CalmBeach Greece
Organized
Organized beaches in Heraklion
22 organized beaches in Heraklion: with sunbeds, umbrellas and facilities. Check live wind & waves for each beach on CalmBeach before you go.
- 22beaches
- 22organized
- 12with photos
Prefer sunbeds, umbrellas and a beach bar in Heraklion? These 22 organized beaches usually have facilities and easier access. 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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LygariaThe 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…
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Kokkini AmmosThe 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
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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SarantariThe 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…
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Made
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…
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Limanakia Chersonisou
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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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
- Lygaria: Dkoukoul, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Kokkini Ammos: User:Anna.Tsolidou, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Karteros: Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0
- Sarantari: Stegop, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 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
- Mononavtis: Eugen Kalloch, 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 organized?
The beaches listed here are marked as organized, usually with sunbeds, umbrellas and food or a beach bar nearby. Facilities can change by season, so confirm locally.
Are organized beaches less windy?
Not necessarily. Facilities do not change the wind or waves — check live conditions in the app and compare less exposed beaches on windy days.
When is the sea calmest here?
Across 22 of the beaches on this page, the open water in front of them is typically 0.75 m in June, 0.85 m in July and 0.86 m in August when the meltemi is at its strongest, and 0.81 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 22 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.
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