Hi infosyman,

Gouves eh, some like and some loathe it, in order to identify which category you are why not just spend a day there. Just think if you fall into the latter category of loathing it its a 7 or 14 day holiday wasted! As you are "considering going there in September" as a first timer then I have to say there are other places in Crete which may be a safer bet to "consider"!

In order to have a flavour of Gouves look throughout these Boards and you will get the drift.

Enough bars to keep you going and the one big plus are the Tavernas are as good as most places.

The "strip" is hardly that with only 150 metres or so of sand, the rest is rocks. The Bar/Restaurant "strip" is on an incline with shops selling the usual tat, bars with the ever increasing chucker innerers, oops sorry, I mean PR guys and as I say some surprisingly quite good Restaurants/Tavernas.

If it helps and by way of comparison, Gouves is not as Aesthetically appealing as Argassi and Tsilivi.

I have tried to be as tactful as I can here and have made no big deal about the amount of derelict, neglected and half built Hotels/Studios which give it that 1990's Beruit feel.