Crete was the first holiday we shared. Greece is always a secure destination: the sea is clear and clean, the weather and the climate are perfect, the people are friendly and the food is excellent.We chose Crete after some researches on the web as we fell in love with the pictures of the beaches and the sunsets.

ARRANGEMENTS: HOTEL, CAR HIRE AND FLIGHTS:

Before starting, it’s important to take into consideration that Crete is a big island. It has 2 airports: Chania and Heraklion. If you have a limited-time holidays, you’d better choose a side of the island that you’d like to visit and focus on. We chose “Sofia’s Apartments Hotel” in Kalamaki, a few kilometers from Chania. It’s a little hotel run by a family: the rooms are big, clean and all the facilities and the comforts you may need. Prices are inexpensive: we spent 405 Euro total. Sofia’s Apartments is a great choice because it’s a 5 minutes drive from the center of Chania and it’s very close to the entrance of the E65, the main road that leads to the most beautiful beaches. Hiring a car is very important in Crete and remember to book it before getting there (especially if you’re visiting Crete during the high season). We hired a Fiat Panda for 8 days with a company named “Golden Wheel” and we spent 280 Euro, which is a good price compared to others found on the web. The car was in very good conditions and the staff was very kind and punctual. As for the flights, we left from Linate with Ryanair and we landed in Chania, about 30 minutes from our hotel. For our trip back we originally booked the same flight (Chania – Linate), but then the company changed the timetable and the flight was anticipated to early morning. So we decided to change it and we booked a flight with Easyjet from Heraklion to Malpensa.

BEACHES:

First of all it’s important to say that if you want to enjoy the most beautiful beaches of Crete you have to drive a long way with the car. In our opinion, the top three best beaches are:

Falassarna; Balos Lagoon; Elafonisi Beach.

If your hotel is in Chania you have to be prepared to spend an hour in the car to reach one of the beaches mentioned above. Using the route E65 it is pretty easy to get to every destination and there are a lot of signs indicating the direction; just pay attention because cretans have a bad way of driving as they don’t care about speed limits or double line. Don’t worry about the lenght of the route: the streets are free – flowing and you’ll come across very nice villages.

FALASSARNA:

Falassarna is a long beach with white sand and the incredibly stunning sunsets. There is a big free parking so you won’t have any problem with the car because there are many large squares where you can leave the car. The water is crystal – clear with shades of blue that seem to mix with the colours of the sky. Before getting to Falassarna you can stop at the top of the hill to admire the wonderful view. We used to stop at Mouraki Tavern. Once you get to the beach you can choose the sea lounger that you prefer and then the staff will come for the payement (about 8 Euros with the umbrella). At the top of the beach there is a nice lounge bar where you can buy a cocktail and enjoy the sunset. If you walk by the beach, keeping to the left, you will see some points where the sand turns rose. If you keep on walking you will find a particular cliff. Walk over it and you will find a beautiful little beach. We spent a lot of time here; it’s a very quiet and intimate place! You should really stay in Falassarna until the sun goes down because the sunset really worth it!

BALOS LAGOON:

This is another wonderful beach, completely different from Falassarna and it’s unique just for the roads you have to cover to get there. We’ve been to Balos Lagoon twice. Once you exit the E65 the adventure starts. In fact, to get to the beach there is a large dirt road and it’s like being in the mountains. You will encounter some goats and you will have to stop to let them cross the road. It takes 25 minutes to get to the end of the road and once you arrive you have to park your car. Then the second part of the adventure starts because there are 20 more minutes of walking on a path. You won’t see the sea for the biggest part of the walking, until you will arrive to a spectacular and breathtaking view point. Balos Lagoon will be right in front of you in all its magnificence. The beach is incredible: the sand is fine and white with some shades of rose, while the water is clear, almost caribbean. The nature around the lagoon makes the landscape even more spectacular and pictoresque. The water is shallow almost everywhere so you can enjoy walking in it or even sunbathing. The beach is very big, so the presence of many tourists won’t be annoying. Going back up the path is not easy at all but after such a relaxing day you will probably have enough energy to face the return.

ELAFONISSI BEACH:

Elafonissi is the third wonderful beach we visited. It’s about 1 hour and a half far from Chania, but it is really worth it. It’s big and dispersive but in Elafonissi you won’t find the tranquillity like in the others (Falassarna in particular). The sea has an incredible light blue colour and the water is shallow. There are some nice cliffs where you can go take a picture and see the landscape from a different perspective. When we got to Elafonissi we were lucky because there was a very quick storm and almost everyone left, so we enjoyed a few more hours in that paradise in perfect tranquillity and harmony with the sea. In addition to these beaches we had the time to visit two more: Kalathas Beach and Kalamaki bech. They’re both wonderful but less spectacular and special than the others.

KALATHAS BEACH:

Kalathas Beach is located 20 km from Chania. It has clear blue water and golden sand. There’s a nice little island which can be reached with a pleasant swim only 50 meters from the coast. It’s really nice there because you can dive into the sea from the cliffs of the island.

KALAMAKI BEACH

Kalamaki Beach is the one in front of our hotel. We spent our last day there. It’s a well-organized beach with many taverns and restaurants. The sea is nice and the sand is golden. It’s popular to families so if you’re looking for tranquillity this is not the beach for you.

RESTAURANTS:

In Crete there’s ample choice of restaurants. Choosing one is not always easy because they are all inviting but there is some advice we can give you. We went to Chania for dinner. It’s a really nice town and in the evening the night everyone goes there to enjoy the atmosphere. You should avoid restaurants on the main street right in front of the harbour because the quality is not excellent and the prices are too high. You should walk through the little streets hidden behind the town center: this is where you will find the perfect restaurant for an unforgettable dinner. We ate at Tavern Strata and we had typical greek dishes: absolutely excellent! Other delicious restaurants are Moutpaki Tavern and Akrogiali Tavern where we had an incredible fresh – fish dinner. We’ve never spent more than 40 euros.

Grece makes you happy, makes you want to discover all its beauty and this is exactly what we’re going to do!

Stay tuned…the best is yet to come!