Crete Island Attraction| Detailed Guide to Balos Beach: One of the World’s Most Beautiful Hidden Lagoons with Pink Sand
Did you know that other than Elafonisi Beach, there are more pink sand beaches on Crete Island, Greece? So far, I have seen three during my trip in Crete, and Balos Beach is one of them. This lagoon is also one of the most beautiful remote beaches in the world, but it requires a bit of hiking or a boat ride to reach. In this guide, I will take you through everything you need to know to plan your visit to this paradise, including the suggestions of restaurants and hotels near Balos Beach.
- Guides to Other Amazing Beaches in Crete Island, Greece:
- Elafonisi Beach: A Unique Paradise Where Pink Sands Meet Turquoise Waters
- Kedrodasos Beach: A Serene and Peaceful Utopia that Free Spirit Travellers Will Love
- Loutro: A Secluded and Picturesque Coastal Village with Whitewashed Houses
- Other Places to Visit in Greece:
- 10 Best Things to Do in Athens Greece for Aesthetic Seekers
- 6 Must Go Picturesque, Magical Places in Crete Island, Greece
Located in Kissamos, the wide white sand, rare pink sands, crystal clear blue water, unique landscape and adventurous driving and hiking paths make Balos Beach a very special, must-visit secluded paradise for Greeks and international travellers to enjoy when they travel to Crete Island, Greece. The water is clear and shallow, so it’s very safe to swim.
When we arrived at the viewpoint and caught sight of Balos Beach, we were blown away by the breathtaking beauty of the turquoise lagoon and panorama sceneries. It reminded me that the world is filled with incredible places waiting to be discovered, but we can’t discover them if we stop moving from where we are. One must move forward and explore.
As we looked back at the hiking path we had taken to reach Balos Beach, I couldn’t help but think about how easy it would have been to miss out on this hidden gem. If we hadn’t known about this place and had simply stopped at the parking lot, we might have turned around and missed the paradise that lay behind the mountains.
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How to get to Balos Beach Crete?
To get to Balos Beach, visitors have a few transportation options. You can drive to the beach from Chania City, which takes about an hour and 30 minutes. Alternatively, you can easily take a guided tour from Chania, Rethymno or Heraklion or nearby Kissamos.
Below is the detailed informations:
1.To Reach Balos Beach From Chania By Car and A Short Hike
You first need to drive to the town called Kissamos, which is a 45-minute drive from Chania city. From there, it is an 8km drive and a 2km hike down to the beach after parking your car.
The driving route is unpaved with rocks and bumpy, but the view on the way to Balos Beach is dreamy, especially when you see the White Mountain (Lefka Ori) with snow on the top and surrounded by clouds. You can also expect to see lots of goats and sheep while driving and hiking towards Balos Beach.
As I mentioned above, the beach is hidden behind the mountains, so if you arrive at the Balos Beach parking lot and you don’t see Balos Beach like in the photos, don’t worry. Just check around, you will easily find the entrance to the hiking path.
If you decide to drive instead of taking a boat, it is advised to drive slowly or maybe even take an off-road car so that the bottom of the car won’t get scratched.
2.Join A Day Tour And Visit Balos Beach By Boat
If you are not planning to drive when you travel to Crete Island, but still would love to visit this beautiful secluded beach, joining a day tour with a hotel picked up is the easiest and the best option. It would save you from lots of self transferring and you can skip the lines at the boat ticket offices.
If you are already in the Kissamos area, you can go with this tour to visit both Balos Lagoon & Gramvousa in one day.
Otherwise if you want to join the Balos Lagoon tours from Chania, Rethymno and Heraklion, those are also available and very easy to join. And can save you lots of time and energy going to Balos Beach by yourself.
Hotels near Balos Beach Crete Island
If you’re looking for a hotel near Balos Beach, I highly recommend Balos Beach Hotel. It’s the closest option (only 8km drive to Balos Beach), offering clean, comfortable rooms with beautiful ocean and mountain views, as well as very friendly staff. Click here for the full review.
Alternatively, you can check other available hotels near Balos Lagoon here.
Food and Drink at Balos Beach
At Balos Beach there is a shop to buy drinks and snacks. But I’d suggest you bring your own food and drinks or shop and eat at Kissamos town before you visit Balos Beach as this place at the beach doesn’t seem to have much options, and also if you visit in the low season, there is a big chance that the shop will not be open. When we went on 1 May, it wasn’t open at all.
Restaurants Near Balos Beach Crete Island
Although there are not many food options at Balos Beach, there are several great restaurants in Kissamos town, which is located on your way to Balos Beach.
Among all the good options, we ended up choosing to dine at Grambousa Restaurant, a traditional Cretan restaurant with the garden and ocean view and provide super tasty food and amazing atmosphere. I highly recommend it!
The cool thing is that while we were in Kissamos checking which restaurants had the highest ratings on Google Maps, I discovered that I had already saved Grambousa Restaurant as a place I wanted to eat before we even arrived, which I had completely forgotten about. And it didn’t disappoint us!
Entrance Fee For Balos Beach
It’s important to note that Balos Beach is part of a protected nature reserve, so visitors are required to pay a small fee to access the beach, which is about 1-2 Euros per person. It will be charged on the driving path to the beach, and they will give you the entrance ticket after you pay.
When is the best time to visit Balos Beach Crete?
If you prefer swimming in hot temperatures, then July and August are the best months to visit Balos Beach, when the shops are open and the weather is consistently warm. However, if you prefer to avoid crowds, you can also consider visiting in mid May, June, or September, when there are fewer tourists, though there is no guarantee of warm weather.
During our visit in early May, the weather was hot in the morning as we drove from Elafonisi Beach to Kissamos, but after lunch, it became windy and chilly when we arrived at Balos Beach in the afternoon, so we didn’t get to swim. However, the good thing is that there were not many tourists at all, it was easy to take photos of the landscape and the hike was good. Additionally, we got to see the beautiful view of the snow-capped White Mountain (Lefka Ori).
Is Balos Beach a great location for watching the sunset?
Yes it is! When the weather is good, this beach is a perfect place to enjoy the sunset. Especially at the Balos Beach Viewpoint.
How to get to Crete Island?
Crete Island has two international airports – Chania International Airport and Heraklion International Airport. You can easily find cheap flights to both cities from Skyscanner.
Alternatively, you can fly to Athens first and spend a few days exploring the city (ideally 2-3 days) before taking a flight or ferry to Crete from Athens.
How to get to Crete Island from Athens?
Athens is an excellent starting point for your Greek Island hopping trips, as there are many ferries and flights operating daily to take you to various Greek Islands. Surprisingly, Athens has many interesting things to see, including some aesthetic and artistic places that will make you fall in love with the city. I would recommend spending 2-3 days in Athens while exploring the Greek Islands.
If you’re going to Crete Island from Athens, here are two ways:
1.Athens to Crete Island by ferry
The popular option to travel to island Crete is by ferry (boat).
There are ferries that operate daily from the port of Athens (Piraeus) to two ports in Crete – Chania and Heraklion. Some days, routes to Sitia and Kissamos are also available.
The travel time by ferry varies from 7.5 to 11 hours depending on the port of arrival.
One advantage of taking the ferry to Crete from Athens is that some ferry companies offer night ferries, allowing you to board at around 10 pm and arrive around 6 am. This means you can sleep on the ferry and arrive in Crete without losing a day to transportation. Most ferries have cabins and more comfortable seating options that you can book, such as the air VIP seats on Minoan Lines.
You can check the rates and availability of ferry tickets to Crete and other islands here.
2.Athens to Crete Island by flight
There are three airports in Crete Island that you can fly to domestically from Athens International Airport: Crete Chania Airport, Crete Heraklion Airport, and Crete Sitia Airport.
The flight time is approximately 50 minutes to 1 hour, and flights operate regularly. To find affordable flights to Crete, you can check Skyscanner.
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