Greece - Korina Miller [384]
Sleeping & Eating
Hotel Aristea ( 28340 31459; d incl breakfast €40; ) There are good views from this upper-village location. The simple but well-outfitted rooms have bathrooms and balconies. An excellent set of new studios is next door.
Ta Skalomata ( 28340 31316; grills €3-7) On the upper village’s eastern edge, it serves great grills and Cretan dishes at reasonable prices. Zucchini with cheese and aubergine is very tasty, and do try the home-baked bread.
Getting There & Away
Four daily buses reach Anogia from Iraklio (€3.60, one hour), while two daily buses operate from Rethymno (€4.90, 1¼ hours).
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PLAKIAS ΠΛΑΚΙΑΣ
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Some things in Crete never change, and Plakias is one of them. Set beside a long southcoast beach, between two immense wind tunnels – the gorges of Selia and Kourtaliotis – this unassuming resort is livened up in summer by a curious mix of Central European package tourists and the indomitable international legions quartered at the village’s extraordinary youth hostel.
Plakias has good restaurants, plenty of accommodation, and offers local walks through olive groves and along cliffs overlooking the sea, some leading to sparkling hidden beaches. It’s an excellent base for regional excursions, and the local olive oil is some of Crete’s best. Plakias’ massive summertime wind (and distance from Iraklio) has thankfully preserved it from overdevelopment, though parents should note that small children may not enjoy the flying sand and waves at this and other southcoast beaches.
Orientation & Information
Plakias’ main street runs along the beach; another runs parallel to it one block in, while two streets perpendicular to the water lead further inland. Most services are near the waterfront, including the bus stop.
There are two ATMs on the central waterfront. The post office ( 28320 31212; 7am-2pm) stands on the first perpendicular street from the water, if coming from the east. Next door, the English-speaking Dr Manolis Alexandrakis ( 28320 31770) runs a small clinic and the adjacent pharmacy. There’s a well-stocked lending library, 250m beyond the youth hostel on the left-hand dirt track.
Waterfront cafe-bars advertise wi-fi. Ostraco Bar ( 28320 31710; per hr €4; 9am-late) on the western waterfront has wi-fi and computers; so too Youth Hostel Plakias ( 28320 32118; per hr €3.60). At the time of writing, however, the only free wi-fi was at On The Rocks, a cafe above the western beach, 100m beyond the Ostraco.
Sleeping
Accommodation becomes cheaper the further you go inland from the waterfront. Along with a couple of resort-type hotels, domatia are abundant.
Youth Hostel Plakias ( 28320 32118; www.yhplakias.com; dm incl breakfast €9.50; Apr-Oct; ) This is a place where you come for three days and end up staying for three months, and where you make friends for life. It’s one of the most unique hostels anywhere, as attested by the variety of ages and nationalities it attracts. Set around a green lawn amidst olive groves, about 500m from the waterfront, this purposefully lazy place has been led for 15 years by English manager Chris Bilson, who fosters an atmosphere of inclusiveness and good cheer, and who’s constantly upgrading things. The hostel has eight-bed dorms (total capacity about 60) with fans, excellent toilets and showers (plus wash basins for clothes), while water, wine, beer and soft drinks are available.
Both roads perpendicular to the beach lead to the hostel, which is signposted in places. Book ahead if possible.
Ipokambos ( 28320 31525; amoutsos@otenet.gr; s/d €30/40; ) On the inland road parallel with the waterfront, this collection of spotless rooms with fridge and balconies is run by a very kind old couple. There’s private parking behind.
Castello ( /fax 28320 31112; r/studio €35/45; ) This friendly place has cool, clean and fridge-equipped rooms, most with cooking facilities and big shady