Things to do in Sitia, Vai and Zakros

Sitia sits at Crete's far eastern end, served by the island's third airport, smaller and far less connected than Heraklion or Chania, with only a handful of seasonal flights.

From here the coast road runs about 25 km to Vai, whose palm forest looks tropical but is not imported: it is Phoenix theophrasti, a species endemic to Crete, the same one that grows at Preveli, and Vai is its largest natural stand in Europe. The grove is now fenced and camping is banned, and there is no accommodation on the beach itself, though July and August still bring real crowds despite the distance.

The KTEL bus barely reaches beyond the main coastal link to Sitia, so a rental car is the practical way to continue to the Minoan palace at Zakros, roughly 45 minutes further east. The season here runs May to October, same as the rest of the island.