The beaches of West Crete
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A lot of people come to Crete
for the sun, the sea and the beaches, so instead of hiding the subject
somewhere inside "Geography" or spreading it through the "Regions"
we decided to give beaches its own heading in the "General infos"
page. To keep the page light and quick, there are no photos of the beaches
but descriptions of most of them. Bear in mind that these descriptions
reflect our taste in beaches: we like them clean and if not deserted,
at least not crowded.
For ease of use, the beaches are listed starting at Rethimnon and moving
anti-clockwise (westwards along the North coast, then southwards along
the West coast, then eastwards towards the Southcoast, all the way to
Agios Pavlos. There will be some missing because we don't know ALL the
beaches or haven't been to some in a long time.
We have also left out a few of our favourite spots, the ones that are
undiscovered but easy to get to. Be inquisitive, with over 1000 km of coastline
in Crete you are bound to find your own special spots.
Generally the water
on the North coast is a touch warmer than on the South coast but not as
clear (or clean) The water on the South coast (Libyan sea) is colder because
the mountains drop steeply into the sea and there are a number of (cold)
underground rivers. The sea is very clear, apparently due to a high concentration
of limestone in the water. (I am not sure if this info is correct).
Nudism is illegal in
Greece (except in a few designated areas) but tolerated in a number of
places. We will indicate where it is possible. The situation might change
suddenly (often when a beach canteen is built a "No nudism"
sign will appear). Topless sunbathing is fine,
unless the beach is right in a village.
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Rethimnon
The very long beach
of Rethimnon is nowadays lined by hotels. It gets a little quieter as
you go towards the East.
Giorgioupoli
The beach has nice sand
and is 9 km long. Many hotels have been built on it but the eastern end
is still pretty quiet. Be careful when you swim, the currents can be strong.
If you get carried away, don't panic, the current moves mostly parallel
to the beach and not out to sea .Watch children closely.
Cape Drapanon
There are a few tiny coves
at the end of the cape.
Almirida A small sandy beach, fairly
shallow water so nice for kids. It doesn't get that crowded but can feel
crowded because the beach is quite narrow.
Kera Pebble beach, pretty
quiet but not that comfortable to lie on.
Kalives Nice sandy beach,
can be crowded. The sand is a bit coarse, a good thing when there is wind
as it doesn't fly so easily.
Kiani Akti A quiet beach west
of Kalives. The water is a little colder because of a river flowing into
the sea.
Souda No beaches worth mentioning.
If you must have a swim you can get in the water near the WWII Allied
cemetary (a beautiful place, by the way).
Loutraki A tiny beach on the
peninsula of Akrotiri (near Marathi). The beach is nothing to write home
about but the water, for some unknown reason is crystal clear.
Marathi On Akrotiri, discovered
a few years ago by the inhabitants of Hania it now gets very crowded at weekends.
The sandy beach is nice, the water quite warm and very shallow. Brilliant
for children.
Stavros Stavros is a characterless
village at the North of Akrotiri. The sandy cove had its moment of fame
when the beach scenes of Alexis Zorbas were filmed here. Very lovely and
fairly crowded at weekends.
Tersanas A small sandy beach.
Kalathas Also on Akrotiri
nice sand, can be crowded
in summer and at weekends. Very shallow so ideal for children.
Agios
Onoufrios The
nearest place to Hania where you can swim on Akrotiri, not much of a beach
but it is quiet.
Hania There is a town beach in Hania,
obviously fairly crowded. Keep walking for about 15 minutes and you get
to Krissi Akti.
Krissi
Akti Nice sandy beach,
can get crowded. Shallow so the water is warm and it is safe for children.
Agios
Apostoli Just a little way along,
it consists of three small beaches. It can get crowded, shallow water
(the third one is VERY shallow). The water is not always that clean.
Stalos,
Agia Marina, Platanias and to Maleme
From
then on, it becomes an interminable sandy beach pretty
much all the way to Maleme. Crowded, lined by hotels and apartements.
Not to our taste but many visitors obviously like it, otherwise they wouldn't
all crowd here. A word of warning: beware of currents, especially in Agia
Marina. The small island of Agios Theodoron seems to strengthen them.
Every year a few people drown (not rarely, going for a swim drunk: don't!)
Kolimbari
Long
pebble beach
Rodopou
peninsula Beaches are scarse
on this rocky, deserted peninsula but there are some secluded spots. Go
and explore.
Kastelli Long bay, a pebble
beach. Not that great but quiet.
Tigani
to Balos (Gramvoussa) At the tip of the
peninsula of Gramvoussa. Now you can drive almost all the way on an unsurfaced
road, then follow a good path down to this incredible spot. A lagoon with
"South Seas" colours, very shallow waters, few people. Sounds
like paradise and it was. Now the bad news:in the last few years, more
and more tar has been floating on the beach. It can be a problem at times.
Because it is not accessible by the road, rubbish is not (or rarely) collected
and it gathers during the summer. There are not THAT many people coming
to Gramvoussa, but enough to create a problem: unsigthly rubbish and also
unhygienic. Some people are worse than pigs (these charming animals don't
leave rubbish, they eat it). Please, don't f... up this place even more,
take your rubbish back.
Falassarna The beach is quiet
long, is now well-known, but does not get really crowded. don't bother
going to Falasarna if there is a strong west wind, it gets unpleasant.
A 1999 European Union water survey found it to be the second cleanest
water in Greece! At least from the places they checked. It is very
clean indeed.
Sfinari A very quiet pebble
beach.
Elafonisos Before it was "discovered"
about 10 years ago, Elafonisos was THE secret paradise beach of West Crete.
With a small island you can wade to, red coral sand beach and nobody far
and wide. Nowadays, bus tours come from Hania and a daily boat service
brings visitors from Paleohora. The magic has gone, the rubbish has come
(at least I believe that it gets taken away nowadays). It is still worth
a visit but don't go when the wind is strong.
Cape
Krios About 8 km west of Paleohora.
It used to be deserted until a few years ago. It is still pretty quiet.
Nudism was OK but I don't know how it stands at present.
Konduras A small peninsula
about 4 km west of Paleohora, one side with a sandy beach, the other with
pebbles. A fair bit of shade and a few secluded places towards the tip
of it where nudism is OK.
Paleochora Two beaches: the
sandy beach is very nice, can get crowded. Nudism was OK on part of the
beach and probably still is. If you prefer pebbles or the (west) wind
blows too much for your taste go to the eastern bay where a long pebble
beach runs for about 3 km. Very quiet and nudism OK. Have something to
lie on, the pebbles are quite large.
Anidri An hour's walk from
Paleohora, fine pebble beach. Mostly nudist. Until now the beach was very
quiet, a really special place, but last year a road was built leading
to it so maybe its days are counted. That's called "progress".
Lissos Tiny pebble beach.
Used to be pretty deserted. A road is being built to Lissos (from Prodromi)
and it might change things a bit.
Sougia Sougia has a long
pebble beach. A few years ago it became the "in" weekend spot
for Hania inhabitants, therefore avoid Sundays in summer. Nudism is usual
towards the eastern end of the beach. Amongst the 10 cleanest seas of
Greece in 1999 (EU environmental survey).
Domata Almost inaccessible
on foot (4 hours walk from Agia Roumeli on a dangerous path) it only used
to see a few souls a year. Now of course, more people have boats so you
are not always alone. I think that someone in Loutro even organizes a
weekly excursion by boat. Go and have a look. Here again, do not mess
up a piece of undisturbed nature by leaving any rubbish. As I wrote earlier,
it is possible to walk to it but do not attempt it without a guide.
Agia
Roumeli The beach is quite
nice, varying between fine and coars pebbles. The part nearest the village
gets crowded during the afternoon with Samaria walkers wanting to cool
off. In the morning and once the last ferry-boat leaves it is almost deserted.
Nudism is OK away from the village.
Agios
Pavlos Still idyllic and
quiet because you must walk (1 hour from Agia Roumeli, 2 hours from Agios
Ioannis) or come with your boat. Nudism de rigueur.If you need shade,
there is a pine forest just over the beach.
Marmara A tiny beach, an
hour walking from Loutro, at the entrance of the gorge of Aradena. It
is called Marble Beach because of the smooth white rocks next to the beach.
An insider tip some years back but no more: a boat brings people from
Loutro every morning and being a small beach it can feel crowded. Nudism
is OK if you stay on the rocks. The water is clear and cold.
Likos
and Finika Quiet, be careful
going in at Likos (sea urchins!). The pebble beach of Finika is nice but
tiny.
Loutro The pebble beach
of Loutro is right in the village (topless not allowed) and very narrow.
The water is really nice but the beach is too crowded.
Glyka
Nera Another former insider tip.
It is still a very spectacular and quiet beach, called "Sweet water
beach" because if you dig a hole on the beach, sweet water will seep
into it from the ground. Nudism and camping are OK. Don't be an idiot
and pitch your tent just below the high cliffs: there is always a slight
risk of a goat passing by and dislodging some stones. Don't attempt to
climb up the cliff, it is unstable and some people have gotten themselves
killed doing it.You
can walk to Glyka Nera from Loutro or from Sfakia in about an hour.
Ilingas About 15 minutes walk from
Sfakia, a small quiet beach, clear water. I noticed that it was quite
busy last summer. Nudism used to be OK, maybe not anymore.
Sfakia The beach is in the
village, can be a little crowded. A little further east are two small
beaches. The furthest one, Filaki, is a nudist beach.
Komitades There are some small
beaches which you can reach from the road to Frangokastello. I don't know
them.
Agios
Nektarios There
are some small beaches which you can reach from the road to Frangokastello.
I don't know them.
Frangokastello Famous for its ruined
Venetian castle, Frangokastello has become very built-up. The sandy beach
(below the castle) is extremely shallow and perfect if you have small
children. There is a nice quiet beach to the East where nudism is generally
Ok.
Rodakino A couple of quiet and pleasant
beaches. The best places can be found when you drive westwards when you
reach the sea. After about
1km the road ends near a small settlement with scattered appartments and
tavernas. It is never too crowded. A nice beach can be reached if you
climb across the rocks westwards. Nudism is OK. Take a look at the perfectly
circular forms in the red rocks at the shore
line. Who has an explanation???
Plakias A long bay, a lot
of pebbles.. if you walk east and follow the road right along the bay,
the beach gets better and more sandy. Not very crowded. The sea is fairly
safe for swimming, unless it gets very windy (which it often does in Plakias).
Nudism may still be ok at the far end of the beach.
Damnoni I have not been there
for a long time but the reports I had all say that the beach has been
completely spoilt by several large, ugly developments.
Preveli A river flows into the sea.
Along the river with sweet water is a palm trees forest, highly unusual
on Crete and worth a visit. It had a rubbish problem too but camping is
not allowed anymore, there are several small tavernas and there is less
rubbish. Daily, a boat brings people in from Agia Galini and other places.
The beach is well-known and can be very crowded, especially at the end
of the day. Preveli can also be reached by feet via a beautiful small
gorge starting some 3 km's inland. But, don't take stuff with you that
has to be keep dry: at two places you have to swim across a short deep
part of the river. Wear waterproof sandles, no mountain shoes. The river
rises from a well in the mountains and runs all year.
Triopetra A very long beach
leading all the way to Agios Pavlos. As yet undiscoverd (I have not been
there for 3 years though). Nudism OK.
Agios
Pavlos Very pretty little bay.
It was still very quiet a few years ago. If you want to bare all in absolute
peace, go to the long beach to the West. It goes all the way to Tris Petres.
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