7 Beaches for your

first time

Crete

Don't know where to spend your first week in Crete? We are here to propose the most popular beaches on the island. Note however that there are many other beaches, that surely deserve a visit. However, this is a good reason to make a second journey in Crete. Unfortunatelly, even the second journey is not enough to make you carry this Crete-experience with you!

The journey starts from Chania and ends in Lassithi prefecture.

Elafonissi lagoon is the first beach that you should visit. The turquoise crystal water, the pinky sand and the amazing landscape have made this place one of the most popular destinations on the island. For the second day, you could get the excursion boat from Kissamos port and visit Balos, for surely the most photographed beach on Crete. Here you'll think that you're in a card-postal, but it's real! During the third day you could visit Falassarna, an amazing beautiful beach close to Kissamos. Preveli should be your next destination. This stunning beach is shaped at the end of the Big River, that is full of palm trees. Agia Roumeli could be your next destination, not only because of the beauty of the beach, but because we think that you should trek in the longest European Gorge of Samaria, that ends in that beach. Matala has been the most famous beach for hippis, during '60s. Still this is an amazing place to visit, where and enjoy your holidays next to the historical caves. Vai palmforest is the last most famous beach on the island, because of the protected endogenous palm trees, next to which a stunning beach is shaped.

The famous lagoon of Balos is located approximately 56km northwest of Chania and 17km northwest of Kissamos, formed between the Cape Gramvousa and the small Cape Tigani. Balos is surely the mostly photographed beach in Crete, a very favorite subject of all tourist guides for Greece. It is no coincidence that Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited Balos on their private yacht many years ago.

Elafonisi is located 76km west of Chania and 5km south of Chrysoskalitisa Monastery, in the southwesternmost point of Crete. Elafonisi is an oblong, which often "breaks" in two parts by water giving the impression of being a separate island.

The exotic beach of Falassarna is located 59km west of Chania and 17km west of Kissamos. It’s located in the western part of Cape Gramvousa. At the northern end of the beach are the ruins of the ancient Roman city of Falassarna.

It is certainly the most famous beach in southern Crete, accepting thousands of visitors every summer. During the 60s and 70s, it was a favorite destination for hippies. On the banks of the Grand River, there is a large colony of Theophrastus palm trees, which give the region a sense of an African landscape.

Vai was totally unknown until the early 1970s, when a popular commercial for the Bounty chocolate with coconut was filmed here, using the magical background of palm trees. In the advert, coconuts were falling from trees, however Vai palms produce dates. Consequently coconuts had to be falsely hung to create the right impression. The ad made this unknown earthly paradise renowned throughout the world.

Matala is famous for the carved caves in the rocks and the hippies of the ‘70s. It is located close to Phaestus, the second-largest palace of the Minoan civilization. Matala was the port of Phaestus, and in the Roman Times, it became a port of Gortys.

Agia Roumeli is a small secluded village, located 56km south of Chania, on a wide bay shaped at the exit of the Samaria Gorge. Thousands of visitors, descending the gorge, reach this place every day.

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