Crete island is heaven in the Mediterranean sea. It’s wild, it’s genuine, it’s wonderful.
While preparing this post I was wondering whether it would be appropriate to share my first-hand experience in the island and reveal valuable info about its hidden spots or it would be maybe better to shut up for the sake of preserving those places.
“What if I describe everything I saw and then the next time I’ll go I will only find resorts?”I said to myself.
Then I realized it was a bit of an ambitious thought, as this blog will probably have 3 readers: 2 of them will never ever travel and the third one is my mum.
So here you have some recommendations about the best beaches in Crete and some good spots where to do free camping.
Elafonisi Beach
If you go to Crete by plane (unless you live in Santorini, you will definitely go by plane) you will land in Heraklion.
Heraklion doesn’t have too much to offer, so I suggest taking a bus and go to Chania (2 hours). Chania is very touristic, it has a vivid city center and many people spend there quite some time. However, I recommend to spend there one night only, as we did.
Around there you can easily rent a scooter, car or quad. We opted for the quad and we went right away to Mithimna camping, where we stayed 2 nights for a derisory amount of money (10 euro).
From there we went to Balos. The dirt track that leads there is quite curvy. It was okay with the quad but I am not sure it would be the same with a car.
Anyway, it was worth it!
Balos beach
As you may reckon from the picture, it was something out of this world.
After a day spent splashing around, I suggest, on the way back, to go to Gramvousa tavern. You will probably get out of it rolling, but at least you’ll be happy.
Since we are talking about food, I need to recommend also Arxontas tavern, which is also around there, where you will not have a light meal probably but you’ll really enjoy it. They even have those nice hammocks where you can crumble shamelessly after lunch.
I had a little bit of wine
As you go further southwards, you will first find the Agia Sofia caves, where you can cool down a bit, and then the famous Elafonisi beach (see first photo). Apparently, this beach is famous for its pink sand.
When we were there though, we saw barely 20 pink sand grains, so I wouldn’t say pinkness is the best quality of this beach. It can get crowded at peak times and it’s equipped with sunbeds and beach ombrellas, so it’s not really a wild beach.
Before getting there we had spotted a hidden gem, called Aspri Limni. That was a different story.
Aspri Limni
But our real destination is Kedrodasos, where we had decided to camp.
There is only one small detail: there is no camping!
In the majority of Europe it is forbidden to do any free camping (that is when basically you set your tent for free on a beach or wherever you want). Actually it is also forbidden in Crete.
However, this is one of the places where, aided by its remoteness and a slight tolerance from the frightening Greek police, it’s easier to camp freely without having someone to come and rain on your parade.
It can happen that you are unlucky enough to be there on the one-time per year they go there to make a check and get a 500 euro fine. You might think it would have been better to spend that money on a hotel.
But how can you compare a hotel with the experience of camping here?
We spent 3 nights in Kedrodasos. We parked our quad on the top of a hill and carried on walking for half an hour. Obviously you need to bring everything you need: water, food, etc.
You will find a few happy families doing the same. Some of them will actually be naked 🙂
When we managed to leave Kedrodasos we returned our quad and went by bus to Sfakia.
It’s a small village on the sea from which we took a boat to go to Glika Nera. The latter is not an island, however as there is a steep mountain on its back, it is impossible to reach it by land.
A nice encounter
We set our tent again and we stayed 2 nights. The beach is gorgeous, there are many goats and even a small tavern in the middle of the sea.
Glika Nera
From there we also went by boat to Loutro, another isolated village where you can find some bars and tourists. We rented a kayak and as always Panos did all the work while I was enjoying the view…
When it was time to go, we got back to Sfakia and we got into a bus headed to Rethimno.
Rethimno isn’t a beach but a small city. It’s very pretty, it has a lively ennviroment and a castle with a view I enjoyed very much.
Rethimno castle
I will go back to Crete and visit the Eastern side next time.
It’s the best Greek island I have been to (I have seen quite a few of them so far).
If you are interested in going to Crete and need a recap of my itinerary, here you have a small map I prepared with my incredible Paint skills:
Flawless cropping
June 17, 2017 at 5:37 pm
We are about to head to Crete for a camping roadtrip. This post is really helpful! (and we promise we won’t build any resorts.) Is Kedrodasos accessible with a normal car?
June 22, 2017 at 11:16 am
Hi Anna!
Kedrodasos is accessible with a normal car, the last stretch of the road is unpaved but it’s in good conditions. At the end you will need to leave the car on the top of a hill and then walk 15-20 minutes to reach the beach. It will be worth it though 🙂
May 20, 2018 at 9:16 am
This is so helpful for my travels to Crete! I’m especially happy to see that we can travel around the island by 4-wheeler 🙂
Would you mind sharing the price range of the 4-wheeler rental?
And also, when you left Kedrodasos, did you have to return the 4-wheeler in Chania, or was there another location near Kedrodasos that you were able to return it to? Thanks!
May 20, 2018 at 9:16 am
This is so helpful for my travels to Crete! I’m especially happy to see that we can travel around the island by 4-wheeler 🙂
Would you mind sharing the price range of the 4-wheeler rental?
And also, when you left Kedrodasos, did you have to return the 4-wheeler in Chania, or was there another location near Kedrodasos that you were able to return it to? Thanks!
June 11, 2018 at 10:54 am
Hi Megan, I am very sorry for my late reply!!
The price was about 30 euro per day. We returned it when we took it (Platanias, near Chania). As far as I know, it’s not possible to return it to a different location from where you took it (or if there is this option, it would be much more expensive).
Let me know if you need anything else!
May 19, 2019 at 10:00 am
hi just saw your post, this is awesome! do you know if there is a store that rents camping equipment or a business that does it?
June 24, 2019 at 8:49 am
Unfortunately I am not sure about this as I brought my own tent. However you should be able to find some (info at least) in the main cities: Chania, Heraklio or Rethimno.
Good luck!
June 23, 2019 at 7:31 pm
Hi. I go to Crete for 6-10 weeks each year – I cycle there – and I was wondering about wild camping in the summer ie not with a tent but just a bivvy bag and maybe a tarp. I once saw a couple sleeping like this early one morning on a beach on the North coast east of Chania. Is this also illegal?
PS you should definitely try the far East coast – much less touristy than the West, and feels like what the island was like 20 years ago.
June 24, 2019 at 8:47 am
Hello!
Cycling in Crete sounds like a great idea. I believe you won’t have any issue if you just go there with a bivvy bag, as it’s just camping with a tent that is forbidden. It should be easier to carry as well!
Btw I am already planning to spend some time in the East coast 🙂
April 24, 2024 at 10:32 am
Hi Guy, I saw in your post on Vobonian that you cycled a few times in Crete. That’s what I want to do soon (May 2024). Any advice on routes? It will be really helpful, even if you cycled there a few years ago! I’m an experiecned cycle-traveller (also cycled in north Greece) but never tried it in Crete…
June 24, 2019 at 9:45 pm
Brilliant. Thank you. Cycling in Crete is wonderful (if you’re ok with going uphill). Try Xerokambos in the East – better even than Elafonisi. We were there last summer, and even in August, v few other people.
August 16, 2019 at 10:58 am
Hello, little info Balos road: “From there we went to Balos. The dirt track that leads there is quite curvy. It was okay with the quad but I am not sure it would be the same with a car.”
you can make it with the smallest, weakest and cheaper rental car Fiat Panda. When I was for Erasmus on Crete we made it there 5 in the car 😀 It wasn’t ideal for sure. The road has a lot of spiky rocks where you can make your tires flat. Also, rental insurance doesn’t cover when something happens on such a type of road. We didn’t know it at that time, but fortunately, nothing happened.
August 16, 2019 at 11:06 am
Haha that must have been fun 🙂
Thanks for sharing Tomas!
February 5, 2020 at 4:23 am
Well we are more than 3 who travel & read you!:))) Thanx for ur post, useful and funny one;)
June 29, 2022 at 6:28 pm
Hello!
I am so happy I found your post I am headed to Crete for a few days with my partner to free camp on the West side. My biggest question is can I reach all of this by foot? We plan to rely on public transportation, a lot of walking or maybe even some hitchhiking? Can you specify which of these beaches are and are not accessible?
July 8, 2022 at 12:03 pm
Hello Natalia!
Rethimno, Chania and Heraklion are all connected by bys.
For Balos there should be a bus and a boat as well from Chania.
For Elafonisi as well.
For Glika Nera you take a bus until Sfakia and then a little boat from Sfakia to Glika Nera.
For Kedrodasos and Aspri Limni I don’t think you can reach them by public transportation, but you could definitely try hitchhiking!
July 28, 2022 at 8:31 am
Hi
Thanks for the reply! May I also ask about the quad? I’ve never driven one and can me and my partner share one?
Secondly, did you take the quad all the way from Balos to Kedrodasos? And then to drop off the quad did you have to take it all the way back to the Chania? Would love to know these logistics so I can do a similar path!
August 11, 2022 at 2:07 pm
yes you can definitely share the same quad. You can usually also tie your backpack to the quad for longer distances.
We went all the way from Balos to Kedrodasos and slept there.
and we returned the quad in Chania, I don’t think you can drop it off elsewhere (but I guess you will have to go back to Chania anyway)
November 28, 2022 at 7:10 pm
Hi, wow, my dream is to go wild camping on the beach! I don’t drive (due to health conditions) and I’m wondering if there’s any hidden beaches you can get to walking from a town, and of course, beaches that are within walking distance to a place where I can get food and water.
January 21, 2023 at 10:52 am
hi Miriam! I am really sorry about the late reply, I abandoned the blog for a little while 🙂 I don’t drive either (but in Crete I was lucky enough to be with people that drive) so I can feel you!
Sfakia is a little town and from there you can walk to a lovely beach, but most importantly you can take a small boat to Glika Nera, one of the best places I have EVER seen. If you don’t mind taking a bus, there are tons of beaches you can reach from Chania (for example Marathi, in a public bus, or Balos, in a tourist bus). Not all of them are “hidden” but incredibly worth it anyway!
June 26, 2023 at 4:18 pm
Hi Miriam. if you have not heard of the small island of gavdos, it is definately worth a try. from Chania catch a bus to paleochora or chorafakion around 10eu, and catch a ferry from paleochora, on the west side of the south of crete or chora sfakion to gavdos around £40eu return. you can stay and camp/ tent no problem on the many beaches there nudism no problem at all on the beaches as over half the visitors are nude.and many of them have bars and tavernas, mini supermarkets for food and drink ( where you will need to be clothed ). i have been 6 times in last 8 years and love the place. not an awful lot to do there other than sunbathe. very friendly too. search gavdos on the internet and lots of info there. atb.
June 26, 2024 at 8:35 pm
Fantastic blog ive been to create several times but not to the places you’ve mentioned im thinking of going for an escape for a year and love wild camping thanks fir info and places to go