Despite what may be Long Island residents’ roots set in sedentary cement, there is nothing like a cruise on the Great South Bay to offer an aquatic alternative to their view and enable them to briefly adopt a tourist’s perspective of the area they call home. It was this philosophy that lured me from land to sea on the “Moon Chaser” excursion boat from Captree State Park on a recent mid-July day.

“Captree State Park (itself) is located at the eastern tip of the narrow beach known as Jones Beach Island,” according to its self description. “This ideal location, at the intersection of the Fire Island inlet and the State Boat Channel, places it within easy access of some of the finest bay and ocean fishing grounds on the East Coast and provides for an extremely scenic view of the Great South Bay and the western end of Fire Island, including the Fire Island Lighthouse, the Fire Island Coast Guard Station, the Robert Moses State Park Water Tower, and the Inlet Span Bridge.”

The park offers a snack bar, a nautically-themed, full-service restaurant, a bait and tackle shop, and two fishing piers for land-launched lines.

The area on this dry, flawlessly blue, 80-degree day said summer on Long Island. The air was suffused with the sound of seagulls, which flapped, flocked, and flew, and the scent of the sea. The parking lot on the concrete side yielded to the one on the aquatic side, as a line of mostly fishing boats–Long Island’s largest fleet of them, in fact–bowed into the dock, including the “Capt. Eddie B. III,” the “Spectrum,” the “North Star II,” and the “Bay Princess II.”

Water lapped at the deck. The seagulls sang. And fishing rods projected from everyone, as if they constituted their third arms.

Designed and constructed by the Blount Marine Corporation, of Warren, Rhode Island, and launched in 1982, the blue-and-white “Moon Chaser” vessel intended for my own nautical excursion, stretched 65 feet, accommodated up to 220 on two decks, and was tied to the furthest pier from the restaurant complex.

A short line in front of its mobile ticket booth, as occurred every Wednesday and Thursday afternoon in the summer, indicated a complement of about 25 on its trip today.

A laborious engine grind signaled its 13:00 departure and a brief backward jolt preceded a 180-degree turn and trace through the buoy-lined channel, as the Captree Boat Basin receded in the sunlight.

Mimicking the “Moon Chaser’s” course, two other, fishing excursion destined boats trailed it, riding its wake, while two inbound vessels, the “Laura Lee” and the “Captree Princess,” made their approaches.

Settling into a gentle sway, the “Moon Chaser” itself glided over the sun-glinted blue bay, paralleling Fire Island National Seashore.

One of the proverbial bread slices, along with Long Island itself, it ensured that the 45-mile-long Great South Bay remained sandwiched between landmasses and thus protected from the Atlantic, whose access was provided by the inlet between Jones Beach Island’s eastern and Fire Island’s western ends.

Native to the area were the Meroke Tribes, but the earliest settlers were those from Europe, who encountered them in the 17th century, eventually establishing a succession of south shore bay towns, based upon boating and fishing, including Lindenhurst, Babylon, Islip, Oakdale, Sayville, Bayport, Blue Point, Patchogue, Bellport, Shirley, and Mastic Beach.

Managing to pierce the otherwise bright day, the lens atop the black-and-white towered Fire Island Lighthouse blinked at the boat as it inched toward it, abreast of the sand and scrub shoreline off the starboard side.

Appearing like an uninterrupted pattern of projected fishing poles wrapped around its deck, the “Island Princess,” anchored a short distance away, passed off to port.

Established on September 11, 1964, when Congress designated 26 miles of Fire Island as a national seashore, that narrow tract of land today encompasses 17 residential communities, New York’s only federally deemed wilderness, marine and upland habitat, wildlife, beaches, recreational facilities, and several historic sights.

Toting itself, it invites the visitor to “immerse yourself in an enchanting collage of coastal life and history. Rhythmic waves, high dunes, ancient maritime forests, historic landmarks, and glimpses of wildlife, Fire Island has been a special place for diverse plants, animals, and people for centuries. Far from the pressure of big city life, dynamic barrier island beaches offer both solitude and camaraderie, and spiritual renewal.”

While the Statue of Liberty was the symbolic entry to New York Harbor, the Fire Island Lighthouse was the actual one since the 19th century, guiding transatlantic ships and those transporting the millions of European immigrants from the Old World to the new.

The initial, 74-foot-high structure serving this purpose, a cream colored octagonal pyramid of Connecticut River blue split stone constructed in 1826 at the island’s end, certainly marked the inlet, but did not necessarily serve the purpose. Too short, in fact, to do so, it was dismantled when Congress appropriated $40,000 in 1857 for a 168-foot, creamy yellow replacement that sported a red brick tower and was first lit on November 1 of the following year, although stone from the original was incorporated in its terrace.

Reflecting technological advancement, it employed several methods, including whale oil, land oil, mineral oil, kerosene, and, finally, electricity, as of September 20, 1938, to fuel its four concentric Funk lamps housed in its First Order Fresnel lens to produce one-minute interval flashes.

Like many devices in history, however, it entered a period that would later see it coming full cycle.

Decommissioned as a navigation aid on December 31, 1973, it was replaced by an inadequate facsimile-a small flash tube optic installed on top of the Robert Moses State Park Water Tower. But its singular, seaward-direction shine failed to serve any purpose for Great South Bay plying vessels, and private citizen support, gaining momentum during the second half of the 1970s, led to the formation of the Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society in 1982.

After significant fund collections facilitated its restoration to its 1939 appearance, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 and, completing its cycle, was reinstated as an official navigation aid two years later, on Memorial Day, casting its guiding light onto the bay when it was relit.

Today, two 1,000-watt, counter-clockwise rotating bulbs provide flashes every 7.5 seconds and are visible up to 24 miles away.

Separate from, but complementary to, the United States Lighthouse Service, the Lifesaving Service established its own station, which was constructed in 1848 on the island’s west end, not far from the location of the original lighthouse itself. Both were created to patrol the coastline for watercraft stormed, stranded, or stuck, and facilitate rescues, the latter by mostly volunteer baymen and farmers between October and May.

Seven such stations eventually lined Fire Island by 1854.

Their value was not to be underestimated, however: between 1871 and 1915, more than 7,000 people were rescued from 721 ships.

Dipping deeper into the now darker blue surface, the “Moon Chaser” spit foamy white reactions from its sides each time its bow plunged into the water for a gulp. A wisp of thin cloud, like whipped cream, hung across the eastern sky.

Continuing to parallel Fire Island, the boat cruised past its communities, as if they were notches that silently ticked by. From Robert Moses State Park, it moved past Kismet, Saltair, and Fair Harbor.

Those wishing to have lunch on board had several options, including doing so before sailing at Captree’s lower snack bar; upper level, nautically-themed restaurant, the Captree Cove; having either prepare something to be taken away; or bringing a box lunch of the passenger’s own. Choosing the latter and maintaining the cruise’s natural sea-and-air theme, I took a vegetarian approach, enjoying cream cheese on date nut bread, honey roasted almonds, and cheese puffs at one of the main deck tables. Chips, soft drinks, and alcoholic beverages were purchasable from the bar, located on the same level, although many elected to take them to the upper canopied sun deck.

The Fire Island communities continued to slip by off the starboard side: Ocean Beach, Seaview, Ocean Bay Park.

Envisioned as a community for retired New York City police- and firemen, the latter pursued a divergent path when World War II-necessitated gas rationing and international travel restrictions prompted residents to seek “area-backyard” alternatives-in this case, Point O’ Woods domestic servants planted the first seeds of this eventual vacation resort when they used it as an after-work gathering place.

Partly employing its already established foundation, the community transformed the existing Coast Guard stations into the present-day Fire Island Hotel and Flynn’s Restaurant, re-purposing them and reflecting its accurate self-description.

“The architecture of Ocean Bay Park tends to be modest, but with character,” it says.

All its residential streets were named after lakes.

Considering its compact, 350-home encompassment, it is particularly rich in services, including a grocery store, a bicycle shop, a tennis court, two hotels, and several restaurants. Flynn’s, of the latter type, has its own 50-slip marine and is the destination of the “Moon Chaser” on select weekday evenings for a package that includes a lobster buffet dinner.

Again according to its own description, “Ocean Bay Park is a small town with a big personality. Largely populated by share houses, it knows how to throw a beach barbecue blowout. The riotous weekend warrior reputation is reinforced by the serious drinking and all-night dancing at Flynn’s, Schooner, and The Inn Between. The town’s laid back, nonrestrictive lifestyle is especially appreciated by the waves of young renters seeking a beach party environment. However, Ocean Bay Park also has its share of longtime seasonal residents.”

Serving as the halfway point, it marked the “Moon Chaser’s” 180-degree arc to port, swaying, like a seesaw, as it negotiated the wake of passing speedboats. A Bay Shore originating ferry passed astern and tucked itself into its Ocean Bay Park dock.

Maintaining a westerly heading and leaving its own white and dark green churn behind its stern, it inched toward the erector set resembling Robert Moses Bridge that spanned the bay and now loomed in the distance. Subjected to nature’s silent tug-of-war, upper deck passengers witnessed the hot sun’s competition with the breeze’s cooling cut.

Gliding over the dull blue, glass-resembling surface, the “Moon Chaser” passed to the left of East and West Fire islands, before reducing speed and entering the buoy-lined channel, abreast of the intensely green, seemingly floating patches of shellfish dependent eelgrass.

Now down to only a few knots per hour, it initiated its left arc into the basin and made contact with the Captree dock from which it had departed an hour and a half before.

Stepping off the boat, I had, in many ways, been refreshed by the air, the sun, the sea, the breeze, and the view-especially the view-by rediscovering, as a temporary tourist, a lifetime resident’s own backyard during a season that defined it-summer on the Long Island’s Great South Bay.

Glittering within New Hampshire’s Lakes Region, itself created by the likes of Little Squam, Silver, Squam, Waukewan, and Winnisquam lakes, is Lake Winnipesaukee, one of the three largest to lie within the borders of a single state. And plying it for three-quarters of a century is its flagship, the “M/S Mount Washington.” A cruise on this very, and venerable, symbol is obligatory for becoming acquainted with the area.

Sandwiched between volcanic Belknap and Ossipee mountains, the glacially-formed and spring-fed lake was first discovered by white men in 1652 when surveyors dispatched by the Massachusetts Colony to determine its northern boundaries realized that the point they sought lay three miles up the Merrimack River. Embarking on a secondary expedition in a sailboat, they reached the village of Aquadoctan, then the largest Indian community in the area, located in the north and west foothills.

The point itself, marked by a plaque on today’s Endicott Rock, stands in present-day Weirs Beach, named after the triangular, rock-and-log-fishing trap found nearby. The 72-square-mile lake of Winnipesaukee, with a 25-mile length, one- to 15-mile width, and 182.89-mile shore line, equally derives its name from an Indian word which has several translations, including “the smile of the great spirit,” “beautiful water in a high place,” and even “smiling water between hills.”

Encircled by the major port towns of Alton Bay, Center Harbor, Meredith, Wolfeboro, and Weirs Beach, and comprised of 274 habitable islands, it is a magnet for summer tourists, offering an array of accommodation types, restaurants, shops, water sports, and boating activities.

Because of its size and its number of communities, intra-lake transportation had been vital and integral to its existence, whether it be for passengers, freight, or mail, since surface, lake-perimeter conveyance, particularly during pre-motorized days, had been laboriously slow.

The first such aquatic surface vehicle combined the buoyancy of a hull with the horsepower of the actual animal. Two such horses, positioned at its aft treadmill on an open, 60- to 70-foot boat, turned its side paddle wheels as they trotted, producing a two-mph speed.

Further integrating travel models, railroads strategically positioned stations next to steamboat docks, facilitating passenger interchange.

One of the lake’s first such boats, the 96-foot-long, 33-foot-wide “Belknap,” was inaugurated into service at Lake Village in 1833, propelled by a retrofitted sawmill steam engine. Redirected onto rocks by gale force winds eight years later, it sank from sight.

Succeeded by what became a virtual symbol of the area, it passed its wake to the “Lady of the Lake.” Constructed by the Winnipesaukee Steamboat Company in 1849, the 125-foot-long boat was launched from Lake Village and carried 400 passengers during its maiden voyage to the Weirs, Center Harbor, and Wolfeboro.

But even the “Lady of the Lake” could not covet the crown earned by its competitor, the “Mount Washington,” which became reining queen after the elderly lady herself had been retired in 1893.

Powered by a single, 42-inch-diameter piston which generated 450 hp, the wooden hulled, side-wheel steamer was launched in 1872 from Alton Bay and exceeded 20-mph cruise speeds.

Technology climbed a step on the “Mineola.” Constructed in 1877 in Newburgh, New Hampshire, it was both the first propeller-as opposed to paddle wheel-steamer and the first to have been large enough to carry both passengers and cargo.

What was to become the end of the “Mount Washington’s” long, illustrious career in the 1920s only became its beginning. The Boston and Maine Company, its owner, withdrew it from service, but Captain Leander Lavallee, unable to accept the icon’s demise, purchased it and operated lake excursions for tourists during the summer months until even this resuscitation abruptly lost its air when a fire unexplainably erupted at the Weirs train station and spread toward the dock where it had been moored only two days before Christmas in 1939, reducing it to a mostly submerged char and ending its career in the very water which, for 67 years, had ironically given it life.

Still undeterred, Lavallee could not see its name sink with it. Citing the $250,000 of an all-new design as prohibitive, he embarked on a search for a second-hand “Mount Washington II” replacement instead that was ultimately located on Lake Champlain in the form of the “Chateaugay.” Built in 1888, the iron-hulled, side-wheel steamer, owned by the Champlain Transportation Company, had been operated between Burlington, Vermont, and Plattsburgh, New York.

The $20,000 price did not pose an obstacle, but the 150 miles of surface transport to its new Lake Winnipesaukee home did. Since he only needed the hull, he reduced it to 20 severed sections and transported them on flatbed rail cars on April 3, 1940. It only provided part of Lavallee’s intended flapship.

Insisting on no longer manufactured steam engines, he acquired a second boat, the “Crescent III,” for $25,000, cannibalizing it and transplanting its vital, engine, boiler, shaft, and propeller arteries into his new aquatic creation.

After an extensive process of naval engineering symbiosis, the reconstructed, repackaged, twin-screw “Mount Washington II” was baptized with Lake Winnipesaukee waters when it was floated out at Lakeport on August 12, 1940.

In sheer size, this hybrid, given birth by two parental boats that had never even met each other, was slated to rein supreme-and long. Stretching 205 feet from bow to stern, it weighed 500 tons, was propelled by two screws, and featured a 35-foot beam and seven-foot draft.

According to its 1941 summer timetable, it offered exactly the type and style of service Lavallee had envisioned for the original steamboat’s successor. It operated two daily round trip excursions, except on Sundays, on the 65-mile run from the Weirs at 08:00 and 13:00, calling at Bear Island, Center Harbor, Wolfeboro, and Alton Bay. Passenger fares were set at $1.00.

As the venerable and seemingly timeless symbol of Lake Winnipesaukee, which reflected Lavallee’s almost-infinite vision, it neither ceased to sail, nor evolve. Indeed, its hybrid assembly would only characterize its continual dry dock surgery.

In the spring of 1946, for instance, it was retrofitted with two, 615-hp Enterprise diesel engines, facilitating the conversion of all previous steam equipment to electrical, and visibility was improved with the elevation of the wheel house from its former second to a current third deck location.

Five years later, removal of its boat deck enabled passengers to be accommodated on the now reconfigured third deck.

Yet, its most extensive reconfiguration, mimicking its very hull-sectioned birth, occurred on October 31, 1982 at its Center Harbor shipyard and winter headquarters, when the Winnipesaukee Flagship Corporation, its current owner and operator, once again sliced it in half, just forward of its engine room bulkhead, and inserted a 24-foot, prefabricated hull section, increasing its overall length to 230 feet.

The elongated ship, accommodating 1,250 passengers on four decks with a nine-foot draft and weighing 750 tons, was refloated on April 30, 1983 after six months of reconstruction facilitated by the Marine Railway specifically built for this purpose as far back as 1949. Crewed by 15, the boat, previously designated the “MV Mount Washington”–for “motor vessel”–now carried the “MS”-or “motor ship”-prefix. It could almost have been called the “Mount Washington III.” In order to cater to its length and gross weight increases, the Weirs Beach dock facilities had been modified.

Subsequently retrofitted with clean-burning, EPA-approved CAT engines in 2010, this indisputable flagship of Lake Winnipesaukee had been able to reach almost 16-knot speeds.

Principally docked at Weirs Beach, Laconia, the Winnipesaukee Flagship Corporation’s headquarters for passenger embarkation just off Route 3, it offers a single daily, two-and-a-half-hour round trip from mid-May to mid-October, with a second during the high summer season. Morning departures permit visits to Alton Bay, Meredith, or Wolfeboro, with return service in the afternoon.

Sunday brunch, holiday, and theme-related sailings, such as for birthdays, reunions, anniversaries, and weddings, include meals, entertainment, and even overnight accommodations.

Weis Beach itself traces its origins to 1736 when the first recorded structure, a log fort, rose from the hitherto untouched area, and the first rail link, integral to the country’s westward expansion movement and the Gold Rush fever that mostly filled the air with delusional dollar signs, followed more than a century later. A rudimentary station, facilitating transportation mode interchange, enabled passengers to continue their journey by steamer at the Weirs, located on the lake’s western shore.

A remnant of this rail travel takes its current form as the Weirs Railroad Station, only steps above the dock-leading ramp, and the single track, now plied by the one- and two-hour tourist excursions to Meredith and Laconia undertaken by the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad during the summer months, had once existed in triplicate and been used by the White Mountain Division of the Boston and Maine Railroad.

The quad-decked “M/S Mount Washington,” transformed into a multiple-facility luxury liner, sports the Victorian-style Steamboat Lounge, complete with a dance floor, as well as the engine room and galley, on its lower deck. A second dance floor is located in the Main Salon above, along with the Purser’s Station, a gift shop, a bar, and the Fantail Grille. The Promenade Deck features open seating in its bow, the Captain’s Lounge, a snack bar, the Flagship Lounge with a bar for alcoholic beverages, and yet a third dance floor. The Observation Deck, as its designation implies, offers open, mid- and aft-seating for optimum views.

Mooring release, preceded by a silence-shattering wail of the boat’s horn, unleashes it for its autonomous navigation as the 230-foot, four-decked behemoth, clearly wearing its crown as queen of the lake, disappendages itself from the hopelessly tiny dock, before it leaves the Weirs Beach area by means of the Eagle Island Channel, itself sandwiched between Eagle and Governor’s islands.

Stonedam Island, the first to be passed on the boat’s left and centerpieced by the 112-acre Stonedam Island Wildlife Preserve, had once been connected to Meredith Neck by means of a stone causeway.

The lake’s nautical history, at least in distance, is never far from the “Mount Washington’s” course; indeed, the journey is like a return to it. Dolly Nichols, who had once operated a hand-powered ferry between Meredith Neck and Bear Island, is commemorated by a cluster of small islands bearing her name.

Bear Island itself, the lake’s second largest, serves as one of the US Mail Boat’s scheduled stops. As its name implies, the boat itself, created by an act of Congress in 1916, is the country’s only full-fledged floating post office with the power to cancel mail. Its official address is “R.F.D. No. 7, Laconia, New Hampshire.”

Several vessels have encompassed the post office fleet. The first, the “Dolphin,” was built in 1885 and was followed by the more ambitious, single-propeller, 100-passenger, 65-foot-long “Uncle Sam” constructed 18 years later and converted to diesel propulsion in 1945. It provided faithful service until its retirement in 1961. The even larger “Uncle Sam II” that replaced it, a former Navy PT Boat, featured a 75-foot length, a 20-foot beam, an 80-ton weight, and a 150-passenger capacity. The similarly-dimensioned, diesel-engined “Sophie C,” itself the “Uncle Sam II’s” replacement, sports dual decks and a snack bar and is open to tourists wishing to taste this unique slice of lake life during its scheduled, mid-June to mid-September mail runs. Like the “Mount Washington” itself, it is owned by the Winnipesaukee Flagship Corporation of Weirs Beach and Center Harbor.

Floating in the midst of beauty expressed by islands, coves, bays, and mountains, the “Mount Washington” offers a glimpse of the White Mountains’ Presidential Range, including its Squam, Sandwich, and Ossipee peaks. The latter sports 2,975-foot Mount Shaw.

One Mile Island, reflecting its distance from Center Harbor on the lake’s northern tip, is the winter home of the “Mount Washington,” where it is subjected to its annual maintenance, inspection, and repair.

Becky’s Garden, little more than a jagged, rocky outcrop seeming to balance a wooden, two-story house atop it, is the lake’s smallest charted island.

The profile of Mount Washington, at 6,288 feet the highest in the northeast, looms skyward in the distance.

Compared to Becky’s Garden, Long Island belongs on the other end of the size spectrum. Connected to the mainland’s Moultonborough Neck by an automobile-accessible bridge, it ranks as its largest.

Carving its quickly dissipating trench into the water, whose average depth varies between 35 and 90 feet, the “Mount Washington” penetrates the 12-mile-long by five-mile-wide Broads area, its largest, unobstructed expanse.

The lake, a mirror-like all water bodies-of the sky, seldom reflects the same picture. On a sunny day at high noon, for instance, it appears an illustrious blue. On semi-overcast days, it wears a deep blue velvet coat. During densely cloudy times, it looks as if it were covered with a dirty-white quilt, while its pine-blanketed islands appear as if they were immersed in the ethereal white mist seemingly caught by their needles.

On board, passengers can purchase alcoholic and soft drinks at the bar. Soft pretzels and cookies are baked in the Promenade Deck snack bar. The Main Deck’s Fantail Grille offers all-day breakfast, clam chowder, salads, sandwiches, bagels, hot dogs, chili, and hamburgers. During sailings with tour groups, independent passengers can often purchase a ticket for the all-inclusive buffet, which typically features salads, hot entrees, and desserts.

Turning around Sewell’s Point, located on its left side, the “Mount Washington” glides into Wolfeboro Bay, entry to the port town of Wolfeboro and considered the country’s oldest summer resort because of the house Colonel Governor John Wentworth built there in 1764 to mark the terminus of his Portsmouth-originating Prairie Road.

Poking its bow into the lake’s southernmost point, the “Mount Washington” sails past Little Mark Island, itself the threshold to five-mile-long Alton Bay. It is flanked by the gently curved top of Mount Major.

Like Wolfeboro, Alton Bay is another of the lake’s major port towns. Settled in 1710, it served as the assembly point of the original “Mount Washington” 162 years later, in 1872.

Rattlesnake Island, adopting its name from the slithering reptile that had once resided on it, offers the highest elevation, of 390 feet.

Glendale is another of Lake Winnipesaukee’s nautically significant locations. It not only houses the Marine Division of the New Hampshire Department of Safety-which oversees all of the state’s lakes-but is the site of the “Lady of the Lake’s” sinking, its earliest, most significant steamboat.

Incorporated as New Hampshire territory during the Revolutionary War, Governor’s Island enjoyed celebrity resort status by the end of the 19thcentury.

Re-entering Eagle Island Channel, the “M/S Mount Washington” reduces its speed to a slow coast and initiates its approach to the Weirs Beach dock, returning to the area first discovered by white men in 1652 and leaving a 140-year wake behind its hull, which itself had first plied Lake Champlain waters under the name of “Chateaugay” as far back as 1888

The coastline of Crete has 155 kilometres of beautiful sandy beaches. Chania prefecture has two dramatic beaches, Falasarna and Elafonissi, not forgetting Almyrida with its safe blue flag beaches.  

There is a stunning long stretch of beach on the north coast of the island at Georgioupolis, and Europe’s only natural palm grove at Vai beach on the north east point of the island.  

South of Heraklion is Matala beach; the caves at the side have been inhabited since prehistoric times, most recently in the 1970’s by hippies.  

Recommended beaches to visit in Crete are Kato Zakros, Malia, Paleochora, Prevelli, Frangokastello, Istro, Agia Pelagia, Menies, Xerokampos and Makrigalos.  

Crete is the largest Greek island at 3,220 square miles. It is a very popular destination for holidaymakers and tourists.  

Visitors to the island of Crete are amazed by magnificent coastline and the imposing mountain chain that runs the length of Crete, the Island is home to a profusion of flora and fauna numerous endemic to Crete which only adds to the beauty of Crete.  

Most tourist areas are positioned on the north coast of Crete; here you will find beaches that offer beach entertainment, hire a pedalo, ride a banana boat, try water skiing or windsurfing. The south coast with its captivating ruggedness has isolated coves and beaches worth exploring. Get a map, hire a car then explore some of Crete’s more isolated but astounding beaches.  

Crete is unrivalled when it comes to choice of beaches compared with the rest of the Greek islands. There are many beaches ideal for sunbathing on Crete’s coastline, whether you can lounge around, read a book, or play and swim in the water.  

Like me, any visitor to the island tastes the food and falls in love with the Cretan food as much as they fall for the glorious beaches and the wonderful inhabitants. After all eating out is part of your holiday, trying the different takes on the Greek dishes at a plethora of cafes, restaurants and taverns.  

 The delightful beaches and fine weather, dramatic scenery and good food are the main reasons that so numerous tourists stay here in the summer. It’s easy to see the allure of this spectacular island.  

The accommodation on Crete caters for all budgets, getting to Crete is easy; There are two good international airports at Heraklion and Chania. Ferries also run from Piraeus, Athens to Heraklion, Souda and Rethymno on Crete.  

Mention the Balearic island of Ibiza to anyone in the know, and the most likely response you’ll get is a knowing smile and a reminiscent nod. With its reputation as THE party capital of the world, with its hedonistic nightclubs and twenty-four hour clubbing atmosphere, it’s an understandable mistake to make in thinking that is all this wonderful island has to offer. However, behind this dance music-led façade, you’ll also find some of the top beaches in Ibiza are also some of the best in the Mediterranean too.

If you’re looking for a peaceful escape from the better-known party aspects of Ibiza, then you can’t go far wrong with the beautiful retreat that is Benirras beach, found on the north of the island. Famous for being associated with drug-fuelled nights of debauchery back in the ‘sixties, today Benirras is a haven for the more sedate traveler. Laying in seclusion at the end of a long and windy road, the beach is the very picture of a perfect idyllic setting: deep blue seas surrounded by overhanging cliff faces and golden sands. The best part about this particular beach is that there is a protection order in place stopping hotel owners from building on it – a rare event in today’s world, and another reason why it was recently voted one of the top beaches in Ibiza.

Another of the more relaxing beaches in Ibiza is the Cala Llonga, which is situated just slightly north of Ibiza town itself. Although the beach itself is fairly small, it has a surprisingly deceptive depth to it, enabling it to accommodate many more beach-goers than you may have first thought. Since it’s in the north, where many of the more boisterous revelers tend to leave alone, this offers a relaxing and peaceful atmosphere.

If it is the more intensive and party going vibe that you’re after on your visit to this wondrous island, you should be checking out the infamous Playa d’en Bossa beach, which at a mere 2km from Ibiza town itself, is right at the heart of all the action. With almost all the bars playing loud dance music along the whole of the beach-front, it’s not for the weak-hearted. However, as the starting point for your big night out, it can’t be faulted.

However, one of the most popular beaches in Ibiza is surprisingly not Playa d’en Bossa (although it runs a close second) but the rather wonderful Salines beach. This offers a happy medium between all-out partying and simple relaxation – with a long and relaxing walk along the beach front, interspersed with bars galore on the way to the much-loved ultimate beach bar Sa Trinxa, it’s a great way to ease yourself in to the long night ahead.

Although Ibiza does quite rightly hold the reputation of being the ideal destination for any party-loving animal, it shouldn’t be ignored when it comes to the more traditional kind of relaxing holiday either, as the likes of Benirras and Cala Llonga and the other top beaches in Ibiza will have you discover.

The lively Ibiza Island boasts of over 50 beautiful beaches and outstanding beach facilities with fine, clear blue waters and golden sand, adding up to over more than 30 miles of dazzling coastline. You can locate the best beaches in the Island by heading south-east, where they lie between Cala de Santa Vicent and Santa Eularia des Riu.

A typical beach in Ibiza Island includes a diversity of water sports, beachside bars and restaurants. Nonetheless, one can relish a quiet moment in the countless private coves and beaches. Swimming in these beaches is safe, even in the smaller beaches which don’t have lifeguards. Of importance to point out, topless sunbathing is allowed, thus, you got no reason not to enjoy the alluring Ibiza island sun on your skin against the backdrop of blue calm waters.

One of the beaches in Ibiza Island that you might not want to miss out on is the long sandy Cala es Figueral beach. It features tiny, rocky islets close to the shores and what is more, there is a nudist beach on the northern section of the island, talk of freedom of enjoying yourself to the fullest. The Cala de Boix beach is another treasure of the Ibiza Island surrounded by affluent green hills. It is one of the quiet beaches in the Island, giving you an excellent view of the Illa de Tagomago. Another beach in the Island that you might want to check on is the small sandy beach found in the Platja des Canar resort. It is located near the infamous pleasure boat harbor and surrounded by cafes, bars, shops and restaurants. Others include Platja des Niu Blau, Cala Llonga and Platja del Pinos among many others. To say the least, Ibiza Island beaches have what it takes to create a memorable holiday.

Ibiza is an island that never sleeps, always buzzing with super electric energy with all sorts of restaurants, bars, dancing halls and clubs playing all your favorite music. Whether you want it loud or cool, Ibiza Island clubs ensure you enjoy the best music topping the list in the world. To say the least, it is the best haunt for hippies, justified by the title the island won as the ‘entertainment island of the world’. The big-name clubs in Ibiza Island are legendary, attracting party animals from all corners of the world. The pioneer clubs in the Island were Pacha and Amnesia, dating back to the 70s. What would you expect of such clubs with such a reputable duration in the entertainment industry? They are fashionable and attractive; thanks to the world class DJs who will endeavor to keep you rocking and awake.A visit to club Privilege in Ibiza Island, you will know why it is regarded as the largest club in the world, holding a capacity of over 10,000. Here, the party simply never stops. It boasts of a swimming pool, thus you have an option of re-vitalizing and enjoying yourself away from the dance floor. Space Ibiza is the other club topping the list in Ibiza Island. The party begins in the afternoon and never ends till dawn of the next morning, you are guaranteed of nothing but real fun. You might also want to check out on Clubs Eden, Es Paradis and El Divino. Clubs in Ibiza Island feature different theme attractions every night thus you are sure to sample the best of the Island. The best thing about clubbing in Ibiza Island, one is not expected to follow a certain dress code. There is no specific style of music in the nightclubs in Ibiza, but you are sure to enjoy a strong, unique Ibiza beat.