CalmBeach Greece
Meltemi options
Beaches in Chania usually better when the meltemi blows
43 sheltered beaches in Chania, oriented away from the meltemi. Check live wind & waves on CalmBeach before you go.
- 40beaches
- 20organized
- 19with photos
The meltemi blows from N/NE, and the split shows up clearly in the data. Of the 90 beaches we have modelled, 44 take no open water toward N/NE; they cluster on the south coast, facing an arc of SE–W. The most reliable of them are listed below. The other 35 sit wide open to it.
The reason is the shape of the coast itself: these beaches have land behind them on the side the wind comes from. They are not necessarily enclosed bays — they simply sit in the wind shadow of the shore opposite.
The trade-off, plainly: the same south coast is open to the opposite wind. On days the wind swings from the south, the shelter reverses and the far side is the better call. So this list narrows the choice — it does not replace the forecast; check live wind and waves on the beach page before you go.
The beaches
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Marathi
The fishing harbor with traces of ancient Minoa — Marathi lies on the southeastern shore of the Akrotiri peninsula of Chania, about 17 kilometres east of town, looking across the bay of Souda towards…
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KedrodasosThe white dunes with the coastal junipers — Kedrodasos lies at the southwestern tip of the Chania prefecture, about one kilometre east of Elafonisi, facing the Libyan Sea. It owes its name to…
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Sougia (gymniston)The naturists' cove among the rocks — At the eastern end of Sougia's long beach, on the south coast of Chania, the shore ends in a small cove hidden among the rocks. This stretch, of fine…
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Sougia
The ancient seaport at the mouth of the gorge — Sougia lies on the south coast of Chania, at the mouth of the Agia Irini gorge, about 70 kilometres from the city. Its long beach, roughly 1.5…
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Elafonisi
The pink sand and the lagoon — At the southwest tip of Crete, an islet is joined to the mainland by a shallow lagoon (~20-40 cm) you wade across on foot. The sand takes on a pink…
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Falasarna
The white sands of the ancient harbour — Falasarna sits on the west coast of Crete, at the base of the Gramvousa peninsula, about 59 kilometres from Chania. The great shore is in fact a…
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Gialiskari
The shore at the mouth of the Anydri gorge — Gialiskari lies about four kilometres east of Paleochora, on the south coast of Chania, where the Anydri gorge meets the sea. It is a small cluster…
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Paralia FragkokastellouThe sands beneath the Venetian castle — Fragkokastello beach stretches out in front of the Venetian fortress of the same name, on the south coast of Sfakia, about twelve kilometres east of…
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Paralia Glyka Nera
The shore of the freshwater springs — Glyka Nera hides between Chora Sfakion and Loutro, on the south coast of Chania, at the foot of steep slopes that drop from the Lefka Ori mountains…
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IlingasPebbles and sea caves at the gorge mouth — Ilingas lies about two kilometres west of Chora Sfakion, on the road to Anopoli, at the mouth of the gorge of the same name, also known as the Kavi…
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Paralia Marmara
The white sculpted rocks of Aradena — Marmara lies at the mouth of the Aradena gorge in Sfakia, about five kilometres west of Loutro and far from any road. It takes its name from the…
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Machairida
The white cove by the knife-shaped cape — Macherida is a small cove of white sand on the Akrotiri peninsula of Chania, Crete, near Chorafakia and Tersanas. Its name is attributed to the sharp…
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Orthi AmmosThe dunes of the Drosoulites — Orthi Ammos stretches beside Frangokastello in Sfakia, Crete, about eighty kilometres south of Chania. It owes its name, 'upright sand', to the tall…
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KriosThree coves at the cape of Selino — Krios lies about 10 kilometres west of Paleochora, on the southern coast of Selino in Chania. It takes its name from the homonymous Cape Krios, on…
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Menies (Diktynna)The beach of the ancient sanctuary of Diktynna — Menies lies on the northeastern coast of the Rodopou peninsula in Chania, about 45 kilometres from the city, at the exit of the Foundas Gorge. The…
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Paralia Psilos Volakas
The great boulder west of Paleochora — Psilos Volakas lies about one and a half kilometres west of Paleochora in Chania, beside the road leading towards Koundoura and Krios. It takes its…
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Photo credits
- Kedrodasos: Dkoukoul, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Sougia (gymniston): C messier, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Paralia Fragkokastellou: Marc Ryckaert (MJJR), CC BY 3.0
- Ilingas: Gerd-HH, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Orthi Ammos: Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0
- Krios: Θοδωρής Φ., CC BY-SA 4.0
- Menies (Diktynna): Dermitzos_chania, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Filaki: Giannaras11, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Chalikia: trolvag, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Paralia Agiou Charalampous: wprag4s0, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Finikas: Rockhopper2, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Stomio beach: Sorin Craciun, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Sfakiano Ammoudi: wprag4s0, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Astropelekitá: Kaelkael, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Argilos: Olaf Tausch, CC BY 3.0
- Paralia Kalamia: Mikenorton, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Paralia Koutelos: proGRAMSTATion, CC BY 3.0
- Pachia Ammos: darkobajic, CC BY 3.0
Good to know
Which beaches in Chania may be better when the meltemi blows?
The bays listed here are shielded from the meltemi in the exposure model, so they may be more comfortable when it blows. Local conditions still vary, so confirm wind and waves before you go.
Does this guarantee low waves?
No. Shelter shows which coasts are shielded from a wind direction, not guaranteed calm or low waves. On strong-wind days follow local flags and check live wind and waves in the app.
When is the sea calmest here?
Across 40 of the beaches on this page, the open water in front of them is typically 0.45 m in June, 0.44 m in July and 0.40 m in August when the meltemi is at its strongest, and 0.44 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 40 of the beaches on this page the sea is typically 19.3 °C in May, 22.5 °C in June, 25.0 °C in July, 26.0 °C in August and 25.4 °C in September — ideal at the height of summer, mild in June. In October it is still 23.9 °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.
Wind and waves change every day. See live conditions for any of these beaches before you drive out.
Open the live map →