Balos

Balos is one of the most jaw-dropping lagoons in all of Greece, tucked into the remote Gramvousa Peninsula at the far northwestern tip of Crete. You anchor off and wade ashore through impossibly shallow, turquoise water to a sandbar that splits the lagoon from the open sea. It gets seriously crowded in summer — day-trip boats pour in from Kissamos — so arriving early or late gives you a totally different, almost otherworldly experience.