The best beaches in Greece's Crete - amazingmindscape.com

Crete has easily the longest summers in Greece, and there are plenty of beaches with which to fill those long, lazy summer days. Whether you’re into watersports, skinny dipping or good old-fashioned sunbathing, the island almost certainly has a stretch of sand to suit your tastes. Take a look at our guide to the best beaches in Crete, grab your sunhat and go.

Elafonísi
Elafonísi Beach comes as an exotic shock. The almost tropical waters (sheltered by the islet of the same name) boast white sand tinged pink by coral, aquamarine waters, salt-encrusted rock pools and bright-red starfish. The water is incredibly warm, calm and shallow and the islet itself is a short wade across the sand ʙᴀʀ.

Koureménos
Koureménos Beach is one of Crete’s top windsurfing spots. Not surprisingly, it can be windy here (a funnel effect creates ideal windsurfing conditions; nearby Hióna Beach is far more sheltered), but it’s a fine, long sand-and-pebble beach, with sᴇvᴇʀᴀʟ тᴀvᴇʀɴᴀs and places to stay along the way. And there’s even a ʙᴀʀ. There’s also quite a community of camper vans filled with enthusiastic windsurfers and beach bums in summer. If you’re thinking of picking up some lessons there’s an excellent windsurf centre, too.

Mátala
While Mátala was once known for its cave-dwelling hippy community, the town now feels rather touristy. That said, the beach is still excellent, one of the best in Crete, the atmosphere is boisterous and you’ll never be short of somewhere to enjoy a cocktail at sunset.

Vái
As you lie on the fine sand in the early morning, especially in early spring or late autumn, you could almost imagine yourself to be on a Caribbean island instead of a Greek one. In summer the beach fills to overflowing, but even then, for a couple of hours at each end of the day, you should be able to enjoy Vái the way it ought to be.

Stavrós
Just 3km beyond Horafákia is Stavrós and its near-perfect beach, an almost completely enclosed circular bay. The sea is dead calm with gently shelving sand underfoot, making it ideal for kids. It’s an extraordinary-looking place, too, with a sheer, bare mountainside rising just 100m away from you on the far side of the bay.

Frangokástello
For peaceful lassitude the beach at Frangokástello is among the best beaches in Crete, with fine sand and crystal-clear water (with good snorkelling opportunities). If you want company you’ll find it around the castle, where the best part of the sand is sheltered slides slowly into the water