Driving to Balos and Elafonisi from Heraklion

The short version

Both are full-day trips from Heraklion, and neither is a morning out. If you are staying in Heraklion and want to see both, they are two separate days, or one night in Chania.

Elafonisi: long, but an ordinary road

The drive is the national road west to Chania, then south through the mountains by Elos and Chrysoskalitissa. It is asphalt end to end, but the last stretch is narrow, winding and slow, and your map's estimate will be optimistic — reckon on half again. Leave early: the car park fills, and the light on the pink sand is better before the coaches arrive. From Chania it is a much more reasonable 75 km, and that is why people who plan two nights in the west see far more of the island than people who drive out and back in a day.

Balos: the part that matters for a rental car

The road is fine as far as Kalyviani, past Kissamos. After that it becomes an unpaved track of roughly 8 km along the Gramvousa peninsula, narrow, stony and exposed, ending at a car park with a walk down to the lagoon. Driving a rental car on it is not covered by insurance — not ours and not anyone's in Crete: damage from driving on unpaved roads is an exclusion in every rental contract on this island. That is not us being careful; it is the same clause you will find at every counter. Punctures and underside damage on that track are common enough that the exclusion exists for a reason.

So take the boat

Boats run from Kissamos port to Balos and Gramvousa through the season. You drive to Kissamos on good road, park, and let someone else deal with the track. It costs a ticket, it saves the car, and it keeps you insured for the whole day. Most people who have driven the track once take the boat the second time; we would rather you took it the first time.

What to take, either way

• Water and shade. Neither beach has much of either, and both are hotter than the north coast.
• Fuel before you go. Stations are frequent along the north coast and sparse once you turn inland or west of Kissamos.
• Cash. Parking and the small canteens are not always card-friendly.
• Shoes you can walk in. Balos is a descent from the car park; Elafonisi is a wade across shallow water to the far sandbar.
• An early start. Both car parks fill by mid-morning in July and August.

If you only have one day

Take Elafonisi, and only if you accept that the day is mostly driving. If what you want is a beach that repays a short drive from Heraklion, the honest answer is that you do not need to cross the island: Agiofarango, Preveli, Matala and the whole south coast below Heraklion are a fraction of the distance, and half of them are emptier than either of these two in August.

Common questions

Can I drive to Balos in a rental car?

You can reach Kalyviani on good road, but the last 8 km are unpaved and driving a rental car there is excluded from the insurance — in every contract on Crete, not only ours. The boat from Kissamos port is the answer that keeps you covered.

How long does it take to drive from Heraklion to Elafonisi?

About 230 km and three and a half to four hours each way, on asphalt throughout. Your map will say less; the mountain section is slower than it looks. It is a full day, and an early start is worth more than a fast car.

Is a small car enough for these roads?

For Elafonisi, yes — any of our cars does that drive comfortably. For the Balos track no car we rent is the right tool, and that is the point of the boat.

Which is better if I can only do one?

Elafonisi, if you want to swim and do not mind the driving. Balos, if you want the view — and then take the boat, which shows you Gramvousa as well.