Cheap car hire at Chania Airport starts from around £15 a day booked ahead, roughly a third of what the big international brands charge. Chania Airport (CHQ), officially Ioannis Daskalogiannis, is the gateway to the most spectacular half of Crete, and the beautiful Venetian old town of Chania is just twenty minutes away.
From here the wild west of the island opens up: the Samaria Gorge, the pink sands of Elafonisi and Balos, the tranquil Lake Kournas and the Venetian town of Rethymno. This guide to car hire at Chania Airport gives you the real prices, the honest lowdown on driving, and the local knowledge the big booking sites leave out.
How Much Does Car Hire at Chania Airport Cost?
Cheap car hire at Chania Airport costs from around £15 a day for a small economy car booked ahead in the shoulder season, rising to £25 to £45 a day in July and August.
The lowest rates for car hire at Chania Airport come from the local Cretan and Greek suppliers such as Surprice, Right Cars and Yours Car Rental, which run desks in the arrivals hall. Here is the honest comparison the big booking sites rarely show side by side:
| Supplier type | Economy car, per day (shoulder season) | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Local Greek suppliers (Surprice, Right Cars, Yours) | From £15 | The lowest rates, arrivals-hall desks, local support |
| Mid-tier brands | £28 to £40 | Familiar names, middling prices |
| Major brands (Avis, Hertz, Sixt) | £52 to £62 | Global names, the highest prices for the same car |
The difference is stark. On car hire at Chania Airport, the same economy car can cost three or four times more from a major brand than from a local Cretan supplier at the next desk. This is the single biggest saving you can make on a Crete holiday, and it is why comparing all suppliers at once, rather than booking direct with a big name, is always worth it.
| Car class | From (booked ahead) | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Economy / Compact | £15/day | The old town’s narrow lanes, low fuel costs |
| Intermediate / Saloon | £22/day | Families, the north-coast road to Rethymno |
| Small SUV | £30/day | Balos, Elafonisi, the rough south-coast roads |
| Automatic (small) | £28/day | Those who prefer not to change gear on the hills |
Book your car hire at Chania Airport two to three weeks ahead for shoulder-season trips, and three to six months ahead for July and August, when the airport is busy and the cheapest cars sell out first.
Collecting Your Hire Car at Chania Airport
Chania is a compact, single-terminal airport, and quieter than Heraklion, which makes collecting your car hire at Chania Airport refreshingly calm. Most desks sit in the arrivals hall, and the cars are parked in the adjacent car park, a short walk away with no shuttle to an off-site depot. From landing to driving is usually fifteen to twenty minutes.
One detail the big sites bury: bring a credit card, not a debit card, in the lead driver’s name for the security deposit, as most suppliers will not hold a deposit on a debit card or in cash.
Photograph any existing marks on the car before you drive off. The airport sits just off the E75, the main north-coast road, so within a couple of minutes of leaving you are on an easy, well-signposted route to the whole of western Crete.
What Chania Airport Unlocks in Crete
Car hire at Chania Airport opens up the wildest and, many would say, the most beautiful half of Crete. The table below gives real drive times from the airport, the kind of concrete detail that helps you plan rather than guess:
| From Chania Airport to | Drive time | What is there |
|---|---|---|
| Chania old town | 20 min | The loveliest Venetian harbour in Crete |
| Lake Kournas | 45 min | Crete’s only freshwater lake, pedal boats |
| Rethymno | 45 min | Venetian old town and a long sandy beach |
| Samaria Gorge (Omalos) | 50 min | The trailhead for Europe’s longest gorge walk |
| Balos Lagoon | 1 hour | Turquoise lagoon, unpaved track or boat |
| Elafonisi | 1 hr 30 | Famous pink-sand beach in the far south west |
A hire car also reaches the Crete the coaches miss: the wild Akrotiri peninsula with the beach at Seitan Limania, the mountain villages of the Apokoronas, and the quiet south coast around Sfakia and Loutro. Three are now live: our Akrotiri scenic drive, taking in Chania old town, the Souda Bay War Cemetery, the monasteries of Agia Triada and Gouverneto, and the beach where Zorba danced; the White Mountains scenic drive, climbing through Lakki to the Omalos plateau and the head of the Samaria Gorge; and the Rethymno scenic drive, the gentlest day in western Crete, east along the coast to Georgioupoli, the freshwater Lake Kournas and the Venetian old town of Rethymno. Each guide includes honest, road-by-road driving notes, a Leaflet map, and downloadable PDF and GPX files.
Is It Easy to Drive from Chania Airport?
Yes, and Chania is one of the gentlest places in Crete to start your hire car journey. The airport is smaller and calmer than Heraklion, and it sits right on the E75, the fast, modern, toll-free north-coast dual carriageway, so within a couple of minutes of leaving the terminal you are on an easy, familiar-feeling road. There are no motorway tolls anywhere in Crete.
You drive on the right and overtake on the left, the same as mainland Europe and the opposite of the UK. The main north-coast road to Rethymno and the old town is genuinely straightforward. The one local habit to know is that slower drivers pull onto the wide hard shoulder to let faster traffic overtake, which feels odd at first but is safe once you expect it; check the shoulder is clear before you pass.
Western Crete does have some rougher roads worth knowing about in advance. The final track to Balos Lagoon is 8 km of unpaved clifftop, and the roads to Elafonisi and the south coast are paved but narrow and winding in places, so a small SUV is worth considering if those are on your list.
One honest point the booking sites get wrong: you do not drive the Samaria Gorge. You drive to the trailhead at Omalos, walk the 16 km down through the gorge, and are collected by boat and bus at the far end, so plan it as a full day.
Speed limits are 50 km/h in towns, 90 km/h on the open road and 110 km/h on the E75, lower in the wet. For the official rules of the road and current requirements, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office keeps an up to date summary on its Greece travel advice pages.
Do you need an International Driving Permit at Chania?
No. UK, EU and EEA licence holders do not need an International Driving Permit to hire a car at Chania or drive anywhere in Greece. Your full national driving licence, held for at least a year, plus your passport and a credit card in the main driver’s name for the deposit, is all you need.
Frequently Asked Questions: Car Hire at Chania Airport
How much is car hire at Chania Airport?
Cheap car hire at Chania Airport starts from around £15 a day for a small economy car booked ahead, rising to £25 to £45 a day in July and August. The local Greek suppliers offer the lowest rates, often three or four times cheaper than major brands like Avis or Hertz for the same car, so comparing all suppliers at once is the surest way to the best price.
Which airport is better for Crete, Chania or Heraklion?
Chania (CHQ) is better for western Crete, including the Venetian old town, the Samaria Gorge, Balos, Elafonisi and Rethymno, and it is smaller and calmer than Heraklion, which many nervous drivers prefer. Heraklion (HER) suits central and eastern Crete. Choose Chania if your trip focuses on the west of the island.
How far is Chania Airport from the old town?
Chania Airport is about 14 km from the old town, a straightforward twenty-minute drive on the E75. The airport sits on the Akrotiri peninsula just east of the city, so you are in the Venetian harbour within twenty minutes of collecting your car.
Is it easy to drive in western Crete?
The main north-coast road is easy, fast and toll-free, and Chania is a calm airport to start from. The roads to Balos, Elafonisi and the south coast are rougher and narrower, so a small SUV helps for those, but for the old town, Rethymno and Lake Kournas an ordinary economy car is perfectly fine.
Do you need a car to see the Samaria Gorge?
You do not drive the Samaria Gorge itself; you drive to the trailhead at Omalos, walk the 16 km down, and return by boat and bus. A hire car gets you to the early-morning start easily, though many visitors also take an organised coach from Chania that handles the transfers for you.
Do you need an International Driving Permit for Crete?
No. UK, EU and EEA licence holders do not need an International Driving Permit to drive in Crete or anywhere in Greece. Your full national licence, held for at least a year, plus your passport and a credit card for the deposit, is all you need to collect your car at Chania.
Compare Cheap Car Hire at Chania Airport
Ready to book? Use the search above to compare cheap car hire at Chania Airport across all the major and local suppliers at once, and see the local-supplier saving for yourself.
Choose a small car for the old town or a small SUV for the wild west, book early for the best price, and the most spectacular half of Crete is yours. For the centre and east of the island, see our cheap car hire Heraklion Airport page, or return to the full car hire in Crete guide.
★ Found this useful? Make getcarhire.com one of your Preferred Sources on Google.