From the surface
Snorkelling in Plakias
The same reef the divers use, from the surface. Two hours, guided, equipment included. You need to be comfortable with your face in the water.
The best snorkelling spots around Plakias
Crete has plenty of good bays for snorkelling, and most lists spread them across the whole island. This one is about a single stretch of coast: the south coast around Plakias, which we see from underneath every day. Three places you can swim out to from the shore, west to east. What is there, who each one suits, and who it does not.
West of Plakias, near Souda
Peristerovolakas
A long, shallow reef that slopes slowly into deeper blue, usually in very clear water. When the north wind blows, it pushes most of the local Mediterranean species into this stretch, and then there is more going on here than anywhere else on the coast.
The calmest of the three. Right for long, slow drifting over the reef and for anyone who wants fish rather than rock walls. If you came for caves and drop-offs, go elsewhere.
Shore entry, or by boat depending on conditions.
East of Plakias, at Damnoni beach
The old harbour of Damnoni
In the shallows the bottom slopes gently, with no sudden edges. Further out it turns steep: small walls, cracks and underwater gorges you can look down into as the seabed drops away beneath you.
The best place for a first go with mask and snorkel, and for anyone who does not like swimming over deep water. Confident swimmers follow the edge where it drops and get a completely different day in the same spot.
Beach entry, shallow and easy.
Further east, in Schinaria bay
Schinaria
Rugged rock, excellent visibility, natural channels between the boulders and a large cave at the edge of the bay. Octopus and moray eels sit in the cracks, still and well hidden. Swim slowly and you will see them.
For snorkellers who are at ease in the water and like following a rock face. The most to discover of the three, and more rock underfoot getting in and out.
Easy shore entry. Water shoes help on the stones.
The snorkelling spots on a map
All three sit on a short stretch of coast around Plakias, from Souda in the west to Schinaria in the east. Wind and swell decide which one suits your day. Ask us and we will tell you where the water is calm.
What fish and animals you see snorkelling
Every photograph below was taken on this coast, by us, on an ordinary day. Not a stock library, and not the Red Sea. The Mediterranean is quieter than the brochures — the reward is finding an animal that was hiding in plain sight, which is a different pleasure from swimming through a wall of fish.
Lionfish
Striped, slow and unmistakable. Two guests named it in their reviews before we thought to photograph it.
Octopus
In a den under a ledge, often with shell fragments piled at the entrance. Once you can spot the pile you start finding them everywhere.
Cuttlefish
Hovers over sand and changes colour while it watches you. The most reliably curious animal on this coast.
Nudibranch
A few centimetres long, and the reason people start looking at the rock instead of the blue.
Scorpionfish
Sitting still on the reef, coloured exactly like it. You will swim past several without seeing one.
Cleaner shrimp
White antennae waving from a crack in the rock. Small, and worth stopping for.
Are there turtles?
Not here, honestly. Loggerheads nest on Crete, but not on this stretch of coast, and we have no photograph of one because we have not seen one while guiding. Anyone promising you turtles at Plakias is selling you somebody else’s beach. What this coast does have is the caves, the walls and the animals above.
Snorkelling in Crete: common questions
- Are there coral reefs in Crete?
- Not like the Red Sea. The Mediterranean has no tropical coral reefs. What people call a reef here is rock: overgrown, full of cracks and overhangs where the animals hide. Less colourful than the brochures, and more alive than it first looks.
- Can you snorkel from the beach in Crete?
- Yes. At all three spots above you get in from the shore, no boat needed. You need a mask, a snorkel and calm water. The boat adds places no path leads to.
- When is the best time to snorkel in Crete?
- Summer and early autumn, when the water is warm enough to stay in for a long time. The south coast faces away from the weather that often roughens the north coast, so the water around Plakias is often calm and clear when the north has waves.
- Are there sharks around Crete?
- The Mediterranean has sharks, Crete included, but mostly far offshore and deep. Meeting one while snorkelling near the shore is extremely unlikely. The sea urchins on the rocks where you get in and out deserve more attention.
- Can children snorkel in Crete?
- Yes. The old harbour of Damnoni slopes shallow with no edges and is the best of the three for it. Tell us your child's age and we will tell you honestly whether the guided trip suits them.
- What should I bring for snorkelling?
- On our trip the equipment is included. If you go on your own: a mask that seals well, fins, water shoes for the rocks and a T-shirt against the sun on your back. Do not swim far out alone, and stay inside the sheltered bay when it is windy.
Who this is for
People who want the reef without a tank. People who tried diving and decided the surface suits them better. And the person in a mixed group who is not diving and has no intention of sitting in a car park.
You need to be comfortable floating with your face in the water. That is the whole requirement. We stay with you, and there is no depth you are expected to reach.
On the boat too
Snorkellers are welcome on the full-day boat trip alongside divers and first-timers. Same water, same stops, same lunch — you stay on top of the reef instead of under it. The mixed-group page is for the rest of that decision.