Finnish family make their way to Greek island of Crete on a bicycle

A Finnish family of five have made their way through Europe on bicycles and arrived in Chania, Crete to enjoy a month long stay on Greece’s biggest island. With three children aged 8, 6 and 3, The Chanela family began their journey in late June 2017 and with two bicycles have already crossed a large part of Europe.

During their stay in Crete, they intend to see as much as possible and have already visited many areas including Rethymnon, Kissamos and Plakias. On two electric bikes, the husband and wife team packed very lightly, bringing along only essential equipment required for a long trip.

The Finnish family arrived in Crete by crossing Germany, Austria, Hungary and Serbia. “We took the ferry from Finland to Germany, and from Germany we started cycling. We crossed Germany, Austria, Hungary and Serbia. From Serbia, we had to take the train for Greece,” says father William Chanela.

“Of course you need to be careful when crossing roads and you need to think about the safest cycling routes, and you always have to be cautious. However we haven’t found it that difficult,” he notes. The family says they opted for a bicycle journey as it’s an ecologically friendly option. Even before their trip to Greece, they holidayed around Finland and Estonia on bike.

“Bicycling gives you the opportunity to make many stops and experience more things,” points out William. “I do not know how it will be by car because neither of us have a drivers license, but if you travel by bus, by air, and other means of transport you often see lots of nice places but you can’t stop.”

The Finnish family are loving their stay in Chania. “It’s really nice here, people are very friendly and the weather is like it is in June in Finland,” stresses William.