Makrigialos and Myrtos: The Unhurried Southeast

Some corners of Crete still move at the speed of a taverna lunch, and the far southeast is their capital. Either side of Ierapetra, two villages share the Libyan Sea, the year-round warmth and a complete indifference to nightlife: Makrigialos to the east, with the best family beach on the south coast, and Myrtos to the west, a whitewashed grid of lanes that has been quietly collecting devoted repeat visitors since the 1970s. Neither has a strip, a club or a waterpark. People come back for decades anyway.

Makrigialos

The name means "long shore" and the village delivers exactly that: a kilometre of sand curving around a sheltered bay, shelving so gently that small children can paddle thirty metres out with parents still standing. The fishing harbour at the eastern end keeps the tavernas in fresh fish, and the remains of a Roman villa and a Minoan country house sit just behind the beach, casually fenced between holiday lets, the way archaeology often is in Crete. Walkers have the Pefki gorge starting just inland, a shaded two-hour route through pines and rock to a hill village with a taverna at the top, which is the correct Cretan reward structure.

Myrtos

Twenty five minutes west, past Ierapetra and its sea of greenhouses, Myrtos sits where a river valley meets the sea. The beach is dark sand and shingle, the village behind it a tidy weave of white houses, flowering courtyards and exactly enough tavernas. Two Minoan sites crown the hills either side, Fournou Korifi and Pyrgos, both early Bronze Age settlements excavated in the 1960s, and the small village museum holds finds alongside a famous scale model. Myrtos was burned by German forces in 1943 and rebuilt after the war, a history the village marks soberly; ask at the museum if you want the fuller account.

Choosing between them, or not

Honestly, take both. The hop from Ierapetra to Makrigialos takes about 25 minutes along the coast, and Ierapetra itself, Europe's southernmost town with its Venetian fort and long promenade, makes the natural midpoint. Makrigialos suits families and anyone who wants sand and shallow water; Myrtos suits readers, walkers and long-stay escapees. Both keep tavernas open well into autumn, when the sea here is still warm in early November.

Getting here

The southeast is the far end of Crete by any route, which is exactly what preserves it. From Heraklion, the road crosses the island's narrow waist near Ierapetra and the whole journey to the coast takes around an hour and three quarters; a transfer from Heraklion Airport to Makrigialos or to Myrtos turns an awkward bus relay into a single comfortable ride. Sitia's small airport is closer for Makrigialos if your dates line up with its limited flight schedule; check locally what flies when you travel.