Best White Sand Beaches in Greece

Located within the on the northwest coast of Corfu, Greece, Paleokastritsa Beach - also known as Paralia Paleokastritsa - is a small crescent-shaped beige sand beach with many rocky portions.  This immensely popular beautiful beach is adjacent to Agios Spiridon Beach and has an amazing backdrop of dramatic cliffs, olive trees, and cypress trees, as well as several oceanfront buildings, including the Monastery of Paleokastritsa, offering a picturesque setting.  The beach's name "Paleokastritsa" means "Old Castle," named after the nearby Angelokastro fortress.  Paleokastritsa Beach is promoted as an ecotourism destination, encouraging sustainable tourism practices to preserve the natural beauty, flora, and fauna of the region.

Located on the southern tip of Elafonisos Island, in the region of Laconia, Peloponnese, Simos Beach is 1.5 kilometers long and has a fine golden sand beach.  This beach is often considered one of the best beaches in Greece.  Simos Beach comprises two main sections, Simos Megalos (Big Simos) and Simos Mikros (Small Simos), connected by a narrow strip of sand and has a beautiful backdrop of dunes and low vegetation, creating a picturesque landscape.  The area around the beach is part of the European Union's Natura 2000 network to ensure the survival of Europe’s most valuable and threatened species and habitats.

Located on the southwesternmost end of Chania on the island of Crete in Greece, Elafonissi Beach is a long and wide pink sand beach with many rocky portions and a sandbar.  The beach is recognized as one of the world’s top beaches for its unparalleled natural beauty and unique pink sand.  The sand gets its color from crushed shells and coral fragments mixed with the white sand.  The beach is positioned along the Libyan Sea and has a beautiful backdrop of rocky outcrops, dunes, and coastal vegetation, including sea daffodils and juniper trees.  The beach is part of a mile-long Elafonisi Island, which is separated from the southwest coast of Crete by a shallow, warm lagoon, namely, Balos Lagoon.  During high tide, the sandbar connecting the island is submerged under about one meter of water.   

Elafonissi Beach is home to the remnants of the Austrian ship "Imperatrix," which sank in February 1907.  The ship was caught in a fierce storm and was wrecked on the rocks near the small islet of Elafonissi.  The tragedy claimed several lives, and a large wooden cross now stands on the islet in their memory.  Later, a 23-meter-high lighthouse was constructed on the islet to prevent future shipwrecks, but it was destroyed by German troops during World War II.  At the far end of the beach, ruins can still be found near a small chapel dedicated to Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of sailors, which adds to the historical and cultural aspects of the island.

Located in the town of Kissamos in the northwestern part of Crete, Greece, Balos Beach - also known as Balos Lagoon or Chania Balos Beach - is an immensely popular long and wide white and pink sand beach with many rocky portions.  This beach is recognized as one of the most photographed spots in Crete for its unparalleled natural beauty, turquoise waters, and white and pink sand.  The sand gets its distinctive pink hue in some areas from crushed shells and coral fragments mixed with the white sand.  The beach is positioned between the Cape Gramvousa and the small Cape Tigani and below the range of Platiskinos and has a beautiful backdrop of rocky outcrops, dunes, and coastal vegetation, including sea daffodils and juniper trees. 

The beach is part of the Balos Lagoon and is formed by a shallow bay enclosed by the two small islands creating this natural lagoon, namely, Agria Gramvousa and Imeri Gramvoussa.  Agria Gramvousa is rugged and uninhabited, whereas the other islet, Imeri Gramvousa, Crete, is famous for its historic Venetian fortress that played a crucial role during the Cretan War (1645–1669) and later served as a refuge for Greek rebels during the Greek War of Independence in the early 19th century, offering breathtaking panoramic views of the surrounding sea and Balos Lagoon.  Interestingly, the Island of Gramvousa is home to the remnants of a rusty cargo ship that ran aground near the beach in the 1980s, but the exact cause is not yet documented.  The shipwreck is now a rusting hulk, gradually being eroded by the sea and weather, and is a point of interest for tourists and photographers.

The area around the beach is part of the European Union's Natura 2000 network to ensure the survival of Europe’s most valuable and threatened species and habitats.  This protected natural reserve is home to various bird species, including falcons and cormorants, as well as the endangered loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta).