If you have any comments about this report or wish to add further information
please email them to:
neffupdate @ ada-augusta . demon . co . uk
Trip report, Western Crete.
At the end of May, my wife and I had our second holiday
in Crete. Once again, we stayed in the hamlet of Douliana,
a mile or so inland from the coastal villages of Kalives and Almirida, in
Niki's House.
This lovely house provided all we wanted for a self-catering
holiday, including a double bed (too many places get ruled out
for us because they are furnished with twin beds). Although
Freelance is not a naturist holiday company, several of its
properties are suitable for naturists. In Niki's House you
don't need to dress for meals unless you eat in the
courtyard, and it's possible to spend most of your time in
the house free of clothes if that's what you wish. Compare
that with the "dress for dinner", "clothes must be worn in
the public areas inside the hotel" and similar constraints
found in many "naturist" hotels, including at least one of
those on Crete.
The main object of the holiday was relaxation - and we had plenty of that. For us, relaxation includes strolling and a bit of walking. We had several walks down the track from Douliana to the coast, visiting relatively busy Kalives, peaceful Almirida, and super-quiet Kera in between. Almost at the end of the holiday, we discovered that there's a naturist beach at Kera - probably that listed as "Kalives" in the INF guide. Full information follows:
Kera naturist beach, northern Crete
On the north coast 15km east of Chania, Kera lies between
the small resorts of Kalives and Almirida. Originally just a
chapel ("Kera" is Greek for "Our Lady"), there is now a
loose collection of villas and holiday apartments - but it is
still very quiet. Kera has a beach - stony at the west end,
sandy at the east - which is never crowded, but which is too
overlooked and frequented for naturist use. However,
between Kera and Kalives is a small cove which is not
visible either from the coast road or from other beaches,
and which gets a moderate use by local naturists.
To reach the beach, drive out of Kalives towards Almirida. This means initially following signs for Vamos then taking a left turn a few hundred metres after the road turns to the right away from the beach-front (don't try taking the road straight ahead at that point - it is blocked at the top of the hill). The road swings back towards the coast as it climbs, and it is possible to park just after the brow of the hill and follow a track down for a bit, then to scramble down the cliff, but this is not recommended. Follow the road down the hill as it swings inland again. Then, just after it starts to climb look out for a tarmac track on the left (signed for Kera apartments) - there's a rough track directly opposite showing how the old network of routes has been superseded. Go along the tarmac down to the culvert over the streambed, then climb the other side of the valley as far as you can go, parking where the tarmac runs out. Walk up past a concrete wall (topped by wire) on your right until the hedge on your left turns into a wire fence and the concrete wall ends. Now look out for a path through the scrub on your right. Follow this through an area of rough growth and on down the (relatively gentle) cliff.
The beach is a very narrow strip of stones. There is a low north-facing cliff, with some trees at its top, so there's shade if you want it. The stones continue only a few feet into the sea, after which you will be walking on sand. The view is superb, with small off-shore islands (OK, giant rocks), Akrotiri a couple of miles away across the bay, lovely coastline off to your right and the rocky headland to your left which hides Kalives.
GPS waypoints in WGS-84: Access point N35 26' 57" E24 11' 00" Naturist beach N35 27' 02" E24 10' 57"
Frangokastelli naturist beach, southern Crete
As recommended by Freelance, we hired a car for the full
duration of the holiday - although it was only used on five
of the eight days. Chania is definitely worth a visit,
particularly if you include a wander round guided by Tony
Fennimore-Cooper - most of the tour company reps can
provide information on when and where these start. The
White Mountains south of Chania are wonderful - and in
full view from the balcony on Niki's House. The roads
through the mountains can be twisty, but not as twisty as
the road between the mountain pass and the southern
harbour of Chora Sfakion. Vritomartis naturist hotel is
near Chora Sfakion, and a bit further away is the naturist
beach just east of Frangokastelli.
The old fort of Frangokastelli lies on the south coast of Crete, not far from the towns of Chora Sfakion and Plakias. In this part of Crete, the coast is mostly an abrupt boundary for the mountains, but for several miles east of Chora Sfakion there is a gently undulating strip of land anything up to 2 miles wide between the sea and the bases of the mountains (and the ravines and gorges which slice into them). Frangokastelli stands on a slight promontory of this strip, and is visible from miles away.
The beaches directly below the fort are textile, but about a mile to the east is a fair-sized naturist beach. If traveling from Chora Sfakion, follow signs to Frangokastelli, then stop for a wander around the fort. The Venetian outer walls are still in reasonable condition, but the later Turkish constructions inside are mostly ruined. Leave the fort and head on east. Once out of the town, after about 500m look out for a track off to the right signposted "Sunrise Taverna". The track is level and won't present any problems for an ordinary car. The taverna is around 200m along the track, with plenty of parking space. Concrete steps provide an easy way down the cliff until almost the bottom, where some easy scrambling is required. Then walk about 300m along the firm sand of the textile area to reach the naturist part of the beach - which extends right the way round to the cliff at the far end of the bay.
This is a lovely beach, with gently shelving fine sand. There seemed to be no significant currents. Unfortunately, the curve of the 25m sand cliff behind the beach, and the rocky cliffs at either end, block off all views of the mountains and coast - unlike spectacular Plakias some 15km east.
Directly above the hazy boundary between textile and naturist areas is the Fata Morgana development. Simply is just one company offering holidays in this collection of apartments. One can get to the beach from Fata Morgana Taverna, but the top two-thirds of this path across the face of the sand cliff is a boardwalk, the rest is just plain sand - I recommend sticking with the Sunrise route! Interestingly, Simply wax lyrical about the beach but don't mention that about half of it is naturist. Also, their brochure and Website show the sand as white, when it is a lovely pale gold.
GPS waypoints in WGS-84: Turn off for Sunrise taverna N35 11' 02" E24 14' 28"
Sunrise Taverna N35 10' 56" E24 14' 30" Naturist beach N35 10' 59" E24 14' 47"
As well as the outings mentioned, we enjoyed meals in several tavernas, walked down one of the shorter gorges, experienced a day of storm-force winds, and did a LOT of lazing around. Crete, Freelance Holidays and Niki's House are all recommended if that's the sort of holiday you like too.
Tim Forcer
Mike Morley
commented on the freedom to go naked at Niki's house and said, "It is an interesting comparison, my wife and I have visited Crete several
times, mainly in our "pre-naturist" days. Two years ago we went to the
Vritomartis and whilst we had a very pleasant holiday it is a bit
restrictive. It is nice, though, on a bright Mediterranean morning, to be
able to walk out of the front door and take the air or walk to the beach
without having to dress. We have not yet found anywhere in Greece yet that
makes this possible as it is in Spain."
Of Frangokastelli, Mike said, "I think that this is the beach that we first found in 1991 although I thought it was closer to the castle (no need to go back to the main road). At that time there were no signposts and we only managed to count six people on the beach (including us) and most of these seemed to be nude. We went back again in 1994 but only had time to look down at the beach from the cliffs. I do not believe that there were many more people on that occasion but there had certainly been some development on the cliff top. I believe that I posted a report to Capt'n Barefoot (Ed) and that some of my words may still be on the guide."
"It is certainly a beautiful beach and I am pleased to hear that it is still worth a visit."
"Thanks for an interesting report, Tim. I am sure we will be back to Crete again one of these days and its good to keep up to date."
Mike
If you have any comments about this report or wish to add further information
please email them to:
neffupdate @ ada-augusta . demon . co . uk
Go to
Back to the NEFF | Contents | Search | Maps | Beaches | Venues | Beginners Please!
See full disclaimer and copyright. This page © NUFF and/or authors, 1997-present.