Day 6 – Tour through the West

The next morning, we first had breakfast directly at the beach. Then it was time to pick up our rental car.

Everything went smoothly, the car was delivered on time, and so we were soon able to start our day trip – we wanted to explore the west of the island first.

We drove through the hinterland, where we saw beautiful villages with the typical whitewashed houses.

We stopped at a cozy little café by a narrow river. We enjoyed fresh coffee and the peace and quiet away from the tourist hustle and bustle.

At a beautiful church, we made our next stop. We were the only tourists there – the atmosphere was incredibly calm and peaceful.

Then we drove along the coastal road heading south. Again and again, we were able to enjoy breathtaking views over the rugged cliffs and the turquoise-blue sea.

Goats were grazing by the roadside, completely undisturbed by our presence.

We also visited a beach on the west coast, where the wind whipped up high waves. It was beautiful. We didn’t go into the water, though – we saved that for a later beach.

We had lunch at a restaurant perched on one of the cliffs above the sea.

As always, we ordered a selection of Greek delicacies – stuffed vine leaves, village salad, sardines, and a glass of wine. The view of the coast from our table was breathtaking.

In the afternoon, we reached Elafonisi, a long sandy beach in the south of the island. It is known for its pink shimmering sand and is unfortunately often the subject of AI-generated images these days.

But the beach doesn’t need that at all. Yes, in reality, the pink is not nearly as spectacular as Instagram often suggests, but it is visible nonetheless.

I had been to Elafonisi many years ago and had fallen in love with the beach, which was still an insider tip back then. It has long since ceased to be one. This time, it was full of tourists, with sun loungers everywhere, and the beach had lost much of its character.

We walked quite far out onto a headland where there were fewer people. There, you could still feel a bit of the original character of this beautiful beach.

We spent the rest of the day right there, enjoyed the cool water, relaxed on the beach, and soaked up the warm rays of the sun on our skin.

The sun was already very low when we started our return journey.

This time we chose the less spectacular but safer road that leads through the island’s interior.

Back at the hotel, we prepared something for dinner and ended the evening comfortably on the terrace.