Nestled in the Mediterranean Sea, drenched in sunshine the beaches of Crete are one of the main attractions for the many visitors who come to this exquisite island.
For the holiday maker who wants to ‘get away’ from the everyday hectic life that they lead at home, the island of Crete offers a dream holiday.
The beautiful isolated bays along the coastline are just the answer for that relaxing day at the beach basking in sunshine and enjoying the tranquillity that surrounds the endless stretches of white sand as they gently curve into the distance. The quality and colour of the water around Crete makes bathing a real joy. Cooling off in these clear blue waters is the perfect solution for a stress free and relaxing time just fooling around at the beach.
Cretans take pride in the waters around the island and maintain a high standard of cleanliness for visitors to enjoy. The clarity of the water speaks volumes. The summer is endless in Crete with 300 days of sunny weather visitors can swim in the blue Mediterranean Sea from April until as late as November and many tourists from northern shores know that by travelling to the island of Crete, they can expect to leave those winter blues behind them.
Visitors may choose to hire a car to explore the island. They will discover some amazing beaches on the East coast and the West and every one of them has its own unique splendour and charm that is so typical of Crete. There are isolated stretches of beach and there are busy ones, some with surf and some without even a ripple. The wonderful experience that visitors have when driving around the coastline is something that they will always remember and this tempts them to return to Crete year after year for their ideal holiday. Discovering the perfect beach is a real pleasure and lazing quietly in a preferred quiet cove or watching other people enjoying the sunshine and sea on a busy beach whilst sipping a cool refreshing drink in the Mediterranean sun is hard to beat when it comes to achieving a feeling of total wellbeing.
There are some lovely resorts along the coast where tourists can discover traditional bars and tavernas and delight in the typical menus that gives Crete its own unique taste of the Med. The quaint tavernas around the island are the best place to taste traditional Cretan specialities and to get to know the local drinks such as ‘raki’ or the pleasant local wines.
Sitting peacefully watching the world go by is what Cretans do best on a hot sunny day and visitors are invited to join in this favourite pass time. Long sunny days and balmy warm evenings surrounded by ancient and modern Crete is everyone’s idea of Paradise.
Chania is a major city in Crete, one of the biggest and most inhabited of the island. It is located by the sea and has an airport and, of course, a port for ferries. The gulf of Chania provides all a visitor would need to see; endless beaches with crystal clear seawater, camping facilities and watersports clubs. Northwestern of the airport and northern of the port you will find Kalathas (about 15km from the airport) beach and Livadi beach (about 20km from the airport). Around 9km western of the city of Chania, Agia Marina beach is situated, which is certainly worth visiting. Around 10km eastern of Chania city, you will find the town of Souda, also one of the largest in Crete but not as big or as populated as Chania. Soud a is by the se
Heraklion is the biggest city of Crete and the most populated as well. It has over 115.000 citizen and it is the city with the most ferry arrivals, especially in the summer “high” season. It also has an airport which connects Crete with Athens, the rest of Greece and the rest of the world. About 23km northwestern of the city you will find the beach of Agia Pelagia, one of the northest spots of the island. Only 3 km eastern you will see the famous city of New Alikarnassos, and another 15km heading further to the east, Kato Gouves or Foinix is located. Foinix is a small town with a beautiful beach which provides the peace a visitro needs during vacations. Last but not least, just 5km southern of Heraklion, the famous archaeological area of Knossos is located. Knossos needs no introduction… It is a top archaeological destination of Greece. See the palace of Knossos and visit the local museum, all a few minutes away from Heraklion. You can reach easily all these destinations by a bike or car which you can rent in many places around Heraklion.