CHORAFAKIA /HORA FAKIA

As you follow signs from Chania to the Akrotiri peninsular you will soon be on the coastal road with the beautiful blue sea on your left. Chorafakia is 12 kilometres from Chania and  less than 15 minutes from Chania Airport - which is on Akrotiri. It is midway between the coastal villages of Kalathas and Tersanas.

Akrotiri means ‘The Cape’ in Greek and approximately 20 villages are sprawled across the area. One of them is Hora Fakia also known as Chorafakia. The villages on Akrotiri have a total of about 10,000 permanent residents.

Akrotiri remains largely untouched by tourism and has many quaint villages. A lot of these – like Hora Fakia - are close to the coast, with its amazing white sandy beaches and coves sheltered from the winds. These are excellent areas to snorkel and fish – often you will be the only people on some of the quieter beaches. Other small villages sit proudly on the hillsides – with amazing view to sea.

The area in total is relatively flat with a few slightly mountainous areas and these areas have some relatively easily ‘walkable’ ravines and gorges.

Also on these Akrotiri hills there are some nice catacombs and caves with stalactites and stalagmites. Some of the caves are ancient places of worship and some would say gave shelter in the past to the many pirates who attacked the peninsula in times gone by.

There are great places of historical interest to visit on Akrotiri - monasteries and churches. The most important of these are at Gouverneto (Agios Triada - Holy Trinity) and the Katholiko (Agios Ioannis the Hermit).

Chorafakia is a great location to live and holiday in a very relaxed style.  Being part of Chorafakia gives you a taste of a traditional Cretan village and the added advantage of great beaches just minutes away, and of course the proximity to Chania. There are tavernas in Chorafakia and all the nearby beaches.

In Kalathas (1.5 km to the south) there is a famous, quiet, sandy beach lined by pine trees with a lovely islet in front. A restaurant and a beach-volley field lie on the sandy beach. Tersanas beach (1.5 km away to the northwest) is another fine sandy beach to visit. You can find a small ‘kantina’ and Taverna on Tersanas beach. Both these beaches are likely to be busy on a Sunday when the locals come to Akrotiri from Chania.

Another excellent, sandy beach can be found in Stavros (3 km away to the north); it is a narrow strip of sandy beach on one side of a small bay dominated by a mammoth rock/ stone hill / mini-mountain opposite the beach - with a large ‘mysterious’ cave near the summit. There are cafes on the beach and tavernas on the side of the road behind it. The sea is warm and shallow – very family friendly. Some of the photos below are from these beaches.

Stavros and the cave are featured in the film ‘Zorba the Greek’ and I believe some of the dancing took place on the beach. There is a photograph below. 

Many years ago, I was on holiday on Akrotiri and decided to climb the hill / mountain (exaggeration) to see just what was inside the cave, I felt there was bound to be something interesting. It was a hot day!

I had just one small bottle of water and the hill was a lot steeper than it looked. Also everyone sat on the beach can see anyone opposite climbing the hill – so it’s difficult to stop and turn around when only half way up!

Having dragged myself up to the mouth of the large cave I entered - leaving pretty quickly soon after. The cave stank but since it was full of goat droppings and nothing else other than a few stones, that wasn’t surprising.

After having carefully scrambled down I felt I had earned my swim in the sea and the views from the top were, and presumably still are, fantastic.

View Dreamcatchers' properties for sale in the village of Hora Fakia.