What to Wear in Crete: Gorge Trail Shoes, Water Shoes for Pebbles and Mountain Layers

Packing for Crete is different from packing for a tiny flat Cycladic island because your days in Crete alternate between Venetian harbour dinners, coral-sand lagoons, pebble coves and steep limestone mountain gorges. Make room for these four practical items in your bag.

Four Practical Packing Rules for Crete

1. Supportive Trail Trainers or Lightweight Hiking Shoes (Crucial for Gorges, Balos & Preveli): even if you are not hiking the full 16 kilometres of Samaria Gorge (where smooth river boulders require proper ankle support and thick cushioned soles plus blister-free wool/synthetic hiking socks), the 25-minute stone cliff descent to Balos Lagoon, the 400 stone steps above Preveli Palm Beach, and the climb up to Gramvousa Castle are rocky and steep. Never attempt them in flip-flops or loose slides; wear real trainers.
2. Lightweight Swim / Water Shoes (For South-Coast Pebble Beaches & Sea Caves): while Elafonisi, Balos and Falassarna have soft fine sand, many of the clearest, deepest-blue beaches on the southern Libyan Sea coast, such as Sweetwater Beach (Glyka Nera), Loutro, Marmara and Agia Roumeli, are lined with smooth sun-warmed pebbles and underwater rock shelves. A pair of packable mesh water shoes makes wading in and out of the water effortless.

3. A Warm Fleece or Windbreaker for 1,000m Mountain Passes (Omalos & Lasithi): if you take the early in the morning bus up to the Omalos Plateau (1,250m elevation) at the start of the Samaria Gorge hike, the dawn mountain air is a crisp 10°C to 12°C even in July. Wear a light zip-up fleece or windbreaker for the first hour of the morning that you can peel off and tuck into your daypack once the sun hits the canyon floor.
4. A Cotton Sarong or Linen Trousers for Historic Monasteries: at active monasteries like Arkadi, Preveli and Agia Triada Monastery (Akrotiri), shoulders and knees must be covered over swimwear (free loaner wrap skirts are also kept in a basket at the monastery gates). Check seasonal weather before flying.