If you’re planning a holiday trip to Greece, you have a tough call to make: Crete or Rhodes? Which island should you choose? Which one has better beaches, is more suitable for children, has better attractions, and so on? Let’s find that out today!
Crete vs Rhodes: which one has better weather?
Generally, both islands are known for being incredibly warm during the summer and generally pleasant throughout the rest of the year. Frankly, the difference is not very substantial, but Rhodes may see a temperature or two more than Crete. Rhodes is known for having 300 days of sunshine a year. Still, it’s unlikely you’ll see a day below 30°C in the summer season in both cases. You’ll also fear the wonderful Meltemi wind on both islands, so the experience is very comparable. If you want that extra edge and you want it as hot as possible, then Rhodes wins this one. Otherwise, you can choose no wrong candidate here. You can read more summer temperatures in Crete and Rhodes in our separate articles.
Crete vs Rhodes: which one has better beaches?
The second element that both islands are well known for is their beaches. Crete’s coastline extends for over 650 miles and houses hundreds of beaches. Over a third of them also have the Blue Flag status, so you know they’re very good. The most popular ones are the Elafonisi Beach and the Balos Lagoon. You can read more about beaches in Crete here.
Rhodes has the exact same situation, though it has a smaller selection (with a coastline of mere 137 miles). There’s lots of variety nonetheless, though. You can find coarse gravel-like beaches in the west and gentle soft sandy beaches in the east. Frankly, this is another non-issue in both cases, as both of these islands are thriving spots for beach enthusiasts.
As such, let us divide them like this: Rhodes, being a lot smaller, has the advantage of it being easier to hop between beaches. On the other hand, its size is also a detriment – usually, its beaches are a bit more busy. On Crete, it’s a lot easier to find hidden empty beaches, as there’s such an insane amount of them that you can’t possibly have all of them be busy. As such, if you prefer convenience over peace and quiet, Rhodes may be a bit better. If you don’t mind going out of your way to find that one special beach, far away from all other forms of life, then Crete offers much more.
Crete vs Rhodes: which one has better tourist attractions?
The size comes back as a factor again. Crete has much more to offer, partially just because it has so much more space to explore. And you have some cult classics there, like the Knossos Palace, Heraklion, Chania and the archeological sites of Phaistos and Gortyna. There’s also the beautiful Samaria Gorge and other lovely hiking trails. You can read more about what you can do in Crete here.
Rhodes, on the other hand, is quite tiny, thus you don’t have that much of a choice. If you’re coming over for a short trip, though, this may be an advantage, as you don’t have to feel like you’re missing out on so much. There’s, of course, the city of Rhodes and the town of Lindos with its ancient ruins. If you’re coming over with children, you may also find the Faliraki Waterpark, one of the biggest in Europe. You can also visit the Rhodes Aquarium and the hot baths of Kalithea.
As such, if you have more time and you want to explore a lot, Crete simply has a bigger selection with some real gems in there. We’d only recommend Rhodes more if you have a limited amount of time and you don’t want to feel the need to come back to Crete again afterwards because you missed out on so much.
Crete vs Rhodes: which one has better parties?
Finally, we can be a bit more decisive for once. If you value parties and general nightlife above the rest, Rhodes is your pick, specifically the capital. It’s full of great clubs and bars, so you can hop all night long.
Crete also has its own selection, especially in the eastern part of the island. You can find the best ones in Malia, Hersonissos and Stalida. Still, we’d say that Rhodes wins this one easily.
Crete or Rhodes – which island should you choose?
The obvious answer should be that you can’t go wrong with either. Generally speaking, you can look at it in two ways: either you look at how much time you have or what you value more. If you’re shorter on time, Rhodes may be better, for Crete has so much more to offer. If you value exploration, breathtaking hiking trails and beautiful secluded beaches, Crete is likely the better choice, while Rhodes wins in terms of parties and convenient beach experience.
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