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The wide bay at Plakias on the south coast of Crete

Plakias: a wide bay under the mountains, on the quiet coast

Plakias is on the south coast of Crete, which is the half of the island most visitors never see. The north has the airports, the cities and the resorts.

An at a glance card for Plakias. What it is: A wide bay under mountains. Why go: Gorge country behind it. The shore: Coarse sand and shingle. Exposed to: The open south. Next door: Preveli and its palm gorge. One row is marked out as the thing that decides the visit. The conclusion reads: The quiet coast. Bring a car and walking shoes. No prices appear.
The quiet coast. Bring a car and walking shoes.

Diagram by Greece Trips. Free to reuse with credit - CC BY 4.0.

The bay itself is wide and sandy, with a low-rise village along the back of it and the Kouroupa and Kedros mountains standing behind. Nothing here is tall and nothing is dense.

What it is like

A village that grew into a small resort without becoming a strip. There is a waterfront, a run of tavernas and rooms, a supermarket or two, and a long beach that never fills the way the north-coast sand does.

The beach is coarse sand and shingle, wide, and open to the south. That openness is the thing to understand about Plakias: when the wind comes up, this bay takes it, and the sea gets lively. It is a real consideration rather than a footnote, because there is no sheltered corner to move to.

What it is a base for

This is where Plakias earns its keep. Within a short drive:

  • Preveli, the palm gorge beach where a river meets the sea, is the famous neighbour.
  • The Kourtaliotiko gorge is the road you come in through, with a waterfall and a chapel in the cliff.
  • Small coves either side of the bay, some reachable on foot along the coast, which is how people fill a second and third day.
  • Rethymno old town is over the mountains to the north, close enough for an evening.

The walking is the reason people stay a week. Paths run out of the village in several directions and the gorge country behind it is genuinely serious landscape.

Practical notes

  • You need a car, in practice. Buses exist but the point of Plakias is the country around it.
  • The road in crosses the mountains through the gorge. It is a good road and a slow one; allow more time than the distance suggests. See driving in Greece.
  • The bay is exposed to the south. Wind and swell change the swim completely from one day to the next.
  • It is quiet out of season in the full sense: many places close.

Last checked August 2026. Seasonal closures change - see our editorial policy.

Common questions

Where is Plakias?

On the south coast of Crete, south of Rethymno, reached over the mountains through the Kourtaliotiko gorge.

What is Plakias beach like?

A wide bay of coarse sand and shingle, open to the south, with a low-rise village behind it and mountains behind that.

Is Plakias windy?

The bay faces open sea to the south and takes wind and swell directly. There is no sheltered corner within the bay, so conditions vary a lot day to day.

What is near Plakias?

Preveli and its palm gorge, the Kourtaliotiko gorge, a series of small coves along the coast, and Rethymno over the mountains to the north.

Do you need a car in Plakias?

In practice yes. The village is walkable but the reason to be there is the coast and gorge country around it.

Next

Read best beaches in Crete, Preveli, or Rethymno old town.