Beaches

Paximadia Islands are two small uninhabited islets off the Gulf of Messara, 12km (7.5 miles) south of Agia Galini. By far they seem like a single island because they are very close. You may also hear locals refer to these as "Elephant", since from afar they remind you of a lying elephant. Their total length is about 3km.

Analipsi later was occupied by the the shepherds of Saint George village, in Lasithi Plateau, where the winter is very cold. Thus, they moved their cattle here in winter. Today, the lucky descendants of the shepherds have large properties in the area, with hotels, shops, restaurants and all sorts of tourist facilities.

The beach in front of the village is beautiful, with fine sand and shallow crystal clear water. Opposite Kalathas, there is a small island which you can easily reach by swimming. Next to the beach there are several palm trees that give an exotic tone to the landscape.

Kokkini Hani is located 15km west of Heraklion, west of Vathianos Kambos. The area is a very well-developed resort, surrounded by the many crops cultivated in the plain of the area. The name of the site means “Kokkinis’s Inn” and is taken after an inn that operated here in the early 1900s, by someone called Kokkinis.

The seaside resort of Loutraki is located 16km east of Chania, near the military base of Souda. Loutraki and Marathi are the two main touristic destinations in the region.

Sfinari beach is located 60km west of Chania and 30km south of Kissamos, in front of the homonym village. The village is built at the exit of a lush deep valley and is surrounded by beautiful towering mountains.

The long beach in front of the village is a nice pebbly beach, which is actually a small part of the vast beach that runs from Kolimbari and extends up to Chania. This is ideal for swimming, especially on windless days.

Dia is a small uninhabited island located 12 miles north of Heraklion. During the summer, excursion boats run daily to Dia, where the visitor can admire the rugged landscape of the island and swim in the crystal clear waters. The place where the boats stop is called the port of St. George.