Elafonisi lagoon — Attraction in Municipality of Kissamos

Read this before you visit.

Elafonissi beach is not what it used to be, at least 20 years ago.

Don't expect to find the pink sand that once covered the coastline, and don't expect to take idillic pictures.

In August 2025 that we visited the place it was as packed as a sardine can, nothing beautiful or special about it.

We watched almost everyone smiling while walking downhill towards the beach (from having exectations) and on the way back the facial expressions have changed to "Why did we come to this place?", same thing we said after having driven for 1hr 30min from Palaiochora.

We were lucky enough not to decide to pay €40 per person for the round boat trip from Palaiochora and being stranded for 5 or so hours on a fully packed beach with no way out.

We stayed for a total of 30 minutes and headed back, deciding to keep the memories of this place from 15 or more years ago.

Uploading a video of our passing through the beach to get a clear view what to expect in case you...

This place is truly amazing if your in Crete it's a must ! We travelled from chania it took us a hour and half ,the drive there is amazing over the mountain ridge and through the gorge , the beach has loads of free parking and you almost on the beach , we went mid may there were toilets and some places for coffee and cold drinks and not overpriced either, they were plenty of people there but the beach is vast so no where near over crowded, the sand Is pink in places I think in depends on what time of day you go , sand is lovely to walk on and very hot through the dunes when the sun's out the water is deep blue , turquoise and clear , there the shore line and behind the dunes like a lagoon which is warm and shallow ideal for children , you can Wade out to small islands which gives you fantastic photo opportunities just like the rest of the beach Elaffonsi is a remarkable place it's voted one of the best beaches in Europe for a reason , to believe it you...

Elafonisi lagoon is paradise! They say it's the most beautiful beach in Europe and I agree! It's otherworldly, mesmerising almost psychedelic.

The sand is pink, like milkshake, but only near the shore. It looks so incredible! Like milkshake. But even the non pink sand is extremely soft. They have some white sand dunes too. Gorgeous.

The water in the lagoon is Caribbean light blue and warm and on the other side, closer to the open sea it's turquoise blue and cooler. You can walk the whole reservation. It's about 45 mins to and fro.

There are sunbeds for rent for 20 €. But there's not a lot of them. They have two small shops where you an get refreshments beer some pastries and one taverna close.

This is not a wild each though, it's slightly windy on the reservation side but not too extreme.

The drive there is 2.5 hrs from Chania through the mountains. Not too steep but not for a begginer...