The resort town of Malia (Malia) is located 35 km from Heraklion, the administrative center of the Greek island of Crete. This is a very small town, it is inhabited by a little less than 3,500 people.
Entertainment options available in Malia
In Crete, and in Greece, Malia is known as one of the most popular places – young people and lovers of night entertainment come here. It is necessary to make a reservation right away that these young people are mainly from France, Germany and England, there are almost no Russian speakers. People who come to Malia for the first time and go for a walk in the late afternoon may be not only surprised,but also shocked. Local TV channels do not stop showing what is happening in Malia in the evenings, and the inhabitants of Crete are only outraged, but do not take any concrete measures.
As a rule, young people from European countries come here in large companies, relax relatively peacefully and without fights, spend a lot of money – this is one of the main reasons why they are hospitably received in this small city of Greece.
Nevertheless, Malia has everything to make your holiday memorable: clean sea, comfortable beaches, numerous clubs and restaurants, hotels of different stars, souvenir shops, large supermarkets, a variety of entertainment and attractions. Here you can rent any vehicle: bicycle, scooter, motorcycle, car.
The central part of Malia is the center of clubs, bars, discos, restaurants. The most popular among young people are Camelot Castle, Candy, Appolo, Zig Zag, Malibu Club. Almost all of them are open from 22: 00 until the morning, admission is free, you only need to pay for the ordered drinks.
In addition to restaurants and clubs in this resort of Greece, there are other entertainment options. What can you see in Malia on the island of Crete? For example, you can view an aquarium, visit a water park, or take a horse ride.
Horse riding experience
The stable closest to Malia is located at Nikis, 70007 Stalís 60 meters from Everest Hotel Iraklion, Greece. In addition, it is not only the closest, but also the most inexpensive on the island – an hour and a half walk costs 38 € per person.
Amarillis Stable is located in the mountains near the town of Stalisa. They keep well-groomed and well-trained horses, low pacers. There are no cafes or taverns on site, and the facilities include a toilet.
Many hotels and tour desks in Malia offer Amarillis Stable for horseback riding. But you can book a guided tour by writing directly to Amarillis Stable-the owner of the stable, Nicholas, responds very quickly and picks you up from the hotel if necessary.
Tourists are offered to take an hour and a half walk to the sea or longer trips (5-6 hours each) to the mountains, deep into the island of Crete to the lake, to the village of Mochos. The path to the sea is quite monotonous (along the paved road, along which there are houses and hotels), but everything is very beautiful on the coast. A mountain tour is much more interesting, although more tiring and sometimes more dangerous. The terrain dictates its own conditions: sometimes you have to get off the horse and lead it behind you. During any trip, Nicholas talks in good English about the history of Crete and interesting places along the way.
Nicholas suggests how best to handle horses, looks at their behavior. But for beginners getting on a horse for the first time, it is still better to be very careful and first make a safer trip to the sea. As for small children, it is better not to take them on a horse ride at all.
There is another important point: you need to find out in advance whether the insurance covers medical expenses for treatment if it is necessary after a fall from a horse.
Star Beach Water Park
The water park is not located in Malia, but in the city of Hersonissos. Many consider the water park to be a great alternative to the usual Malia beach on the island of Crete, especially since the entrance to its territory is free. There are almost always a lot of people here.
The beach here is small, the beach strip is narrow and the sun quickly hides. But the entrance to the sea is very convenient: sandy, gentle. There are no breakwaters, so on some days in the morning waves rise to human height and it is impossible to swim.
Music plays all day in the water park, and a foam party is held at 16: 00 – this show is popular for both adults and children.
- Address: Hersonissos 20, Crete.
- The slides are open from 11:00 to 18:00, and the ticket costs €8 for all this time.
- Swimming pools are free of charge, rent an umbrella with two sun beds — 10 € (they give a check, so you can leave and then come back again). There are 2 playgrounds and 2 areas with pools for children – there are free sun beds.
On the territory of the water park there is an outdoor stage where DJs perform in the evenings.
Aquaworld Aquarium
Hersonissos boasts another interesting place that can be attributed to both entertainment and sightseeing. This is an aquarium located at 7 Filikis Eterias / Hersonissos Port.
This is a very small aquarium that will be interesting for children to visit. The staff there is very friendly, they give you to hold a python, turtles, reptiles in your hands. In general, a good mood and a lot of different photos in memory of Malia, Crete and Greece are provided.
- A ticket for adults costs 9 €, for children-5 €.
- The entrance is open from Monday to Saturday from 10: 00 to 15: 00 (entrance is open until 14: 00).
- Website: https://aquaworld-crete.com/.
Attractions in Malia
Sightseeing enthusiasts will also appreciate this small town in Greece on the island of Crete: Malia, more precisely in the Old Town, has a lot of interesting things. For example, the Church of St. Demetrios, the Venetian church of St. John, the church of St. Nektarios. It’s nice to just walk through the narrow streets of the Old Town, where there are cute houses with beautiful blue doors, shutters on the windows and with climbing flowers on the balconies, where there are small taverns with live music.
But still, the most significant sights of Malia are located in the vicinity of this famous resort in Greece.
Malia’s Palace
The ruins of the Malian Palace are 3 km from the resort – you can easily walk there or take a bus from the center of Malia in just 10 minutes.
Admission is 6 € per person. The tour service is not provided, tourists themselves walk among the excavations, guided only by diagrams and brief signatures in English.
Approximately the palace was built around 1650 BC. e. This landmark of Greece was notable for the fact that it is in the form in which it was discovered during excavations, that is, without reconstruction. The palace itself is not present here, mainly the meter-long contours of ancient large structures and several restored vases the size of a man. Some of the excavations are open-air, some-under a canopy.
By the way, excavations continue, and who knows what other attractions will be found here.
Likhnostatis Open-air Museum
Guests of Malia resort can visit the open-air museum “Lihnostatis”, which is located near the town of Hersonissos (address: Plaka, Hersonissos 700 14), among other attractions on the island of Crete.
The Likhnostatis Museum is one of the most colorful and visited attractions in Greece. Its exhibits allow you to learn the customs and peculiarities of the life of the inhabitants of Crete, introduce you to the history of the development of culture. The most interesting expositions are the reconstruction of a traditional Greek farm, weaving and pottery workshops, and a distillery. A small cinema shows a film about the history and life of Crete.
Adjacent to the museum is a garden where you can explore the rich flora of the area.
- An entrance ticket costs 6 €, for students-3 €, for children aged 4-12 years-2€. For an additional fee, you can take an audio guide in Russian.
- This attraction is open all days of the week except Saturday from 9: 00 to 14: 00. It is best to go to the opening, because by 11: 00 a lot of people gather there.
- Website: www.lychnostatis.gr.
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Beaches
How can there be a resort town in Greece without a beach? In Malia on the island of Crete, there are many of them, it remains only to choose the most suitable one.
Potamos Beach
At a distance of 2 km east of the port of Malia, not far from the famous landmark – the ruins of the Malian palace, there is not too crowded Potamos Beach. This is a spacious beach with large golden-white sand, good access to the sea and crystal clear water. At some distance from the shore, a rocky ridge stretches out, against which waves break – as a result, it is always calm and clear water without algae. sea urchins are found on some parts of the beach.
The beach is equipped with everything you need: changing cabins, fresh water showers, toilets (sometimes even with paper). For 7€, you can rent 2 sun beds and an umbrella for the whole day.
Nearby there are cafes, several bars, a fruit stand, and in the morning a van arrives with ice cream, drinks and food (gyros, sandwiches).
Balos Lagoon on the Island of Crete-description with photos
Stalis Beach
The best beach and the closest to Malia on the island of Crete is Stalis beach (Stalida). It stretches along the central part of the settlement of the same name and is 4 km away from the center of Malia.
A long and not too wide beach with a sandy bottom, although here and there there are stones. There is a gentle approach to the sea and clear water, crabs and even large sea turtles can be found near the rocks. The concentration of people here is quite high, although there is still enough space for everyone, mostly people – on weekends.
Along the beach there are many cafes and restaurants with delicious food, almost all have a children’s menu.
By the way, it is in these establishments that you can rent sun beds with umbrellas for 6-10 € per set. And in some restaurants (for example, Ocean, Irish Pub), visitors are given them for free: you can order drinks and lie down and sunbathe.
There are also toilets in the cafe, but they are not available separately on the beach. There are no changing rooms, only showers.
Boufos Beach
At some distance from Malia, Bufos beach is located, which belongs to the resort graying area of Sissi.
Its width is 60 m, the water is clean. The beach is pebbly, the entrance to the water is pebbles and sand, but a little further down the bottom is covered with large stones and rock outcrops. If the wind blows stronger, then large waves rise and it becomes dangerous to swim. The depth from the shore gradually increases “up to the chest”, then there is a rocky shoal, and then the depth increases sharply to 3-4 m.
On the beach there is a volleyball court, showers, a cafe and a bar, you can rent 2 sun beds with an umbrella for 7 € for the whole day.
Please note! A description with photos of other best beaches on the island of Crete is presented on this page.
Accommodation in Malia
The choice of accommodation in Malia on the island of Crete is very large. Hotels in this resort (there are about 100 of them) have different star ratings and offer rooms of various price categories.
For example, you can rent a standard studio with two single beds at Happy Days Apart-hotel for 20-25 € per night. The hotel is located in the heart of Malia’s Old Town, within walking distance of the best clubs and bars.
For 50-70€, you can stay in a standard double room, for example, in the 3* Malia Mare family hotel.
A spacious room in a 5* hotel, of course, will cost more. So, 0t 100 € in high season is a luxury room in the 5* Royal Heights Resort. This room has 1 bedroom with 2 single beds and a living room with a large sofa that can accommodate two children up to 12 years old.
Please note: for those who want to relax in peace, it is best to stay on the outskirts of Malia – there is no noise from parties and numerous discos.
When is the best time to arrive
The weather conditions in Malia are the same as in all the resorts of Crete located on the Aegean coast: in winter it is warm and humid, in summer it is hot.
The season in Malia, as in many resorts in Greece, begins in April and ends at the end of October. The air temperature can reach +35°C, the water temperature is about +25°C.
The warmest month in Malia is August, when the average daytime temperature is about +29.7°C, and the night temperature is +22.9°C. The sea also warms up most strongly in August, with an average temperature of + 26.2°C.
In winter in Malia (Crete) it is rainy, but not cold: less than +14°C does not happen.
