Olive Farm in south Crete
Crete
Ya sas!
The calendar is open again!
We are looking for wwoofers with some horse experience. Someone who can spend time with our two horses. They’re calm but a bit stubborn, and after a very relaxed winter, they need regular walking and time being led to get back into routine.
Please message us if interested.
We are thinking if you alone spend like 2 hours a day with the horses. And 2-4 hours a day with us pruning olivetrees and some other tasks.
Hugs
Manos and Marina
About us:
We are a family of four who produce our own olive oil & olive products in the south of Crete (Heraklion prefecture). We live in a mountain village, 50 minutes away from Heraklion city and 20 minutes from the nearest beaches.
We will teach about the procedures regarding olive harvesting as well as olive oil production. Our days will be spent in our olive groves, which are placed in different locations and with beautiful scenery close to the beach, as well as in the high mountains.
The days of harvesting will be spent in the olive fields together with the family. The preparations will have been made the day before. We will start together in the morning, and there we will have picnics around 10 and 13 o'clock on the field. Marina has been preparing both of the meals we eat outdoors. Breakfast and dinner, we eat at home.
If the weather is rainy, we will take a day off.
No experience is needed for olive harvesting.
The climate in the south of Crete in the winter is 10 °C to 20 °C. Mostly sunny, with some clouds. Hardly ever snows.
Since our farms are on different altitudes from sea level to 600 m above sea level, it's good to come prepared. Take with you your hiking boots, a windproof jacket, and a selection of both long and short-sleeved shirts. Generally, bring along clothes that can be worn in harsh environments.
Our family owns two horses and loves bareback riding. Marina likes hiking, and Manos is the coach of the local football team. We have 6 cats, but not indoors.
The location is splendid for exploring the wild side of Crete with beautiful scenery and plenty of hiking trails. South Crete is known for its unmatched pristine beaches. There is a football field in the area where you can go jogging, play football, and other sports. There are some cafes and tavernas in the village where the locals frequently watch football games.
The Wwoofers will have a guestroom 16 m2 (double bed), and 1 sleeping room 14 m2 (single bed) with a balcony in our villa.
The Wi-Fi connection is good, both outdoors and in the village.
We will pick you up and drop you off at the airport in Heraklion.
During the winter, there are only flights through Athens to international airports.
We welcome you! :)
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Learning opportunities
Fruit or nut farming
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Methods or systems
Biodynamic agriculture
No-till farming
Permaculture
Host type
Production farm
Certified organic
10
Hectares
|
24.7
Acres
Manos
Member since 2022
Languages spoken:
English, Greek, Swedish
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 98%
Response time: typically within 6 days
Crete
Heraklion airport
Reviews
Gabriel
France
•
April 2025
A big thank to Manos and Marina, who who gave me a warm welcome . Initially I have to stayed 10 days and I have finally stayed 3 weeks. I was able to discover the greek way of life in a small village with evenings at the taverna and sharing coffee and cake with friends.
Manos and Marina have welcome me in their house with simplicity and autonomy.
The work was in differents olive trees around the village sometime with a beautifull view on the sea. It's a very good place for a woofing experience, to learn about the olive oil and to discuss of everything. Thank you evry much.
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Basile
France
•
February 2025
The stay at Loulakis Olive Farm was extraordinary. As Marina worked, I found myself for about 1 month with Manos.
My job consisted of harvesting olives in the olive fields where I was able to discover what this job consisted . The work is not complicated or tiring. We start around 8am then we have a break at 10am where we share breakfast in magnificent landscapes and in a warm atmosphere. At 1pm we generally have lunch a typical Greek meal made with love :). We usually finish around 4pm.
As for the rest, Manos integrated me perfectly into his life routine where I was able to have wonderful meetings with people from the village in bars and restaurants around a small glass of Raki (the local drink) and good meals. Manos is a caring person who knew how to listen and make me feel at home. He is always smiling, very generous and very open-minded.
So I could only invite you to discover Crete and this small village by immersing yourself in the Loulakis family :))
Thank you for all and I hope to see you soon.
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Eleni
United States
•
December 2024
I had such an amazing month with Marina and Manos! From the moment they picked me up in Iraklio they made me feel like I was part of the family. We went grocery shopping where I was able to pick out things I wanted to eat, and in their home I stayed in a large bedroom with a comfortable bed.
I feel so lucky to have experienced the olive harvest here, where I had good teamwork, learned so much and enjoyed beautiful views during the workday. The work was physical (so bring with you some strength and endurance) but soo satisfying to take a tree with branches hanging low and heavy with olives and relieve it of its burden. We collected more than 7500 kilos of olives!! We also went to the factory to watch and learn the entire process of olives becoming olive oil. The olive oil from the area is of such incredible quality that it is considered a PDO or ΠΟΠ!
Besides working, some of the things during my stay that I enjoyed were the peacefulness of village life, walks through olive groves, movie nights, baking cakes with freshly picked oranges and lemons, reading novels by famous local authors, playing with the cats, and meeting many friends and family of Marina and Manos.
Thank you both SO MUCH!
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Amelie
Germany
•
February 2024
three incredible weeks! I'm deeply grateful that I got to spend all this valuable time with Marina and Manos.
Their home is a place to both feel secure + at home and inspired + motivated. It was "olive harvesting off season" so we were basically cutting the olive trees and completing a handful of fun little projects around the house.
Climbing on trees, removing thorn bushes and feeding the fires with branches..
The combination of outdoorsy movement, well celebrated snack breaks, really good conversations and the moments spend with their friends and family... I can and want only to speak in the highest words about
this fantastic couple. I'll be back, that's for sure:)
Thanks again M&M
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Iwen
France
•
February 2023
We had a very pleasant stay with Marina and Manos and we learned a lot. The welcome and the atmosphere were warm, we were treated like family and were completely free outside of helping hours. The meals were very good and the days were well-rounded. We met a lot of interesting people during our stay. Manos and Marina are very educational and were always ready to listen to us. We highly recommend these hosts for those who want to have a good time in the olive groves!
Iwen and Jayane
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Anna
Germany
•
December 2022
Had the best time with Marina and Manos, they treated me like part of the family and were always very concerned and caring. We mainly harvested olives and I had much fun helping. I only had to work as much I wanted and we had many fun days off where we went to the beach or to the horses.
100% recommended!!
Thank you so much!
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