Every island has its secrets, and Crete, despite its endless charm and warm hospitality, keeps one of the most useful ones tucked away behind the beaches, the souvlaki, the sunsets, and the carefree summer evenings. It is not a bar, nor a hidden taverna, nor a mystical mountain chapel. It is a phone number — 171 — the Tourist Police, the only authority specifically designed to step in when your vacation takes a turn into the absurd, the annoying, or the inexplicable.
Nobody arrives in Crete thinking they will ever need an intervention hotline. You come expecting a good meal, a clean room, a working taxi, and, ideally, the kind of peaceful experience that does not require linguistic gymnastics or legal consultations. Yet, at some point, usually around the moment someone tries to charge you €17 for a coffee you saw listed for €3, reality taps you on the shoulder and whispers that perhaps, just perhaps, it would be wise to know who to call when politeness stops working. That someone is 171, and thank the gods it exists.
The Tourist Police speak English — actual English, not the “I pretend not to understand you when the conversation becomes inconvenient” version.
They exist for the foreign visitor who cannot argue in Greek, cannot decipher Greek bureaucracy, and cannot be expected to negotiate with someone who believes prices rise whenever the weather is warm.
When to Call 171 (In Real-Life Situations, Not the Sanitized Brochures)
Call them when you are being overcharged, when a menu mysteriously fails to match the bill, or when a business owner discovers a sudden inability to explain why a single espresso now costs as much as an air ticket to Athens.
Call them when a taxi driver decides that you need the scenic route through industrial Heraklion at three in the morning, even though your hotel is practically visible from the starting point, or when he insists he does not speak English until you dial the number and miraculously trigger his multilingual superpowers.
Call them when the hotel “misplaces” your reservation during a busy weekend, only to find the room instantly once you mention the existence of a specific police department tailored to handle precisely this kind of slippery maneuvering.
Call them when your rental car company attempts to charge you for a scratch that predates the invention of GPS, or when the terms of your booking suddenly transform into something entirely unrecognizable.
Call them whenever someone assures you, with complete confidence, that “this is the rule in Crete.” You know very well that what you just heard belongs less to Crete and more to the imagination of a person who thinks tourists are too polite to question nonsense.
In all these cases, 171 is not overkill; it is simply the shortest route between frustration and resolution.
Why 171 Matters and No Guidebook Tells You
The truth is that Crete is safe, welcoming, and full of good, decent people who want nothing more than to offer travelers a beautiful experience. But in every society, on every island, in every industry, there are moments when the system relies on enforcement rather than good intentions. The Tourist Police exist for those moments — the ones where logic and kindness fail, where you cannot be expected to argue, negotiate, or raise your voice in a foreign language.
Unlike many other emergency services, the Tourist Police do not look at you with confusion, do not tell you to return on Monday, do not transfer you five times, and do not assume that because you are a visitor, you should accept whatever happens. Their role is to protect you, and they do it efficiently and without drama.
Why Every Traveler Should Save the 171 Anyway
It does not matter whether you stay in a luxury resort, an Airbnb in the village, or a small hotel by the harbor. At some point during a trip, someone will test your patience, your wallet, or your sense of fairness. And while most issues resolve themselves easily, it helps to know that the Tourist Police (171) is there precisely so you do not have to fight battles alone or rely on luck.
Travel is beautiful, but it is also unpredictable, and having a number that can straighten a situation in seconds is not paranoia — it is wisdom. Crete remains a magical, generous place, but even paradise needs an occasional referee.
Save it now. Use it only if you must. And enjoy your holiday knowing you have a direct line to sanity if something goes wrong.