The clarity
Turquoise water between two walls of white rock.
**A fair question, and it depends on you.** The best **view** is from the **clifftop at the car park** โ from there you see the whole cleft and the turquoise water, which is the image you see everywhere, and it costs no effort. Going down is for **swimming** in that particular water, which is a lovely thing to do. โ But weigh the cost: 15โ20 minutes down over sharp rock with no railing, a harder climb back in the heat, and a small crowded beach with no shade and no water. If you don't intend to swim, or doubt the climb, **stay at the top** โ you lose very little.
The **Akrotiri** peninsula holds more than visitors expect, all minutes apart by car: **Venizelos's grave** on a hill with a wide view over Chania (free, and one of the finest views of the city); the handsome Venetian **Agia Triada monastery** with its frontage and gardens (a low-priced ticket); the older **Gouverneto monastery** with the **Katholiko cave** and a hard walking path to it; and **Stavros beach**, where *Zorba the Greek* was filmed. Combine two or three of them with Seitan Limania in a half-day by car.
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A narrow cleft in the rock on the **Akrotiri** peninsula north-east of Chania: a very small bay of intensely clear **turquoise** water wedged between two walls of sharp white rock rising tens of metres. Its name says everything: **Seitan Limania** is Turkish for **"the devil's harbours"** โ sailors called it that because approaching from the sea is dangerous and the currents treacherous. Getting there by land is no easier: a **narrow winding road** ends at a small clifftop car park, then a **15โ20 minute walk down** a **steep path of rock and dirt with no regular steps and no railing** โ and the climb back is considerably harder. The beach below is **shingle and rock**, and very small โ a few metres โ filling quickly. โ There are no facilities whatsoever: no water, no shade, no toilets, no lifeguard. โ And despite its size it has become one of the most photographed places in Crete โ which is the cause of both its crowds and its problem.
Turquoise water between two walls of white rock.
The best photograph is from the top, before you descend.
An inlet only metres wide.
Seitan Limania, Akrotiri, Chania