Greece Beaches and Islands Guide II

* Guide to the Best Greece Beaches

The Sporades islands [North of Athens, bus and ferry or fly]

*Koukounaries and *Banana beaches, Skiathos [not for people with Pine allergies!]
One of Greece's busier islands, packed with British sun seekers and a fair number of yachties, Skiathos [pictures and more information] handles it well, hiding a lot of hotels and villas under a cover of pine trees and managing to retain charm in its old town, especially when the sun goes down and the warren of little streets get their kit out.
Skiathos claims to have 65 beaches tho' many are smaller than my sofa. Koukounaries [picture] is one of the best [the longest as well] on the island, with pine reserve backdrop, [unusually] fine yellow sand, clear, water and three tavernas.
It is half mile long and offers various watersports. Accessible by bus from Skiathos Town [7mls].
Banana Beach [picture, also known as Krassas], next to Koukounaries, also has fine golden sand backed by pine woods, but is smaller and has more character and 'cool', with a couple of tavernas - one particularly hip.
Little Banana [aka Spartacus, picture above left], next door, is a popular nudist spot.
Lalaria is a small, tranquil beach [picture above right] on the north-east coast only accessible by sea. It has smooth pebbles, and a stylish sea-formed rocky arch. There are no facilities there and excursion boats fill the place up pretty fast. Boats there go from the Old Port in Skiathos Town.
On the north coast Elias and Mandraki are quite isolated, accessible by a dirt road only, big strands of fine sand, scenic surrounds and unrefined tavernas. There are no watersports and it can get breezy. Nudists welcome!

Limnonari, Skopelos
Another pine-infested island, half an hour by hydrofoil from Skiathos, Skopelos town has more quiet charm than its hectic neighbour, and less of everything else - tourists, beaches, bars, restaurants, activities [pictures and more information].
The better places are on the south side of the island, but mostly coarse sand or pebbles. The best beach is Limnonari, in a protected bay with fine sand, clear water and a good taverna.

Crete Island

*Sweetwater, *Falasarna, *Elafonisi
At 160 miles long, this is Greece's largest island and offers a huge variety of holidays - mountain and gorge hiking [esp. Samaria and Zakros Gorges, windmill scattered Lasithi Plateau] exploration of little old Greek villages [fast disappearing], roaming the ruins of the Minoan civilisation [esp. Knossos], or slumping on hot beaches with a cold drink.
Iraklion, Crete's capital, has little reason to visit save for its transport links, the superb Minoan Palace of Knossos [5km away] and the Archaeological Museum.
The island is lined with hundreds of beaches, from popular tourist destinations in the east, such as Elounda and Sitia, to the less well-known in the west:
Rethymno [NW], the attractive third largest town in Crete has a palm-fringed promenade running along a wide curved sand and shingle beach several kilometres long. The water is clean though you may need to walk a bit east to escape crowds. There is excellent choice of services.
Sweetwater [SW] is a casual beach with few visitors, some of them nude. It has a dramatic, swooping rocky backdrop and blue, blue sea. Sweetwater bubbles out from the stones at the back of the beach. A small beach taverna looks after consumables. Accessible only by boat or an hour's spectacular coast walk from Loutro - and that's the place to stay.
Far west Crete has a couple of superb beaches if you can get there.
Falasarna [NW] is big, with fine sand and rocks to add a little character. Tavernas and domatia [rooms to stay in] are nearby.
Elafonisi [SW] is a big, sandy, turquoise lagoon, with a pretty little island scattered with dunes and coves a few metres wading distance away. Facilities are few and unfortunately a new blacktop road means package tours and their attendant stalls have started to despoil this erstwhile beach paradise.

Ionian islands

Aghios Georgios North*, Corfu
Corfu was once supposed to be one of Greece's most beautiful islands, but a rash of unsubtle overdevelopment soon put paid to that; Kavos, Ipsos and Sidhari are neon-lit, raucous examples of good gone bad.
However, northern parts of the island still have some charm and excellent beaches. Aghios Georgios North is a secluded resort on the northwest coast, off the usual tourist route, with soft golden sands in a huge bay. Over in the northeast there is a cluster of restrained, comfortable 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 perfect taverna. It's a couple of miles south of Agios Stefanos.

Vasilikos, Zante [Zakynthos]
Zante is relaxing, peaceful, typically Greek, with friendly locals. The beach in Vasilikos is the best in the island, a long stretch of sand with secluded coves, 16kms from the airport. There are a few hotels and basic self catering places, and good traditional restaurants, but they may require a long walk to get there, so your own transport is advisable.
For watersports, go to Mavratzis, Banana or St. Nicolas beaches, or Mare for snorkelling. There is also an interesting place called Shipwreck beach, which can be reached only by boat.

A Greek poll in 2006 of locals and visitors voted these as Best Greece Beaches:

The Pelion Peninsula
Just fours hours drive north of Athens and on the mainland is this fairly tourist-free yet primitive, attractive area of hidden rocky coves, sandy beaches with shallow, sheltered kid-friendly waters [on the west coast], terrific walks, remote villages and no international hotels. The east and wilder coast of Pelion is even less visited and more dramatic.

Greece Beaches Islands II

* Guide to the Best Greece Beaches

Crete Island

Ionian islands

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