Preveli Beach: Palm Grove, Kourtaliotiko Gorge and the Monastery Above

Where the river leaves the Kourtaliotiko gorge, a grove of palm trees opens out behind a sandy beach, and the water of the lagoon runs out toward the sea. Above it all sits a monastery that once hid soldiers during a war. Preveli Beach, on the south coast of Crete in the Rethymno region, is a visit built from three things at once: a river, a forest of palms and the Libyan Sea.

Is visiting Preveli Beach worth it?

Preveli is a popular destination because of the river, the palm forest in the gorge and the sandy beach with clear waters, and the three sit within sight of one another.

What sets it apart from other beaches along the coast is the mix. Most seaside stops give you sand and water and little else. Here the beach is also a lagoon, the lagoon is also the mouth of a gorge, and the gorge is lined with Cretan date palms that grow nowhere else in such a stretch of green. Locals sometimes call it Palm Beach, and the name fits the first impression.

Then there is the history. In the Battle of Crete, a group of Australian soldiers protected by the monastery above were rescued by submarine from this very beach. That gives a swim here a second layer: you are standing on the shore where an escape was made.

If you want only a flat afternoon on sand with sunbeds and a taverna at your back, other beaches along this coast may suit you better. If you want scenery, a walk beneath palms and a bit of memory, Preveli is the one.

What to see at Preveli Beach

The beach and the lagoon

The beach lies at the mouth of the Kourtaliotiko gorge, below the monastery, and the river meets the sea here to form a lagoon. That is the picture people carry home: fresh water pooling behind the sand, then the sea beyond it. The sand is described as sandy, and the water as clear.

Look for the rock in the shape of a heart. Locals call it the stone of lovers, and it makes an easy subject for a photograph, with the lagoon or the palms behind it. Take a slow walk along the water’s edge before you settle anywhere, because the beach changes character between the sea side and the river side.

The palm grove

Behind the beach stretches a glade of Phoenix theophrasti, the Cretan date palm. It is a real grove, not a few trees for decoration, and it follows the river up into the gorge. The trunks, the fronds and the green of the riverbank set it apart from the dry slopes around it.

The grove also has a story of recovery. On August 22, 2010, a large part of it was destroyed in a fire. By 2011 it had regrown naturally and quickly, which tells you something about how hardy these palms are. When you walk beneath them today, you are walking through a forest that came back on its own.

The monastery above

Preveli Monastery is officially the Holy Stavropegiac and Patriarchal Preveli Monastery of St. John the Theologian, a Greek Orthodox monastery. It has two building complexes: the ruined lower monastery of St. John the Baptist, and the upper monastery of St. John the Theologian, which is still in operation.

The upper monastery holds religious relics and icons, and many of its buildings, now heavily restored, are open to the public. It also carries a number of monuments to its work during the Second World War, many of them financed by the Australian former soldiers it helped rescue. Together with the beach below, it makes the visit more than a swim.

Hours, tickets and rules

No opening hours and no admission amounts are set out for the beach or the monastery in the information on this place, so none are given here. What can be said is what is open: many of the buildings of the upper monastery, now heavily restored, are open to the public, and the beach and lagoon lie below it at the mouth of the gorge.

The ruined lower monastery of St. John the Baptist is a different kind of stop. It is a ruin, and the operating monastery is the upper one, dedicated to St. John the Theologian. When you plan the visit, think of the two as separate parts of the same place, each with its own character.

There are no stated rules here on climbing, swimming, drones, tripods or sunscreen, so none are written.

When to visit Preveli Beach

Timing here is about what you want to see, because no month, hour or season is set down for Preveli. What is certain is the landscape: the palm grove, the river and the lagoon are the heart of the place, and they are what people come for. Plan around those rather than around a clock.

The grove has an interesting recent history. After the fire on August 22, 2010, it grew back so fast that by 2011 it had regenerated completely. If you have read about the fire, you can set the old reports aside: the palms you see now are the regrown forest.

The boats from Plakias run regularly to the beach, which gives a way in that does not depend on a single day. The monastery, with its restored buildings and its World War II monuments, adds a second reason to come. Treat the beach and the monastery as two chapters of one visit and give each its own time.

Tips for your visit

Bring a swimsuit and a camera, because the lagoon, the palms and the heart-shaped rock all reward a photograph. The tourist boats from the nearby resort of Plakias serve the beach regularly, so that is one way to arrive, and it puts you on the sand with the gorge in front of you.

Pair the beach with the monastery above. The upper monastery is open in many of its restored buildings, and its relics, icons and war monuments tell the story of the soldiers rescued here in 1941. Reading the monuments gives the beach below a context that a plain swim does not.

If you are staying in Rethymno, the town offers a very different day. Its old town was almost entirely built by the Republic of Venice and is one of the best-preserved in Crete, with Venetian fortifications, churches, minarets and old hammams. The Fortezza, a Venetian-era citadel, is one of the best-preserved castles on the island, and Rethymno also has a vast beach lined with hotels, restaurants and cafés. No parking details, guide services or access conditions are given for Preveli, so none are described here.

Good to know before you go

Preveli lies on the south coast of Crete, in the Rethymno region, and the nearby resort of Plakias is the base for the boats that serve the beach. The names you will meet are Preveli, Palm Beach and the Kourtaliotiko gorge, all describing the same corner of the island. No visitor fees or taxes are set out for the beach, so there is nothing further to add, and the palms, the lagoon and the monastery are what you take away.