Beaches guide of Greece
Beaches from Greece can range from intimate coves or bays to long stretches, with golden or dark volcanic sand, or pebbly shores.
One of the main travel attractions in Greece are the blue sea and the magnificent beaches. With 13,676 km of coastlines, each vacationer can find the beach of his dreams - a long white or golden sandy beach with blue crystal waters, a small beach surrounded by huge cliffs and pine tree forests, a cosmopolitan beach surrounded by luxury hotels and villas, and the list can go one...
In Greece all beaches have their own beauty and charm. Some of the most beautiful beaches to spend a vacation in Greece are located on the islands of Cyclades, Sporades, and Ionian Sea.
The Cyclades Islands
Paradise, Super Paradise and Panormas, Mykonos
Mykonos is one of the most attractive islands in Greece with its stone walls and architecture. Although Mykonos is hilly, it's only ten miles long and seven miles wide, so most visitors rent cars or scooters to explore the island.
Places such as Agios Stefanos, Platyialos, and Psarou have well protected beaches with excellent sand and a good selection of taverns nearby. If you want soft sand, dunes, a stunning scenery, less people, then try Panormas.
Red Beach, Santorini
Santorini or Thira is spectacularly situated on the edge of a dormant volcano. Some experts believe that this is the place where began the legend of Atlantis. Along with Mykonos, Santorini is one of the most expensive islands in Greece, but the towns Fira and Oia are so spectacularly that worth all spent money... Due to its volcanic soil most beaches from Santorini have black sand, but the water is very clean and clear.
The best beach is the narrow Red Beach, with small red grainy sand.
Milopotas and Manganari, Ios
Although renowned as a party island, Ios is surprisingly tranquil during the daytime and has two superb beaches. The excellent Milopotas, located only 5-10 minutes from the town, is a huge stretch of soft yellow sand and feature clear water.
Manganari has maybe a better sand, but is not easy accessible, it not offers quality accommodations, so is not the best beach where you can spend the evenings.
Psili Ammos, Serifos
Psili Ammos means in Greek soft fine sand and exactly so is this superb white beach, offering in plus clear water and a tree-lined shore.
Maragas and Plaka, Naxos
The mountainous Naxos island is favored by many hikers and has a little lively main town. Grotto, north of the town, is less developed but Agios Georges at the south end is a good town for a beach vacation offering fine sand, spectacular views, blue water, and excellent accommodations nearby. A little further away and also popular beaches on Naxos are the large sanded Agios Prokopios and the small Agios Anna.
For many the best of Naxos beaches is the long stretch of dunes running from Maragas to Plaka. Soft sand, trees, blue crystal water and a lot of free space make this area an excellent location for vacationers. Due to its simplicity the nudists hang out in Plaka.
Kolymbithres, Paros
Paros is a surprisingly pleasant island. The town has white-washed labyrinthine streets, lovely bars where you can admire splendid sunset, many restaurants where you can enjoy excellent Greek dishes, and a big church - the Ekatondapiliani, which is the oldest in use in Greece!
The beaches on Paros are quite acceptable. The two biggest ones, Livadia and Krios, sharing the town's bay and are both calm and tree lined. On the east coast of Paros are some bigger beaches that are well promoted - such as Golden Beach - but they can be pretty windy and have hard sand.
The best beach on the island is considered Kolymbithres, near the tourist town Naoussa, featuring aquamarine water enclosed by fine sand and eroded rocks.
The Sporades Islands
Koukounaries and Banana Beach, Skiathos
One of the most visited islands of Greece is Skiathos, with many hotels and villas settled under pine trees. Skiathos claims to have 65 beaches! Koukounaries is maybe the best on the island, featuring specific pine trees, fine yellow sand, clear water and picturesque taverns. It's half mile long and offers various water sports facilities.
Banana Beach, also known as Krassas, next to Koukounaries, has also fine golden sand, but is smaller and has just a couple of taverns. Little Banana or Spartacus, near Banana Beach, is a popular nudist spot on the island.
Lalaria is a small and tranquil beach, lies on the north-east coast and is accessible only by sea. It has smooth pebbles and a stylish sea-formed rocky arch. There are no facilities but the vacationers arrived here with boats fill up the place pretty fast!
On the north coast Elias and Mandraki are isolated beaches, accessible by a dirt road only. There are no water sports facilities and it can be breezy, so is not very frequented by vacationers. The nudists are welcome!
Limnonari, Skopelos
Skopelos is a another pine-filled island, located at a half an hour by boat from Skiathos. The main town from Skopelos has more quiet charm than its neighbor and less of everything else - travelers, beaches, bars, restaurants, water activities. The better places are on the south side of the island and the best beach is considered to be Limnonari, located in a protected bay with fine sand, clear water and a rustically tavern.
Crete
Crete is Greece's largest island and offers a huge variety of beaches. It's literally lined with hundreds of beaches, ranging from popular tourist destinations in the east side, such as Elounda and Sitia, to the less known beaches located in the west side, such as Rethymno and Sweet Water.
On the western part Crete has a couple of superb beaches: Falasarna, with fine sand and rocks, and Elafonisi, also a big sandy beach.
The Ionian Islands
Aghios Georgios North, Corfu
Corfu was once one of the most beautiful islands of Greece, but a rash of unsubtle overdevelopment made it now unattractive. Still, the northern part of the island has some charm and feature a few excellent beaches. Aghios Georgios North is a secluded resort on the northwest coast, located in a huge bay, with soft golden sands. In northeast of the island are located a few restrained fishing villages with good adjacent beaches, such as Kassiopi and Agios Stefanos. The best beach in the area is Kerasia, a long, quiet and very clean bay, with just one old tavern. It's located a couple miles south to Agios Stefanos.
Vasilikos, Zakynthos
Zakynthos or Zante is a relaxing, peaceful & typically Greek island, with friendly locals. The beach in Vasilikos is the best on the island - a long stretch of sand with secluded coves. There are a few hotels and good traditional restaurants, but they require a long walk to get there. If you are a water sports lover go to Mavratzis, Banana or St.Nicolas; Mare beach offers good snorkeling. There is also a another interesting place called The Shipwreck Beach, which can be reached only by boat.
A beach vacation in Greece is really good in September, especially in the first 2 weeks, when the water is warm, the prices are down and full services are still in operation. They are also good between May and June, even if the water is a little chilly!
Information about scuba diving in Greece can be found on Diving in Greece