We last visited Paleochora in 1994 , and are returning again this year for our first holiday without offspring for twenty-odd years 😀
Just wondering if much has changed since then. There appear to be lot more sunbeds on beaches , and the once idyllic white sand lagoon at Elafonisi looks like it's now over-run with them. We'll have transport so if anyone has visited the area recently, I'd be grateful for any tips.
I have happy memories of the place , I think we managed to find a nude-friendly spot every day 🙂
sorry never been that far west, been to Plakias 🙂
Keep On Smiling:)
Sunshinekid:)
Still two naturist beaches there!!
We are staying in Palaechora in early October for a few nights. I've done a bit of research - there's a nude beach to the east of Paleochora - Gialiskari, and also east of Efalonisi is Kedrodasos - apparently much quitter than Ef.
It should be very quiet in October.
We're staying at Anidri which is close to Gialiskari and hope to explore Kedrosasos too, it doesn't look far away on the map but the roads are pretty tortuous unless you have a 4WD and can follow the coast track.
I'll report back in September if I find anywhere else good , I love exploring off the beaten path 😀
We were there in July and the Paleochora area is as good as ever. You can rent a pair of sunbeds and a parasol in the naturist section of Paleochora beach only just to the West of the town for €6 per day. Very relaxed atmosphere. Gialiskiari and Sougia to the East are also good. I walked nude most of the way from Krios to Kethrodasos which is another excellent naturist beach. Its an incredible contrast to the nearby sunbathing factory farm of Elafonisi where coachloads of people "enjoy" the beautiful natural setting with thousands of others in high season.
We've just returned from two glorious weeks there, I'll do a write up later when I have more time. We spent most of our days on the pebbly beach just a short walk west of Gialiskiari as we were staying in the village of Anidri. Likewise we also had a day in Sougia and one in Kedrodasos which was stunning and well worth the bumpy drive.
I walked the Anidri Gorge naked several times , plus our accommodation was secluded enough for us to be nude practically all the time. Swimming costumes never even came out of the suitcase !
More importantly , it was our first summer holiday away together for twenty four years ( having raised two children in the meantime ) , Mrs Jonny overcame her body confidence issues and embraced the naturist lifestyle after the first day on the beach - we both agreed it was one of the best holidays we've ever had. 🙂
Jonny how did it go walking the Anidri gorge naked? If you did it a few times you probably met some people on the way. What about at the bottom did you put something on to walk past the textile section to the naturist part of the beach?
I'm an early riser, so generally set off from Anidri before eight and didn't meet anyone en-route. Also the entire gorge was in shade at that time, which was lovely. My wife isn't particularly mobile at the moment, so she'd drive down and we'd meet at our spot on the shingle beach just west of Gialiskari beach. I usually carried a sarong (which I wore for most of the two weeks when I wasn't naked) which I wore to walk through the car park.
I did the reverse walk about three times , by which time it was extremely hot in the gorge, so not likely to be many walkers around. Once I saw a group behind me , but I outpaced them before I was spotted.
As for Gialiskari beach , I generally went naked once at the easternmost set of sunbeds , and used the shower there a couple of times. Also walked the E4 eastwards naked for a short distance, although it was way too hot to walk very far along there in August.
I once tried walking up the Anidri gorge naked and met two lots of people coming down. On another occasion I met no one but I think you always have to be prepared for an encounter. This summer when walking nude most of the way from Krios to Elafonnisi I met a couple coming the other way but rather than fish for shorts in my bag I just carried on. Its a lovely walk. Just before you get to Elafonnisi, the factory farm of sunbathing, there is the delightful clothes optional beach of Kethrodasos
We had a fantastic couple of days in SW Sfakia in October. After staying 1 night in Xania (which was superb) we drove to Kedradasos. This beach is beautiful. There were a good few of us nude, a few textiles and a regular stream of E4 hikers. We then drove to Paleochora via Elos. We stayed 2 nights in Paleochora visiting both Gialisakari beach and the western end of Paleochora beach. Both very well patronised by naturists. The rest of our holiday was in Vritomartis. We did venture east to Pahia Ammos beach, Plakias and also the fantastic beach at Ligres...... a real gem.
We had such a lovely time in Anidri this summer that I've booked flights to Chania for mid May so we can return there and explore the area in late spring without the intense heat of late August. Can't wait !
We will be on the sandy beach on the third - tenth of July , can't wait!!