THE BEST OF CRETE: This yacht day trip around almost-secret Chryssi Island will wow you
Also, do it before everyone else does — the time to plan ahead for spring/summer is now
Who says you have to be some kind of billionaire to sail the Greek seas?
The secret to discovering the best of the Greek seas 🐠 other than turning yourself into a fish for a day 🐟 is to find a good skipper with a good boat and get your booty on board. And — because here at the Column we do the heavy lifting for you — we just found the best one down in south Crete. Voilà…
You see, chartering your own yacht can set you back hundreds of thousands of dollars — or up to $500 million, if your last name is Bezos and your petite skiff’s called the Koru. And shopping for yachts, which is generally done in the company of fallen Russian oligarchs and sundry “captain of industry” types is just so tedious, n’est-ce pas? So, as in other realms of this earthly existence, leave it to locals who know the ropes — literally — waaay better than you do. Elena Cruises in south Crete, for example…
This is a family owned and operated small company, with brothers Nikos and Pantelis managing the day to day business and coordinating all the details on board and off so that you don’t have to. Their base is Ierapetra, on the south coast of Crete, and the jumping off point to nearby Chryssi Island. Chryssi is a tiny island under strict environmental protection, meaning it has no hotels, restaurants or any facilities at all for that matter. However, it is beautiful and happens to be surrounded by some of the most phenomenally clear blue water to be found in the entire Mediterranean Sea.
The sleek white motor yacht Elena is a luxury, British-built Princess 65 with a 200hp engine and speeds up to 35 nautical miles per hour. With a length of 65 feet and weight of over 99,000 pounds, she’s not only a beauty, but the also the biggest private boat we’ve found that makes excursions to Chryssi.
The yacht can accommodate up to 45 people; on the day of our late October excursion there were about 22 on board. The ship has four cabins that accommodate up to 10 persons (think more private charters for those), a large semi-enclosed main deck sitting hall and comfortable seats on the bridge, so you’ve got a choice of vantage points from which to take in the sea and sky.
Now, I want to pull the camera back for a moment and explain something for those who don’t quite understand the kind of maritime dynamics I’m talking about here. Greece, like many countries with a long coastline and many islands, has no shortage of excursion companies that, for a pretty modest fee, will take you (in season, of course) to well-known but possibly fairly remote islets or beaches. These tend to be large boats (though smaller than passenger ferries) that can unfortunately get very crowded, especially in summertime, making the experience generally an unpleasant one.
We once took a “mass tourism” type boat to the famous Balos lagoon in western Crete and while the lagoon is beautiful it was an absolutely overcrowded, noisy experience that we’d just as soon forget. You want to avoid that, even if it means having to spend a little bit more to do so.
But in reality, it doesn’t cost all that much more. And what you get in return is professionalism and a sense of security from start to finish. Actually even before the start — because the first couple times we wanted to set off from Ierapetra we couldn’t because wind conditions were not favorable. I can remember an occasion in Italy when wind conditions weren’t right but the skipper decided to set sail anyway and we nearly capsized off the coast of Capri. Never, ever underestimate the power of prudence when it comes to anything having to do with the ocean.
Once the conditions are right and you do set off with the Elena, it’s really all good. We weren’t able to drop anchor in the most renowned part of Chryssi’s lagoon due to wind, but since you aren’t allowed to go to the beach there until further notice (ecological healing still in progress), it didn’t really matter — we just zipped around the corner. Once moored, those who wanted to jumped into little inflatable dinghies that took us to the shore for an hour or so of swimming in the cool crystal clear water. Back on board the main boat, a freshly prepared al fresco lunch awaited. Cue the bouzouki music and platters of Greek barbecue, Cretan dakos, Greek salad, wine and more.
Then there was more swimming , for those who elected to, right from the boat. Which is pretty great — no messy sand to kick from your sandals after.
We have taken comparable journeys on certain other Greek islands, notably in Ios and Symi. The Elena and Chryssi island experience surpasses both.
Boating season is now over, but remember, if you’re going to use the upcoming holiday season to plan your next spring or summer trip to Greece (assuming we still have functioning airports by then) it pays dividends to start incorporating things like semi-private yacht excursions into your travel plans well ahead of time.
Also, given Ierapetra’s southerly and relatively isolated position on the south coast of Crete, it’s advisable to plan to spend a couple of nights in the area so that you don’t have to make a mad dash to the port in the morning (like we did). The boats typically depart from Ierapetra’s small harbor between around 10:30AM to 11:00AM.
There are plenty of big, all-inclusive resorts in the area; avoid them. For our money the best place to stay is the family-run Coriva Beach Hotel & Bungalows (best breakfast in this part of Crete) in Koutsounari, a short distance from Ierapetra. If you stay there, the harbor is an easy drive to the west, but also, if you schedule a Chryssi cruise and it doesn’t go because of winds, you’ll have as an alternative a string of gorgeous beaches and secret coves to check out, all the way to groovy Makry Gialos and beyond…but that’s another story.🌐
