There are plenty, but you'll have to give us more info as to where you are going if members are going to reply to you specifically!

Might I suggest beach shoes for some of the pebbly beaches might be a good investment for the young ones.

You could take a look at the Iberostar Creta Panorama/Mare near Rethmynon.

It has a good man made cove with a small, narrow entrance which makes swimming and use of inflatables particularly safe - I think they even have a lifeguard on the beach in peak season.

However, as far as sand goes the cove is not the best...but a short trip into nearby Panormo or Rethmynon will find better if a holiday requirement.

These are two wonderful AI hotels - you would not be disappointed with any aspect !

If you are willing to travel independently look at Frangokastello on the south coast - the sea is shallow (about knee deep for about 10 metres), the beach sandy and local tavernas excellent.

Loutro is also very sheltered (we're starting there in September!)

Georgioupolis (main) beach on the north coast is also relatively shallow and there's a slightly more sheltered (if very cold water) beach to the immedite west of the village.

Hope this helps.

Western Crete sounds like it would suit you but a beach to possibly avoid would be Almerida. A lovely little village but you need to be careful with kids as to which end of the beach you use because it can get choppy unless in the shelter of the harbour wall. At nearby Kalyves the sea tended to be calmer. These things often depend on whether there is an offshore wind or not.

SM

Hi
When we went to crete we atayed on the outskirts of ag nik and went to the marabello beach it is shingle so the advice on shoes is a must for you and the kids, my youngest was 7 and my son was 8 and they love the water and it was shallow for a long way, it is also a great place to snorkle there are lots of different fish that your son will love to see, hope i have helped
p.s it is not a club place and there are taveras near by
Marie

Kalives is perfect for kids - the sea is always calm and their a lots of great taverna's

we stayed in elounda about 15 years ago the beach was fine as i seem to remember but when you walked further round it got a bit pebbley.The wife and i hired a few canoes and i recall the sea to be a bit choppy and struggled to make it back in,we went in august.

no sea is safe if the parents do not look after the kids.
it doesnt matter if there is a life guard on the spot. imagine a beach of 1klm long and the life guard having to run up and down.
time in such things is importand. keep an eye on the kids and always follow the 3 hours rule for no swimming after eating

I take your general point but there is no indication in LizzyB's post that she was thinking of ever leaving her kids in the sea on their own. She asked a very specific question:

Are there any resorts with a safe, fairly shallow sea which are ok for faimlies?

ie ones where there won't be big breakers, were the beach doesn't suddenly shelve away into deep water and without strong currents and people have answered on that basis and provided info on where they think she'll find the sort of beach that isn't a positive danger to kids. Yes, of course, parents need to take basic, sensible precautions but surely she was looking to avoid beaches were it would unsafe to even let the kids into the water regardless of how close an eye she kept on them.

SM

Hi LizzyB if you have transport then Marathi beach on the Akrotiri Peninsular (opposite Kalives) would be absolutely perfect. It's a beautiful sheltered sandy beach and doesn't suffer from the big breakers which appear all down the North coast! We personally wouldn't go anywhere along the strip from Aghia Marina (I think that's the first resort) down to Malame. We went in July with a 6 year old and whenever we took a trip along this coast the sea was extremely rough it scared me so definitely not good for a young child!
A previous poster was correct in saying beware of Almerida as the undercurrant is very strong there and they have boats on patrol ready to rescue swimmers and people on lilos!

We would love to go back to Marathi as the beach is fab and the views across to the White Mountains are simply stunning but I'm not sure if any tour operators go there now - Direct Greece were the only ones but I think they've dropped Crete
Anyway good luck and hope you have a great holiday
Diane

Kalives . Bali. Glaros near Hania. Platanias ( Hania area). some places in Elounda