What to wear and bring to a Cretan night

Dress for the walk and the dance

The evening has two physical parts: a stroll through narrow village streets, and a floor where guests are invited to dance. Shoes you can walk and move in will serve both. Heels and thin soles are a poor match for old village paving. Wear what you would wear to a long outdoor dinner in a hill village after dark, and bring a light layer, because you will spend time outside in the evening and the village sits in the mountains. Choose comfort over polish: you will be on your feet for much of the evening, and the dancing is easier in clothes that move with you.

Cash for the small extras

The ticket covers the bus, the dinner, the local wine and the show, but guests describe a separate bar for anything beyond the wine and water served with dinner. They also describe photos taken with the performers at the table and sold as prints afterwards, so a little cash is the easy way to pay for either. Carry small notes rather than relying on a card machine in a village. If you do not want a photo or another drink, you are under no obligation to buy either, and the evening is complete without them.

Your phone and your camera

A phone with a full battery is the most useful thing in your bag, because your pickup details and your link to the operator live on it. The village is worth a camera too: the stroll gives you time to photograph the narrow streets, the old houses and the view of the Cretan mountains. Keep a second look at your pickup details for the date before you go, and take a screenshot of them, because mobile signal in the hills may be patchy and the details are easier to find offline. A small power bank is worth carrying for the long evening, since your phone will also be your camera and your link to the group.

Pickup details on the day

Your stop is shown on the booking page for your date, and each hotel or pickup point has its own. Be at the stop a few minutes early, with your booking to hand, and do not assume the bus will wait at a stop that is not on your booking. For a hotel missing from the stops, guests report that a message to the operator can arrange a stop along the route. Guests also mention a change of vehicle on the way back, so keep your belongings together and note which bus is yours.

Read next: Cretan night pickup: the bus and getting home

If the road bothers you

The drive climbs through the mountains and guests describe it as long and winding. If you get travel sick, take your usual remedy before boarding, tell the guide when you get on and ask for a seat that suits you. Eat lightly beforehand, because dinner is served at the village. For anyone in your party who struggles with bends or long coach rides, think it through before booking, since the trip takes about six hours from pickup to drop-off.

Who this isn't for

A village night asks for stamina: a long evening, a crowd, a winding road and a dance floor. It will not suit anyone who needs a fixed early night, who dislikes crowds or loud music, or who cannot spend a long time on a coach. If that describes your party, a dinner you arrange in town will suit you better, and you can still hear Cretan music at one of the summer events Heraklion hosts. Check the municipality's event listings for dates, because they change from year to year.