CalmBeach Greece
Family beaches
Family beaches in Heraklion
13 shallow, organised beaches in Heraklion: all with easy access, picked for young children. Check live wind & waves on CalmBeach.
- 13beaches
- 13organized
- 8with photos
Travelling with young children in Heraklion? We picked these 13 beaches because they are organised, not hard to reach, and recorded as shallow. How quickly the water deepens varies from beach to beach, so check wind and waves in CalmBeach before you go.
The beaches
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Matala
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…
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Potamos MaliasThe 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…
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Kommos
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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KarterosThe 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…
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GouvesThe 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…
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StalidaWhere 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…
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Photo credits
- Potamos Malias: rene boulay, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Karteros: Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0
- Agia Pelagia: Karel Macalik from Prague, Czech republic, CC BY 2.0
- Gouves: pepanos, CC BY 3.0
- Stalida: Jan M, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Analipsi: Wouter Hagens, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Fodele: NiTenIchiRyu, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Malia: C messier, CC BY-SA 4.0
Good to know
Which beaches in Heraklion are family-friendly?
Every beach on this list meets three criteria: it is organised, it has no difficult access, and our data records its water as shallow. How fast the seabed drops away underfoot is not something any map can guarantee — for small children, pick a calm, sheltered day as well.
How do I compare sea conditions?
CalmBeach checks wind, waves and exposure, so you can compare less exposed beaches and more comfortable visiting times.
When is the sea calmest here?
Across 13 of the beaches on this page, the open water in front of them is typically 0.74 m in June, 0.84 m in July and 0.85 m in August when the meltemi is at its strongest, and 0.80 m in September. June 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 13 of the beaches on this page the sea is typically 19.6 °C in May, 23.1 °C in June, 25.5 °C in July, 26.2 °C in August and 25.3 °C in September — ideal at the height of summer, mild in June. By October it is 23.2 °C. August is the warmest month. Satellite measurements, 1995–2024, from a sea cell about 5 km offshore; shallow bays usually run warmer than this.
Wind and waves change every day. See live conditions for any of these beaches before you drive out.
Open the live map →