Discover the amazingBeaches in Crete
Some of the most beautiful beaches in the country are located in Crete. We choose some of our favourites and we are waiting for your best!
North Crete Beaches
Some of the most beautiful beaches in the country are located in Crete. We choose some of our favourites and we are waiting for your best!
The North has its surprises either with famous beaches or with lesser known coves where you will hardly encounter overcrowding. In the North of Rethymnon, in a small cove that very few people know, you will find perhaps the clearest waters on the northern coast: the locals named it Ryaki of Maliou and you will find it following the “beach” sign in the area of the first Eco gas station that you meet at the point of Stavromenos (from the new national road Rethymnon-Heraklion).
Votsalo, deep water and large vertical rocks on the right and left side compose the scene. In Karteros (7 km east of Heraklion), the new beach bar Akti Beach with its well-kept facilities and happenings that are organized in the summer is the main reason that raises the bar on the sandy beach.
The top places of the North also include Vai (24 km east of Sitia, in Lasithi), which owes its fame to the impressive palm forest stretching behind the sandy beach, but if you are looking for a lower profile and quiet place, the small, pebbly Plaka beach (15 km north of Agios Nikolaos) with its crystal clear waters and the view of the historic island of Spinalonga, just opposite, will enchant you.
The most impressive spectacle is the beach of Balos, between the peninsula of Gramvousa and the cape Tigani (Prefecture of Chania). The approximately 15 km of difficult dirt road starting from the village of Kaliviani and crossing the peninsula are really worth it to get to this beach (after about twenty minutes walk on the downhill path): fine, off-white sand and tropical, transparent, blue, so shallow waters that you can “shape” the sand of the seabed with your hands, at a sufficient distance from the shore. The landscape changes depending on the time of day and whether you will see an ebb tide or a high tide.
South Crete Beaches
The boat for daily excursions departing every morning from Paliochora before ending in Chora, Sfakia makes stops in Lisos, Sougia, Agia Roumeli, and Agios Pavlos, Sfakia. Sougia is quite similar to Agia Roumeli – the first beach is much bigger but both have fine black pebbles.
In Agios Pavlos you will meet probably less people and its small church dedicated to Agios Pavlos (10th century) on the dark sand. Those who will visit Chora in Sfakia, should definitely swim in the turquoise waters of Iligas, the magnificent pebble bay with large rocks surrounding it – you will find the beach west of the port. To the east, the beach at Frangokastelo is also very special despite the crowds and the little ones: pale sand as fine as powder, clear transparent waters and behind you the aura of the legendary castle.
Falassarna is a famous sandy beach more easily accessible and with amazing waters for swimming, on the northwest coast of the Prefecture of Chania. What makes it stand out is its simplicity, the crystal clear waters and the imposing mountains behind it.
In the South almost all the beaches are unique and you do not know which to choose first, some of them will become the most enjoyable memories of summer. In the southern part of the Prefecture of Rethymnon, make sure you will visit Plakia and Agia Galini beach. Limni Preveli beach is one of the great highlights of the prefecture, not so much for its waters as for the landscape with the beautiful palm forest behind it where the Kourtaliotiko Gorge and the river end.
In the Prefecture of Chania, Elafonissi and Kedrodasos (west of Paliochora) charm every visitor: the first beach with the endless pale sandy beach, the turquoise waters and the islet opposite where you can reach on foot as if you were in an atoll of the Pacific ocean and Kedros (1.5 km. further) with the volunteer forest of low small cedars behind its beautiful sandy bay.
On the contrary, Agia Fotini, Ligres, Triopetra and Agios Pavlos all have incredible waters. A tavern and a large round rock in the pebble Agia Fotini are enough to feel the absolute calm, while the landscape in Ligres is more exotic with waves crashing on the rocks next to the beach with fine gravel. Triopetra is one of the dreamiest beaches: a sense of vastness, fine dark pebbles and three large rocks at the edge of the bay giving it its name. You may be confused with Agios Pavlos: these are actually two beaches, one in front of the settlement with the same name and the other, the larger one, behind Triopetra – both of which are sandy and organized.
In the Prefecture of Heraklion, apart from the famous Matala and the caves that are known from hippies and are the symbol of beach, the small bay Vathi deserves your attention where the sea enters deep into the coast creating a protected cove, reminiscent of a fjord.
Its opening is so narrow that you have the impression of swimming in a lake. The beaches of Mastralo and Agiofarago are also beautiful with the common peculiarity that in both of them gorges end: green-blue waters and palm trees in the first, fine, yellowish pebbles and equally perfect waters in the second. The last three beaches are best reached by excursion boats from Agia Galini, Kokkino Pyrgos and Matala.
Finally, in the Prefecture of Lasithi, most of the beaches you will find in the South present the same picture: large sandy bays streching in front of the coastal settlements. Quite interesting is that of Agia Fotia (Ierapetra) with the gray sand under the village of the same name hidden in the pines.