, banks and tavernas, which is why it is used as a base rather than only as a stop.
The ruins of the Venetian castle of Selino stand on the point at the end of the peninsula, above both beaches.
Paleochora is also a ferry town. The coastal boat that links the villages of the south west, Sougia, Agia Roumeli, Loutro and Chora Sfakion, runs from here, and several of those places have no road access at all.
We drop you at the door of your hotel, apartment or villa, on either beach or in the streets between them.
The centre of Paleochora is closed to vehicles in the evenings through the summer. Where that applies your driver stops at the nearest permitted point and confirms it in advance.
The drive crosses the island from the north coast to the south, 89.8 kilometres in about 1 hr 38 min. Paleochora sits on the south-west shore with mountains between it and Chania, so roughly half this journey is mountain road rather than highway.
The first stage is the familiar western coast: past Chania, then Stalos, Agia Marina, Platanias, Gerani and Maleme along the beach strip, as far as Tavronitis at 40.0 kilometres.
Tavronitis is where the route changes character. The road turns inland and south, climbing through the Selino district into hill country of olive terraces and small villages, with long stretches of single carriageway and a succession of bends. It is a good road, but it is not one to hurry.
The descent to the sea at the end is the memorable part, with the Libyan Sea ahead and Paleochora on its short peninsula below. Allow the full 1 hr 38 min rather than trimming it, because the mountain section does not reward optimism about timing.
The KTEL coach from Chania to Paleochora takes around two hours and runs a few times a day.
Reaching it means getting from the airport into Chania first, and the service thins outside the summer months. The last departure leaves Chania well before the evening, so a late landing has no public option at all and the coach cannot be relied on as a fallback.
Your driver takes you to the door of your accommodation in Paleochora. There is no central drop-off point and no walk with your luggage at the end. These are properties in the resort we transfer guests to regularly; if yours is not listed, it is still covered, so enter the name when you book.
Villas, apartments and private addresses in Paleochora are served the same way. Add the address at booking and the fare stays as quoted.
The return leg is the same journey in reverse: 89.8 km (55.8 mi), about 1 hr 38 min, and the same fixed fare from €135 per vehicle. Your driver collects you from your accommodation in Paleochora at the agreed time and takes you straight to Chania Airport.
Paleochora back to Chania Airport is the same 89.8 kilometres in reverse, at the same fixed fare.
Early departures from the south coast start in the dark for much of the year, and the mountain section is slower then, so the pickup time reflects that rather than the daytime figure.
Book both directions together and the return is held at the same fare. Switch the form at the top of this page to Departure, or select a return when you book.
For a departure from Paleochora we work back from your flight: about 1 hr 38 min of driving, plus the check-in and security time your airline asks for, plus a real buffer for the mountain road.
Give us the flight number at booking and the exact pickup time is confirmed on your voucher.
The fare covers the whole vehicle rather than each seat, so 4 people pay the same as 1. The price on your voucher is the price you pay, with no booking fee and no card surcharge.
Your driver waits in the arrivals hall holding a sign with your name on it. You walk out of baggage reclaim straight to the car, without joining a taxi rank or agreeing a fare on the spot.
Child seats cost nothing extra. Reserve the seat in the booking form and state the child's age, so the correct seat is fitted before the driver sets off.
Cancel at least 24 hours before your pickup time and you pay nothing. Plans change; the booking does not lock you in.
The vehicle carries your party and nobody else. It runs from the pickup point to your exact address, with no intermediate stops and no waiting for other passengers.
Your pickup is set against your flight number, not a clock time. Transfers run at any hour, which covers night landings and pre-dawn departures.
Every booking is confirmed by a person and carries a voucher showing your route, vehicle, pickup time and fare.
These are the questions guests ask most often about the Chania Airport to Paleochora transfer, answered with this route's own distance, duration and fares.
Anything not covered here is answered when we confirm the booking.
A private transfer from Chania Airport to Paleochora costs a fixed €135 for an SUV carrying up to 4 passengers. A Minivan for up to 8 people is €169.
About 1 hr 38 min for the 89.8 km (55.8 mi) route. The coast road as far as Tavronitis is quick; the mountain section south of it accounts for most of the time.
Not a direct one. The KTEL coach runs from Chania and takes around two hours, with the last departure leaving well before evening, so late arrivals have no public route.
Yes. The coastal ferry leaves from Paleochora's quay, so give the sailing time at booking and the pickup is timed against it.
Per vehicle. The fare covers the car and everyone in it, up to that vehicle's passenger and luggage limit. Two people and four people pay the same €135 for a Standard car to Paleochora.
Yes, at no extra charge. Reserve the seat in the booking form and state the child's age so the correct infant, child or booster seat is fitted before the driver sets off.
Give us your flight number when you book. We track the flight and move the pickup to match the actual landing time, so a delay does not cost you the transfer.
Inside the arrivals hall, at the exit, where the driver waits with a board showing your name. You do not need to find a taxi rank or a car park level.
Yes. Cancel at least 24 hours before your pickup time and there is no charge.
Pay by card online when you book, or in euros in cash to the driver. There is no card surcharge and no booking fee either way.
You receive a confirmation email with your route, vehicle, pickup time and fare on it. Check the details and tell us if anything is wrong. An automated receipt on its own is not the confirmation. The emailed voucher is.
Yes. Chania Airport to Paleochora and Paleochora to Chania Airport are the same journey at the same fixed €135, and both directions are booked from this page. Select a return when you book and the price is held for both legs.
Those routes are priced the same way as this one: a fixed fare per vehicle, confirmed before you travel. The same applies to every Crete transfers we run, from the airports and ports to the resorts and villages along both coasts.