Ierapetra has a sandy town beach, and the coast stretching east is suitable for swimming.
About an hour's boat trip from Ierapetra, there are a number of beaches here for those with a sense of adventure. There are only two boats per day so be prepared to be out in the open for a minimum of six hours. The water here is exceptionally clear.
There's no doubt that this a lovely spot. During the 1970s a British advert featured Vai as the place where one could experience "the taste of paradise", if one were to bite into a coconut sweet, covered in chocolate. Palm trees (phoenix theophrastii) can be found here, and they are endemic to Crete; it was rumoured that they grew as a result of Saracen occupation in the 9th and 10th centuries), but this is equally untrue! The beach and environs are owned by the monastery of Toplou, and one has to pay to get onto the beach. One can hire pedalos (pedal boats) and water-skiing is available if that floats your particular boat.
A wonderful, relatively easy, walking experience greets the hiker, which ever direction one chooses to walk the Zakros gorge. There are at least three entry/exit points, at, or close to the village of Ano (Upper) Zakros, and the route down is spectacular in the extreme, depositing one at Kato (Lower) Zakros,replete with its own Minoan "palace", lovely beaches, and accommodation aplenty. If one chooses to walk east to west, Ano Zakros has a nice, rather old-fashioned hotel, so there should be no problem with where to lay ones head for the evening, though in the height of summer, do book-up in advance. Interesting features along the gorge, include a Roman aqueduct, and if one looks up, caves where the bodies of humans dating back to Neolithic times were discovered.
A lovely place is Pefki, and its gorge compliments it perfectly. A walk of about a kilometre on a path from the village, brings one into the pine-strewn (pefki is the Greek word for pine) gorge itself. It's approximately six KMs from here to the coast, where the gorge deposits one at Makriyialos There are even a couple of stone benches en-route, for those who need a rest, or prefer just to savour the rarified atmosphere.
Seven Kilometres east of Ierapetra, the gorge of Milonas starts at an elevation of around 500 metres and ends on the south coast. Waterfalls form pools, along the gorge's course, enabling the hiker to become swimmer.
Kritsa is a beautiful village, located some 9 Kms west of Aghios Nikolaos. Also known as the "Havga" gorge, it stretches for 13 Kms before depositing walkers at the village of Tapes. The descent is some 300 metres.
This is a tough gorge to crack and should only be walked by experienced hikers, and never alone, as it can be dangerous in places. The waymarking is good, thankfully, but at one stage there's a 10 metre climb, over practically sheer rock, to negotiate, with the aid of a piece of rope, which should be checked before use. Alternatively one can scramble across the scree which covers the hill surrounding the drop. An alternative name for the gorge is Perivolakia, as this is where it ends, some three to four hours after setting off.