Sidonia Beach

About

A quiet beach of dark grey sand and calm water, also known as Kato Psari.

Sidonia is thought to be the site of the ancient town of Sidonia. The beach has dark grey coarse sand, very calm clear water and a few umbrellas and tamarisks for shade. There is a volleyball court, but otherwise it is all peace and quiet.

There's little development, just a few houses and tavernas nearby, so it's a good place to get away from it all. Bring shade and water if you plan to stay all day. The coastal road west towards Tertsa has lovely views over the Libyan Sea.

Viannos is the south-east corner of Heraklion, on the slopes of Mount Dikti above the Libyan Sea. The area is green, with olive groves, chestnut trees and banana greenhouses in warm valleys such as Arvi. The coast has quiet villages and beaches like Keratokambos, Tertsa and Psari Forada, far from mass tourism. In 1943 the villages of Viannos suffered one of the worst massacres of the German occupation, remembered at a memorial near Amiras.

Highlights & amenities

Entry: Free

Around Viannos

Heraklion is the heart of Minoan Crete and the island’s busiest region. Knossos and the Heraklion Archaeological Museum are the two places almost everyone visits, and they work well together on one day. In the south, the wide Messara plain holds the palace of Phaistos, the Roman ruins of Gortyna and the famous caves above the bay of Matala. More about Heraklion