CalmBeach Greece
Beaches in Heraklion
All 53 beaches in Heraklion, in one list. 27 of them are not exposed to the meltemi, which gives them the better odds on a windy day. Open any of them for live wind and waves.
The beaches
- Afrathia Sandy - Passable dirt road
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Agiofarango
Pebbles - Easy path
The "Holy Gorge" of the hermits — A gorge ~1.5 km long with vertical walls full of caves ends at a remote pebble beach with crystal-clear water. The name ("Holy Gorge") comes from the…
- Fodele Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
- Karavovrysi Pebbles - Moderate access
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Kokkini Ammos
Sand & pebbles - Difficult access (path)
The red sands behind Matala — Kokkini Ammos, the Red Beach, lies on Crete's south coast about 800 metres south of Matala, hidden behind the hill of Kastri. It owes its name to its…
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Kommos
Sandy - Easy road access
The Minoan harbour below Phaistos — A long (~2 km) golden beach with dunes, tamarisks and carob trees, on the south coast. At its edge lies a Minoan settlement that served as the…
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Matala
Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
The carved caves and the hippies — A sandy bay framed by sandstone walls pierced by dozens of caves. They were carved as tombs in Roman and early-Christian times, but many have rooms…
- Martsalo Pebbles - Difficult access (path)
- Poros Pebbles - Difficult access (path)
- Psili Ammos Sandy - Passable dirt road
- Trafoulas Pebbles - Difficult access (path)
- Trypiti Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Vathy Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Ammoudara Sandy - Easy road access
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Karteros
Sandy - Easy road access
The shore of the general and ancient Amnisos — Karteros stretches about 7 kilometres east of Heraklion, on the western part of a long front of fine sand, where the river of the same name meets the…
- Agia Pelagia Sandy - Easy road access
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Lygaria
Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
The enclosed cove named after a plant — Lygaria is a small enclosed cove about 21 kilometres northwest of Heraklion, one kilometre east of Agia Pelagia. Its name is linked to the monastery…
- Mononavtis Pebbles - Easy road access
- Psaromoura Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
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Made
Pebbles - Easy road access
The little cove with the twin islets — Mades beach lies about 20 kilometres northwest of Heraklion and 4 kilometres east of Agia Pelagia, next to Lygaria. The name of the small settlement…
- Palaiokastro Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
- Kokkini Chani Sandy - Easy road access
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Gouves
Sandy - Easy road access
The farm plain that became a seaside resort — The beach at Gouves stretches along the north coast of Heraklion, about 18 kilometers east of the city, in front of the seaside settlement of Kato…
- Analipsi Sandy - Easy road access
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Limanakia Chersonisou
Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
The little coves beside the ancient harbor — The Limanakia of Hersonissos are a string of small successive coves on Crete's north coast, between Cape Sarantari and the harbor of Hersonissos…
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Stalida
Sandy - Easy road access
Where the flocks once paused to rest — Stalida spreads along Crete's north coast, about 30 kilometers east of Heraklion, between Hersonissos and Malia. Its name is said to come from the…
- Malia Sandy - Easy road access
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Potamos Malias
Sandy - Easy road access
The wetland sands beside the Minoan palace — Potamos lies east of Malia town, on the north coast of Heraklion prefecture, a long stretch of fine sand beside the Malia wetland. Its name, meaning…
- Paralia Krasa Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Katalyki Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
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Listis
Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
The bandit's rock on the Libyan Sea — Listis lies on the south coast of the Heraklion prefecture, in the Viannos area near Keratokambos, facing the Libyan Sea. It takes its name from the…
- Keratokambos Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
- Koudoumas Pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Aliori Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Star Beach Sandy - Easy road access
- Pera Galini Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Kokkines Plakes Pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Macha Pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Leprias Pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Katarti Pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Elygia Pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Skouros Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Stena Pebbles - Easy path
- Maridaki Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Glykos Kolympos Pebbles - Easy path
- Salamias Pebbles - Easy path
- Agios Nikitas Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Makria Ammos Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
- Chrysostomos Sand & pebbles - Passable dirt road
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Pantanassa
Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
The shore below the monastery — Pantanassa lies about 12 kilometers west of Heraklion, on the Malevizi coast below Rogdia. It is named after the neighboring monastery of Panagia…
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Sarantari
Sand & pebbles - Easy road access
The first of the Limanakia of Hersonissos — Sarantari lies at Cape Sarandaris, at the western end of the well-known Limanakia of Hersonissos, about 27 kilometres east of Heraklion. Its name is…
- Psili Ammos Kalon Limenon Sandy - Easy road access
- Chersonisos Agkisaras Easy road access
Pick by what you are looking for
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Meltemi options
The coves that face away from the prevailing wind — the shortlist for a windy day.
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Family beaches
Organised, not hard to reach, and recorded as shallow in our data.
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Snorkeling
Rockier seabed and clearer water, where there is something to look at underwater.
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Organized
Sunbeds, umbrellas and somewhere to eat or drink nearby.
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Sunset
West-facing, so the sun goes down over the water in front of you.
- Sandy
- Beach bars
- All beach guides →
Good to know
Which beaches in Heraklion are more sheltered from the wind?
27 of the 53 face away from the meltemi, meaning less open water in front of them for a wave to build across when it blows. It is not a guarantee — the same beach changes character when the wind turns. Check the live reading before you drive out.
How is this list ordered?
By how well known each beach is, not by a score of ours. Which beach is good on a given day changes hour by hour and cannot be printed on a static page — so this page carries the list and the things that do not change, and the live map carries the conditions.
When is the sea calmest here?
Across 53 of the beaches on this page, the open water in front of them is typically 0.59 m in June, 0.58 m in July and 0.55 m in August when the meltemi is at its strongest, and 0.56 m in September. August is the calmest month of the season. We calculate these figures ourselves from European Copernicus wave-model data at 4.2 km resolution. They describe the sea offshore, not the shelter of an individual cove — a bay protected by a headland will usually be calmer than this.
How warm is the water, month by month?
Off 53 of the beaches on this page the sea is typically 19.4 °C in May, 22.5 °C in June, 24.8 °C in July, 26.1 °C in August and 25.6 °C in September — ideal at the height of summer, mild in June. In October it is still 24.0 °C — warmer than June. August is the warmest month. Satellite measurements, 1995–2024, from a sea cell about 5 km offshore; shallow bays usually run warmer than this.
Weather and sea conditions change. CalmBeach uses the app view for live beach recommendations.