The Samaria Gorge (Φαράγγι Σαμαριάς) is a national park located in South West Crete. This is a major tourist attraction of the island.

The gorge is in the prefecture of Chania It was created by a small but in winter time violent river running between the White Mountains (Lefká Óri) and Mountain Volakias. The Gorge is 16 kilometers long, begins at an altitude of 1,250 meters at the Northern entrance, and it ends at the Libyan Sea in Agia Roumeli. The walk through Samaria National Park is 13 kilometers long, plus another three kilometers to Agia Roumeli from the park exit, and total of 16 kilometers. The Iron Gates is the most famous part of the gorge , where the sides of the gorge close in to a width of only four meters and soar up to amazing height of 500 meters.

National park from 1962, it is a refuge for the rare and unique Cretan Kri-Kri goat, which is largely restricted to the park and an island just off the shore of Agia Marina. There are several other endemic species in the gorge and surrounding area, as well as many other species of flowers and birds.

The old village of Samaria lies inside the gorge. It was fully abandoned by the last remaining inhabitants in 1962 to pave way for the National Park. The village and the gorge take their names from the village's ancient church, Ossia Maria -"Saint Mary".

A "must" for visitors to Crete is to complete the walk down the gorge from the Omalos plateau to Aghia Roumeli on the Libyan Sea, at which point tourists sail to the nearby village of Chora Sfakion and catch a bus back to Hania. The walk takes 4-7 hours and can be strenuous, especially at the height of summer.

Local tourist operators provide organized tours to the Gorge. These include bus transportation from your hotel to the entrance (near Omalos village), and the bus will be waiting for you to disembark the ferry in Sfakia (Hora Sfakion) to take you back. If you are on your own, you can make a one-day round trip from Chania (see below) or from Sogia or Paleochora. Note that the morning buses from Sougia and Paleochora do not operate on Sunday. The ferries leave Agia Roumeli to Chora Sfakion and to Sougia - Paleochora at 18:00.

There also exists a "lazy way" - from Agia Roumeli to the Iron Gates (more or less an hour of non-challenging terrain) and back.