Olive Picking Holidays in Greece

click here to return to the Olive Picking Directory - Greece

If you fancy your own Shirley Valentine moment amongst the groves there are some good options picking olives in Greece:

This is NOT an olive picking holiday but a very evocative clip created by livingincrete (cretephotographs.com).  It shows the olive harvest taking place in the village of Roumeli on the north coast of Crete between Rethymno and Heraklion. Greek music and olives who could ask for more! Actually your own holiday will be a lot quieter than this as you will be hand picking those olives from the tree.

KYTHIRA

Olive picking within sight of the sparkling Ionian Sea

Experience:

Pick olives on Kythira one of the quietest and most beautiful of the Ionian Islands situated at the foot of the Peloponnese. You would be staying at Xenonas Fos ke Chóros a traditional guesthouse in the heart of the island from where you can enjoy views of the sparkling Ionian Sea - into which the sun sinks each evening. Included in this holiday is the chance to work in an olive grove with ancient trees - many of which are more than a hundred years old. The harvest is carried out in the traditional way climbing the trees and combing the fruit into nets.

Details:

You spend 4 days in your week picking olives and have all your meals provided on those days. There is also a visit to the olive press to see olives turned into extra virgin olive oil.

Dates:

BOOK NOW FOR 2011

• Olive Picking Weeks run from October 24, 2011 until the end of November 2011

This varies depending on whether the company A Greek Island books your travel or not. The price per person without travel is €250 per week.

More information available from A Greek Island.

CRETE

Celebrate the end of the harvest with a late night camp fire

Experience:

Includes Olive Picking Tuition (traditional and modern techniques) and an Olive Oil Factory Tour.  Stay for a week and spend a couple of days helping with the olive harvest, you'll be shown how to pick, collect and bag the olives and also how to prune the trees. There is also a full programme of events and activities such as an olive oil factory tour and a chance to go walking with a local guide. Optional additions to your holiday include Clay Shooting and a visiting Holistic Therapist, plus the sea should be warm enough to swim in and the star gazing is glorious.

Details:

You will stay in a private villa with spectacular mountian views. A buffet lunch in the olive grove is provided by your hosts on the days when you are harvesting.

Dates:

BOOK NOW!

• November 14-21, 2011

Price:

Prices are £250 per person with discounts for groups of 5 or more depending on whether you select shared (with one other couple) or private villa accommodation - all villas have their own swimming pool. More information on this holiday is available from the wonderfully named Saint Basil Olive Grove.

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