 |
Cretan Beaches in the Sun
Oh to visit Cretan beaches, lying peacefully in the sun! With so many wonderful beaches, it is hard to choose. Which is your favourite? Life on the beach can be busy, social or relaxed.
There are wild beaches with surf, or calm inlets without a ripple. There are comfortable beaches with sunlounges, tavernas, cafés and restaurants, or isolated beaches with the wind in your hair.
Crete has many clean Blue Flag beaches where issues such as water quality, litter and environmental education are looked after to high standards. This rating also includes safety and environmental management issues, meaning a great beach experience for swimmers! Below we have shared with you some of our favourite beaches of Crete, from west to east, wild beaches to town beaches...beaches for swimming and beaches for sitting at a taverna, beaches for sleeping and beaches for a great holiday in Kriti... See the handy map below for locations of our selected beaches...
Beach by BeachElafonisi Beach on the west of Crete, with its shimmering clear waters and islet, is one of our favourite Cretan beaches. A protected area, this is well worth the visit.
Gramvousa one of the most stunning locations in Crete, rocky cliffs, islets, a ruined castle, pirate coves and azure waters of Balos Lagoon, all in a pristine unpopulated peninsula, in the north-west of Chania. Paleohora on the south coast of Chania has many lovely beaches. Loutro is a stunning whitewashed village on the south coast of Crete, inaccessible and beautiful. Preveli Beach on the south coast of Rethymnon, a hidden tropical paradise. Agia Pelagia on the north coast, 20 kms west of Iraklion town, is a beachside village with a delightful cove of turquoise waters.
Matala (left) on the south coast overlooking the Bay of Messara, is a very beautiful beach with unusual rock formations and plenty of history. Kokkinos Pirgos on the south coast of Iraklion, is a surf and pebble beach. Keratokambos Beach on the south coast, to the east of Pyrgos is a wild remote beach, where you can escape and find the wind in your hair. Elounda on the north coast 11 kms from Agios Nikolaos, is one of the luxury areas of Crete, of course the beach is free and it is very enjoyable.
Kitroplateia Beach one of Agios Nikolaos’ town beaches, just right for a dip after sightseeing.
Kato Zakros
is a tiny beach village on the quiet south-east coast of Crete. Beautiful and relaxed. Life at the Beach
Snorkelling is perfect in Crete because of the clear waters and abundance of marine life to see, good visibility and warm waters. During holiday season there are quite a few day tours for divers and snorkellers. One good spot for snorkelling is the island of Dia, off Iraklion town. Scuba is very organised in Kreta and there are a number of clubs, courses and tours to do. Again the clear waters make diving a dream. You can see all types of fish, beautiful coral and shells, octopus, moray eels, scorpion fish, salemas, bream, stingrays, sponges and sea anemones. See our nature pages for more information. There is good diving off Dia island, off Iraklion town. One of the most romantic ways to visit Kriti is to take a ferry to her remote beaches, such as Loutro, Agia Roumeli and Glyka Nera, where lack of roads and very steep mountains make sea travel and hiking the only access. Remember that some Cretan beaches are home to turtles. The caretta caretta sea turtle is an endangered species so is fully protected and there are programs to ensure its safety. On Kriti, they nest at Chania, Rethymnon and Messara Bay. More about the turtles on our nature pages. Palm trees on the beach, it sounds so tropical, however you can laze under a palm tree (actually a whole forest of them), on
Vai Beach
in Lassithi. This is a truly stunning setting, undeveloped, pristine and really memorable. There is no township at Vai, however it is worth the journey and we recommend it. More about the palm forest on our
nature pages.
There are dolphins and whales in the seas of Crete, so chances are you might see one, or visit our nature and conservation pages to find out more. Just click on the picture of the Sperm Whale above. What do you love about Cretan beaches? Town beaches with tavernas and cafés right on the water, there is no better way to spend a lazy day by the sea. We will show you some of our favourite tavernas by the water’s edge. Caldera in Agia Pelagia is just such a spot. A great taverna by the bay is Papadakis Taverna in
Kastelli Kissamos.
More on beach accommodation options in Crete...Hand picked small hotels, apartments, guest houses and domatia within walking distance of the beach... Or sign up below to receive our monthly e-zine Love-Letters from Crete. Beach Accommodation in Crete; pensions and small boutique hotels... Getting to Crete; flights, ferries and more... Getting around in Crete; buses, ferries, transfers Return from Cretan Beaches in the Sun to We Love Crete Homepage
|
