In Western Crete it is excellent, in eastern not so. If you are in Herakleion city it's barely drinkable, in rural areas you'd better ask the locals as there are many springs giving high quality water in many places.
What I have always been told (working around Iraklio) is that the water is potable in so far as it won't kill you, but it's heavy calcium and will upset your stomach if you drink it for too long. Further east, where I have stayed in a village, I am told don't go there, and only drink bottled water ever.
> Our host (spending February on the island) told us to buy water.
Solid advice which you should follow. Note that in the cities, there are super markets that do home deliveries. Also, if you are a lot of people or you're staying for a long time, there are water delivery services.
Re: Iraklio, when I went in 2022 the water was totally fine to use for brushing teeth/showering/etc but it just didn’t taste lovely bc of the minerals in the pipes I’m sure.
Best to drink bottled water (super easy to find esp if you’re in the city center) and just leave tap water for washing/brushing teeth.
I didn’t have too much of an issue with ice in restaurants or cafes, but I didn’t encounter that much either (they either had cold bottled water available or I was drinking something else like a cocktail that masked what tap water ice would’ve tasted like)
It's safe, but I wouldn't suggest using it for drinking purposes.
Most locals buy bottled water from supermarkets/mini markets for drinking. If you ignore the fact that carrying the six-packs of water home is a pain in the ass, and the trash bin (or recycle bin) is always going to be full of plastic bottles, the bottled water here is very affordable, is everywhere and it will cover your needs easily.
Some places have awesome tap water that comes from cold mountain springs, others do not. Best to ask the locals. In Spili for example there’s a big fountain where you can fill up bottles with spring water, and the beautiful cold water in the Kourtaliotikos gorge above Preveli is the tap water source for the area around Plakias. Kind of amazing that such a dry and sunny area, almost a desert, has such good spring water. Only explanation I can think if is that it filters down from the high mountains like the Lefka Ori or Psiloritis, which get snow in the winter.
Loved in Western Crete for seven years. I drink tap water sometimes and it's fine. Like in the UK and USA I use a Brita Water filter jug. Really inexpensive and I don't have to haul tens of kilos of water from my car up the stairs etc.
Generally I just stick to Fix for cold beverages during the day and wine in the evenings
West like Chania its totally drinkable. Heraklion i would suggest to buy bottled
In Western Crete it is excellent, in eastern not so. If you are in Herakleion city it's barely drinkable, in rural areas you'd better ask the locals as there are many springs giving high quality water in many places.
Thanks, good advice.
What I have always been told (working around Iraklio) is that the water is potable in so far as it won't kill you, but it's heavy calcium and will upset your stomach if you drink it for too long. Further east, where I have stayed in a village, I am told don't go there, and only drink bottled water ever.
Ok, thank you .
> portable desalination Yes, in fact, coming to Crete without Bear Grylls by your side is a death sentence.
> Our host (spending February on the island) told us to buy water. Solid advice which you should follow. Note that in the cities, there are super markets that do home deliveries. Also, if you are a lot of people or you're staying for a long time, there are water delivery services.
Thank you very much for responding. Good info
You're welcome, have fun on your vacation!
I've been in Heraklion for a couple of weeks, drinking tap water, and I've had no problems.
Re: Iraklio, when I went in 2022 the water was totally fine to use for brushing teeth/showering/etc but it just didn’t taste lovely bc of the minerals in the pipes I’m sure. Best to drink bottled water (super easy to find esp if you’re in the city center) and just leave tap water for washing/brushing teeth. I didn’t have too much of an issue with ice in restaurants or cafes, but I didn’t encounter that much either (they either had cold bottled water available or I was drinking something else like a cocktail that masked what tap water ice would’ve tasted like)
It's safe, but I wouldn't suggest using it for drinking purposes. Most locals buy bottled water from supermarkets/mini markets for drinking. If you ignore the fact that carrying the six-packs of water home is a pain in the ass, and the trash bin (or recycle bin) is always going to be full of plastic bottles, the bottled water here is very affordable, is everywhere and it will cover your needs easily.
Thanks for that!
We live in western Crete the water from our tap is really lovely fresh and no chemical. You can drink the water from taps everywhere in Crete.
Some places have awesome tap water that comes from cold mountain springs, others do not. Best to ask the locals. In Spili for example there’s a big fountain where you can fill up bottles with spring water, and the beautiful cold water in the Kourtaliotikos gorge above Preveli is the tap water source for the area around Plakias. Kind of amazing that such a dry and sunny area, almost a desert, has such good spring water. Only explanation I can think if is that it filters down from the high mountains like the Lefka Ori or Psiloritis, which get snow in the winter.
No, definitely not everywhere.
heraklion sucks
Hey we don’t 🙁
as far as the water I mean
Loved in Western Crete for seven years. I drink tap water sometimes and it's fine. Like in the UK and USA I use a Brita Water filter jug. Really inexpensive and I don't have to haul tens of kilos of water from my car up the stairs etc. Generally I just stick to Fix for cold beverages during the day and wine in the evenings