Hi everyone. This is the Santorini Dave guide to The Best Beaches in Crete.
The island of Crete has over 1,000 kilometers of coastline, and that
includes some iconic and wonderful beaches. Let’s take a look at some of our favorites.
In this video we’ll highlight Elafonisi, Balos, Falasarna, Vai, the southern beaches of
Sweetwater, Loutro, and Marmara, Xerokambos, and in and around Elounda.
Now everything featured in this video is explored in our Crete Travel Guide, and,
along with all the other top destinations across Greece are explained in far greater depth across
the pages of our website at SantoriniDave.com. And make sure to subscribe to this channel as
we’re constantly adding new content that’ll help you to plan your visit to Greece.
Elafonisi is one of most iconic and best beaches in all of Greece,
famous for its pink sand and warm, shallow turquoise waters surrounded by mountains.
Elafonisi is extremely popular and fills up every day with thousands of visitors, most arriving on
day trips from Chania or Western Crete. If you’re able to, we highly recommend spending a night or
more in the area which enables you to enjoy this amazing place without the huge crowds.
Sunrise and sunset are especially beautiful, when you can expect to share the beach with few other
visitors. The large beach area has many spaces to enjoy and explore. Tucked into a huge bay
is a shallow swimming pool-like lagoon, and along the coast are many coves with tranquil waters.
There’s also a quieter area with sand dunes that faces out toward the open ocean.
Balos Beach and Lagoon is a popular day trip from both Rethymnon and Chania. It’s a unique
spot that’s not easy to get to. Most visitors opt for the day trip boat tour out of nearby Kissamos
port which takes about an hour in each direction and gives you 4 hours at the beach
with an included stop at another remote beach on the return. Balos is also famous for its
crystal clear shallow waters which you can explore extensively. Due to its remoteness, there are very
limited facilities here. There are however a small snack bar and restrooms, but little shade.
Vai Palm Beach in Eastern Crete is very popular with day trippers from Heraklion,
Elounda, and Agios Nikolaos. The main zone here is surrounded by a verdant grove of date palm trees,
with water sports rentals, an excellent restaurant overlooking the bay,
and a food court with a handful of snack bar type options.
Along the southern coast of Crete are a handful of great beaches. Many day trippers from Chania and
Rethymnon make the beautiful drive to the jumping off point of Sfakia. Here you can catch a ride
on a water taxi or even rent your own boat, and explore the beaches along the coast. The most well
known here are Sweetwater, with natural springs of fresh water bubbling up right into the sand.
Further along is the small town of Loutro, a bay lined with small hotels and restaurants, that is
also a stop on the ferry that plies the southern coast. And Marmara, a gorgeous little cove with
colorful sea caves you can explore directly adjacent to the beach, and a great restaurant.
Falasarna on the western coast of Crete is another popular beach with visitors from
Chania and Rethymnon. It’s a very long exposed beach with big waves that’s great for sunset.
In the southeast corner of the island, Xerokambos is an area of very quiet and
extremely gorgeous beaches, with long stretches of powdery sand that see few visitors.
This area is more popular with longer term tourists who rent houses in the area.
Elounda, the popular resort town in the East,
also has a handful of excellent beaches scattered along the coast.
As always, you can find lots more detailed information about Crete
and the rest of Greece’s most popular destinations across the pages of our
website SantoriniDave.com. If you enjoyed this video, make sure to like it with a thumbs up,
and to subscribe to our channel as we are constantly adding new content
that will help you in planning your visit to Greece and Beyond. Thanks for watching.