Where to stay in Crete

Chania, in the west, is a Venetian harbour and an old town of pedestrian streets, and the base for Balos, Elafonisi and the Samaria gorge. Chania airport is about 16 km by road from the harbour.

Heraklion is the island's working city, with museums, Knossos on its edge, ferries and an airport about 5 km from the centre. It suits city stays and long stays more than beach holidays.

Rethymno, roughly halfway between the two airports, puts a compact Venetian old town next to a long town beach. In the east, Elounda has large resort hotels and villas on the Mirabello gulf, and Agios Nikolaos is a small town around Lake Voulismeni. On the south coast, Plakias, Paleochora and Matala are quieter villages on the Libyan Sea.

Distances first. By road, Chania airport is about 79 km from Rethymno and about 85 km from Plakias; Heraklion airport is about 60 km from Agios Nikolaos and about 66 km from Matala.

In Chania, park outside the old town. The municipal car park at Peridou 22 has 320 spaces, is open 24 hours and closes on Sundays; on-street controlled spaces are paid only through the i-PARK CHANIA app; and the park and ride at Kladissos is free, with a free electric bus into the city. A retractable bollard system limiting old town entry to residents, people with disabilities and emergency services was approved by the traffic committee in February 2026; whether it is in operation was not verified.

In Heraklion, a traffic study approved on 30 April 2025 is turning the centre into low-traffic and pedestrian streets with resident and controlled parking, gradually and without a published timeline. For Rethymno, Elounda, Agios Nikolaos and the south coast no official parking source was found, so ask the host.

For the roads themselves, GetCar's guide Driving in Crete: Rules, the North Road and What Catches Visitors Out covers the rules and the main north road.

Greece charges a climate crisis resilience fee per night per room or property; the guest pays it and the host collects it before departure. Article 44 of the Code of indirect taxes (Law 5177/2025) sets the amounts, unchanged in the consolidated text of May 2026. From April to October: hotels EUR 2 at one or two stars, EUR 5 at three, EUR 10 at four and EUR 15 at five; rooms to let EUR 2; short-term rentals EUR 8, or EUR 15 for a detached house over 80 m2; tourist furnished residences EUR 8, or EUR 15 from 80 m2; tourist villas EUR 15. From November to March: hotels EUR 0.50 to 4, rooms to let EUR 0.50, short-term rentals and tourist residences EUR 2 or EUR 4, villas EUR 4.

Hotels and professional hosts also charge the municipal visitors' fee on the rent of stays under six months, which the guest pays: 0.5% under national law, and private hosts who let one or two properties do not charge it. Councils may raise it to 0.75%. Heraklion (council decision 530/2024), Chania (543/2024), Rethymno (2/2025) and Sitia (281/2024) charge 0.75% under decisions that set no end date. Agios Nikolaos, which includes Elounda, charges 0.75% from April to September 2026 and 0.5% from January to March and from October to December (296/2025). On the south coast, Kantanos-Selino, which takes in Paleochora, voted 0.75% in December 2025, in force three months after publication (89/2025); no decision was found for Plakias or Matala, so the national 0.5% applies there.

Every short-term rental must be registered with AADE, the tax authority, and show its 11-digit property registry number, the AMA, on every platform and advert; licensed properties show a 16-digit ΕΣΛ or a 7-digit ΜΑΓ number instead. Since 1 October 2025, Law 5170/2025 has also required each one to have smoke detectors, a fire extinguisher, a first aid kit, a guide to emergency numbers and civil liability insurance. A listing without an AMA is worth a question.

Book the airport and the base together. The fee drops from November to March, when a short-term rental pays EUR 2 a night instead of EUR 8. If the plan includes a car-heavy day in the west, a Chania base shortens it; for the east and Spinalonga, Elounda or Agios Nikolaos does.

An old town on foot and the west: Chania.

City life, Knossos and the shortest airport run: Heraklion.

Both ends of the island from one base: Rethymno.

Resort hotels and villas: Elounda.

A small town with services all year: Agios Nikolaos.

Quiet villages and a slow pace, car essential: Plakias, Paleochora or Matala.