Day trip
Myrtos beach day.
Photo: Piotr Baranowski / Pexels
Quick facts
- Region
- Lasithi
- Start town
- Ierapetra
- Typical duration
- 3–5 hours
- Type
- Day trip
Myrtos is the long pebble-and-sand beach village west of Ierapetra, with a simple seafront and a mountain wall behind it. The day is a swim and a lunch, not a list of sites. The beach is open to the south wind. When that wind is up, the surf is the story and the tavernas are the better half of the visit. It is an easy drive from Ierapetra and a more honest beach day than a rushed Chrissi crossing in marginal weather.
Drive the coast road west from Ierapetra. The village sits on the beach. Parking is in town. Walk from there.
It suits anyone based in Ierapetra who wants the sea without a boat. Skip it in a strong south wind if the swim was the only goal.
Myrtos beach day needs 3–5 hours from Ierapetra. The months that usually work are May to October. The road or the boat is part of the day, not a preface you can ignore. Carry water and shade for the hours away from Ierapetra, and do not book a sunset table at home until you know the return. Myrtos beach day is one day from Ierapetra. A beach, gorge or monastery with a similar photograph is a different outing when the route changes.
Is it worth it
Myrtos beach day is worth the hours from Ierapetra when it suits anyone based in Ierapetra who wants the sea without a boat. The day is a swim and a lunch, not a list of sites. If that is the part your group will fight, leave it for another date.
What to bring
- Water and a hat, because Myrtos is the long pebble-and-sand beach village west of Ierapetra,
- Shoes that match the ground on Myrtos beach day. Drive the coast road west from Ierapetra. The
- A layer for the start in Ierapetra. May to October still has cool mornings and wind.
- The return hour written down. Myrtos beach day takes 3–5 hours, and a second plan the same day is how you miss it.
Tips
- May to October is the window to trust for Myrtos beach day. Outside it, ask whether the day is even running.
- Leave Ierapetra with 3–5 hours clear. Drive the coast road west from Ierapetra. The village sits on the
- Search “Myrtos beach day from Ierapetra” and check that the meeting point really is Ierapetra.
Related tours
Boat tripChrissi island boat from Ierapetra
Ierapetra6–8 hours
Chrissi, which many locals call Gaidouronisi, is the island south of Ierapetra. The day boat leaves the town harbour, crosses open water, and gives you a few hours on a sandy island with juniper and cedar. Shade is limited. The crossing cancels in strong south or west winds. You cannot leave when you are tired. You leave when the boat leaves. Facilities on the island are basic, and the famous beaches get crowded at the peak of summer. The usual length is 6–8 hours, and the months that usually work are May to October. It suits people who want a full beach day on an island and can handle a small-boat crossing. Skip it if anyone gets seasick easily, or if you need to be back at a fixed hour that is earlier than the boat. The boat leaves Ierapetra harbour in the morning.
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Makrygialos and the south-east beaches
Ierapetra4–6 hours
Makrygialos is the beach resort of the south-east, with a long sandy shore and smaller coves toward Koutsouras. It is also the usual harbour side for Koufonisi boats. A shore day is the beach and the village. A boat day is the island, and you should not pretend you will do both well. The Roman villa remains are a short extra if you like ruins with your swim. Shade is better under hired umbrellas than on the open sand. The usual length is 4–6 hours, and the months that usually work are May to October. It suits a beach day from Ierapetra or a base for the Koufonisi boat. Skip the island and the full beach on the same date. Drive east from Ierapetra. The main beach is in the village. If a boat is involved, confirm the quay before you park.
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Food and wineIerapetra market food walk
Ierapetra2–3 hours
Ierapetra’s covered market and the streets around it are the edible part of town: produce from the plain, cheese, and a table of south-coast cooking. The walk is short. The meal is the point. It is a better noon than a rushed restaurant on the way to Myrtos, and it is ordinary in the best sense. Fish depends on the harbour that morning. Do not expect a curated trail of ten shops. The usual length is 2–3 hours, and the months that usually work are Year round, the market is a morning. It suits a lunch day in town. It is a poor fit if the group will not eat olive oil and vegetables, which is the market. The market is in the centre, a few minutes from the seafront. Morning for the stalls, lunch for the kitchens.
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FAQ
Questions.
- Plan on 3–5 hours from Ierapetra. It suits anyone based in Ierapetra who wants the sea without a boat.
- May to October. Outside those months the day is often closed, cancelled, or a different trip. Ask the day before you leave Ierapetra.
- Drive the coast road west from Ierapetra. The village sits on the beach. Parking is in town. Walk from there.
- It suits anyone based in Ierapetra who wants the sea without a boat. Skip it in a strong south wind if the swim was the only goal.
- Myrtos beach day is worth the hours from Ierapetra when it suits anyone based in Ierapetra who wants the sea without a boat. The day is a swim and a lunch, not a list of sites. If that is the part your group will fight, leave it for another date.