A private transfer from Heraklion Port to Platanias near Rethymno covers 74.2 km (46.1 mi) in about 1 hr 7 min and costs a fixed fare from €82 per vehicle, not per person.
One booking covers the journey in either direction: arrival from Heraklion Port, or the departure run back from Platanias - Rethymno 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Standard | Skoda Octavia, VW ID.3 | up to 3 | 3 | €82 |
|
SUV | Skoda Karoq | up to 4 | 4 | €92 |
|
Premium | Mercedes E Class, Skoda Kodiaq, Jeep Compass | up to 4 | 4 | €100 |
|
Minivan | Peugeot Traveller, Mercedes Vito | up to 8 | 8 | €125 |
|
Minibus | Mercedes Sprinter | up to 18 | 18 | €170 |
|
Bus | Coach Bus | up to 52 | 30 | €405 |
The same fare applies in both directions: Platanias - Rethymno back to Heraklion Port costs the same as the arrival leg. Child and booster seats are added at booking, at no extra charge.
The line is the road a driver actually takes from Heraklion Port to Platanias - Rethymno: 74.2 km (46.1 mi), about 1 hr 7 min door to door. Pickup and drop-off are marked at the coordinates the booking engine quotes against, not at the centre of the nearest town.
Your driver meets you in front of the Passenger Terminal at Heraklion Port, holding a banner with your name and the company name on it. Ferry arrivals cluster, so the terminal forecourt fills quickly; the banner is what makes your car findable in it.
Heraklion Port sits inside the city, a few minutes from the centre and about 4 kilometres from the airport. Heraklion Port is the island's main ferry gateway, taking the overnight sailings from Piraeus as well as the routes from Santorini, Mykonos, Paros and Naxos.
Overnight ferries from Piraeus dock early in the morning, which is the port's busiest window and the one where on-demand taxis are hardest to find. A pre-booked car is already waiting when the ramp goes down.
Cruise calls berth at the same port area and follow the same procedure.
In front of the Passenger Terminal, where your driver waits with a banner showing your name and ours.
Stay at the terminal rather than walking out to the road. The port approach is one-way and busy at docking time, and the vehicle cannot stop on it.
Give us your ferry or cruise line and arrival time at booking. We track sailing arrivals as well as flights, so a late docking moves the pickup rather than costing you the transfer.
Tell us as early as you can if your sailing is cancelled or diverted to another port, so the driver can be reassigned.
Platanias is a beach settlement immediately east of Rethymno, on the long sand strip that runs from the city towards Sfakaki. Platanias in Rethymno should not be confused with the larger Platanias west of Chania: the two share a name and sit on opposite sides of the island.
The strip here is hotels, apartments and tavernas set between the beach and the old coast road, with the national road behind them.
Rethymno's old town is close enough to walk to along the seafront for anyone staying at the western end, which is the main reason people pick this stretch over the resorts further east.
We drop you at the door of your hotel, apartment or villa anywhere along the strip.
Addresses here are usually given by hotel name rather than street number, and the strip runs for several kilometres. Give the accommodation name at booking so the driver takes the right turning off the coast road.
The car leaves the port gate and runs west for 74.2 kilometres, about 1 hr 7 min, along the beach strip that runs into Rethymno from the east.
The coast road covers the first hour, past the city, the cliffs, and the inland stretch behind Bali and Panormos.
Skaleta at 66.7 kilometres from the quay returns the road to the shoreline, and the strip begins there.
Platanias sits at the far end of it, closest of the four to Rethymno, so the exit comes before the city bypass and the drive ends a few minutes sooner than a town address would take. That proximity is the reason people choose this end: the old town is walkable along the seafront from the western edge.
Two Cretan places carry this name, and the other is west of Chania. Giving the region at booking is what keeps them apart. Four settlements share this beach in a row and their names are used loosely. Skaleta is 66.7 kilometres from the quay, Platanias 74.2 and Rethymno 77.8, with Sfakaki and Adelianos Kampos between, so the hotel name is what identifies the turning.
The intercity coach passes on the national road above the strip but does not serve it.
Reaching a hotel here by public transport after a ferry means the city, the coach to Rethymno, then a local bus or taxi back east along the beach road. Three legs and two waits.
Your driver takes you to the door of your accommodation in Platanias - Rethymno. 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 Platanias - Rethymno 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: 74.2 km (46.1 mi), about 1 hr 7 min, and the same fixed fare from €82 per vehicle. Your driver collects you from your accommodation in Platanias - Rethymno at the agreed time and takes you straight to Heraklion Port.
Platanias back to the port is the same 74.2 kilometres at the same fixed price.
The strip feeds onto the national road through a small number of junctions, so leaving is quick. The Heraklion approach at the far end is what the margin is for.
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.
Sixty-seven minutes of driving, the terminal time required, and an allowance for the Heraklion end.
Send the operator and sailing with your booking and the pickup goes 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 Heraklion Port to Platanias - Rethymno 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 costs a fixed €82 for a Standard car carrying up to 3 passengers. A Minivan for up to 8 people is €125.
No. This route serves the strip east of Rethymno. The other Platanias is west of Chania on the far side of the island.
Yes. Platanias is 74.2 kilometres from this port against 77.8 to the town, because the strip is reached first.
From the western end, along the seafront, yes. The strip runs several kilometres, so it depends where on it you are.
Skaleta at 66.7 kilometres from the port, then Sfakaki and Adelianos Kampos, with Platanias closest to Rethymno.
The properties between the beach and the old coast road, among them Minos Mare Royal, Atermono Boutique Resort, Minos Mare, Rethymno Village and Golden Beach.
It runs unbroken from Rethymno's own sand out through Platanias, Adelianos Kampos, Sfakaki and Skaleta, several kilometres in all. Platanias is the western end of it and the closest to the old town.
Platanias itself. It is the first settlement east of Rethymno's own beach, so the seafront walk into the old town is manageable from the western part of 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 €82 for a Standard car to Platanias - Rethymno.
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 ferry operator and sailing time when you book. We track arrivals, so a late docking moves the pickup rather than costing you the transfer.
In front of the passenger terminal, where the driver waits with a banner showing your name and ours. Ferry passengers all reach the quay at once, which is what the banner is for.
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. Heraklion Port to Platanias - Rethymno and Platanias - Rethymno to Heraklion Port are the same journey at the same fixed €82, 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 private transfers in Crete we run, from the airports and ports to the resorts and villages along both coasts.