Crete - can anyone help me find the best place to stay with this wishlist?

[FridayNightFever]

I'm looking at Crete for our holiday this year and have literally NO CLUE about the place. There are 4 of us - me, DP, DD11 and DS7. We'll probably get a villa/Airbnb and organise flights separately as we prefer this type of holiday to a resort/hotel break. We'll hire a car too. Can anyone recommend a great town/area to focus my searches on?

Our wishlist -

• DP is vegan so, whilst this isn't a huge problem because of the self-catering, it would be nice to be able to go out for a few meals without him having to make do with chips and a green salad 😁. The rest of us are veggies, as well, so this is a consideration too.
• we tend to like being in a small town/village with a few bars, restaurants and shops but don't like it too busy where we're staying - we can drive to the busier places! Don't mind being inland, as long as the coast isn't too far a drive.
• we're not massive sightseers but my DS loves history so proximity to some sort of historical /archaeological site would be a bonus.
• a few nice beaches nearby would be great
• we like a view from the terrace 😁.

We don't want much do we?!

Any suggestions for towns/areas that might tick our boxes?

Also, I'm tied to school holidays because of my job so considering both July/August and October - is there a better time to go? We don't mind the heat (I'll make sure we have aircon in the villa) and we like a warm pool/sea to swim in!

Thanks everyone!

@LittlefishYou're more brave than me 🤣 I didn't attempt the drive, partly because our hire car was a clapped out old Micra! So I parked up at the top of the hill with the goats.

This was certainly my favourite beach. Just reading a book and the DC swimming and snorkeling.

I can't wait to return. Again.

The road would definitely only fit for goats! But we saw a campervan parked down at the bottom and thought it must be ok. It really wasn’t! I’m glad DH was driving. 🤣

Take a look at Paleochora in the south-west of Crete. It's a very laid-back kind of place on a small peninsula. There are 2 beaches, one fabulous sandy one, and a stony one on the other side of the peninsula. There are loads of tavernas and cafes and there is a vegan one but I can't remember the name of it.

Paleochora is a proper Greek town/village so there are plenty of amenities. Good supermarket, pharmacies etc. Some of the roads get closed to traffic in the evenings and all the chairs and tables are brought out onto the street. It's a lovely relaxed atmosphere.

Lots of other beaches nearby. Also you can get a boat along the south coast of Crete from Paleochora to other small village resorts. Great for day-trips or overnights if you fancy.