Compiled by the spearo sea-state engine · How it works →
The verdict comes from seven water factors and hard safety gates — not ten tabs. Go or stay.
How we score the water
Our own model
Our own forecast engine — not a third-party widget. It weighs these water factors into one go-or-stay verdict for this coast; the 0–10 dial is that verdict, read out as a number.
01
Swell & wave memory
Height, period and direction of the swell, plus the wake of recent storms — an old storm still stirs the water, and the engine remembers.
02
Wind & gusts
Speed and gusts, hour by hour — wind speed and an onshore push chop the surface and cut visibility.
03
Tide phase
Timing and range of the tide, calibrated per coast — big spring tides pull the verdict toward caution.
04
Water temperature
Sea-surface temperature — sharply cold water vetoes a green verdict.
05
Currents & outflow
Direction and drift of the current — it pushes you, and it drags turbid coastal water across where you dive.
06
Rain runoff & air clarity
Rain muddies the water inshore through land runoff, while fog and haze cut visibility at the surface.
07
Coast shape & exposure
How the coast faces the swell — a sheltered cove keeps the water clean; an exposed, head-on point takes a penalty.
Safety gates
Thunderstorm forecast — an instant red, no exceptions.
An official warning (MeteoAlarm / IPMA) — yellow, or red for the higher ranks.
Missing input data — a would-be green is capped to yellow rather than overstated.
Strong disagreement between forecast models — a green day is pulled back to yellow.
Night hours — where night spearfishing is banned by law the window is forced red; where it is legal (Australia outside NSW, New Zealand, South Africa) it is capped at yellow, never green.
It all folds into a single 0–10 score and one verdict: go or stay.
A forecast, not a guarantee — the sea has the last word.
Where to get in, where to hunt
Entry points with coordinates
Seabed relief — promising ground
This verdict — in your pocket. Open the app for the week's window.
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0 m
Surface
Wind, wave and the swell windows — when to go and the best hours.
spearo.app
MeteoAlarm no dataupdated 13:53
Agios Nikolaos — solo, off the rocks
BORDERLINE
caution — solo off the rocks is risky, check on site · steep wind-wave — choppy surface, careful on entry
wave 0.9 mwind 16, gusts 31 km/hnoticeable surgevisibility ~3 m
What's missing? Tell us what you'd like to see — new spots, species, data or features. We read everything.
Your best window — with you. Forecast in your pocket.
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−10 m
The water column
Visibility and what drives it — post-storm clearing, river plume, temperature and the thermocline.
What it is
A marine instrument, go / no-go for solo hunting.
spearo.app folds wind, wave, swell period, visibility, tides, water temperature and risk into a single verdict — go to the spot or not. It computes 7 days ahead from open marine models (Open-Meteo, IPMA), with no sign-up and no accounts. Built for solo spearfishing off the rocks, where any mistake costs dearly.
Now live: 1391 spots across 205 stretches of coast — mainland Portugal, Madeira and the Azores.
Early first light, while the town is asleep and the boats are still tied up. From 11:00 to 13:00 the daytime breeze comes up and tears the surface. Best time of year is September to November: water still warm, fewer tourists. May is closed by law, night is out, a torch is banned.
tide
Nobody counts level here at all. What you count is cold brackish water: just south of town the Almyros runs into the sea from a brackish karst spring, and the water there is noticeably cold. After rain that layer spreads along the shore and kills the visibility.
shelter
The rocks on the town edge lie in the inner corner of Mirabello — half covered at best. The shore faces NE, so NNE and E wind arrives across the whole gulf with nothing to stop it. In N and NW the town side sits in the shadow of the land and the water stays calm.
conditions
Fine in a light N or NW. In NE and E forget it: shallow 2 to 10 m goes to soup first, and the rock entry turns nasty. This is a shallow site, so wave kills visibility far faster than at the deep boat spots further out in the gulf.
hazard
This is a town: harbour, marina, tour boats and swimmers everywhere. The law wants 200 m off wherever bathers normally swim and off port structures — in July and August that leaves almost nothing of this stretch. Organised beaches with sunbeds and a lifeguard are out from the start. Urchins in the rocks.
access
Walk in straight off the coast road over rock and shingle, park in town. A couple of minutes of swimming puts you over rocky bottom of 2 to 10 m. Pick a section well away from any beach and from the harbour. The islet opposite the port is a protected wildlife refuge — do not land on it.
Rocky 2–10 m on the town edge, easy entry, semi-sheltered.
Work from first light: the water is cleanest in the calm morning hours, before the daytime wind gets up. Season April to November, best September to November. All of May is closed across Greece, and so is night, from sunset to sunrise. July and August bring boats early.
tide
Tide barely works here — 10 to 30 cm, forget the level. Count the drift instead: a mild current is reported on the reef, and a multi-day meltemi pushes the surface layer and drags your buoy. Enter up-drift and come back to the boat with it, not against.
shelter
The reef sits deep inside the Gulf of Mirabello on its western side. The Kolokytha peninsula and Spinalonga block N and NW: the meltemi breaks on them and the water inside stays workable. The shore faces NE, so NNE and E wind comes straight in down the whole gulf.
conditions
Worth the trip in N and NW up to moderate — the lee holds. It shuts down in NE and E: that wind runs along the gulf axis and builds wave over the full length. Boat-only site, so wind counts twice: on the water over the reef and on the way back.
hazard
Working depth is 15 to 30 m: on repeat dives a blackout on the way up is easy to catch, keep your surface intervals and a buddy on top. Boats run all day between Agios Nikolaos, Elounda and Spinalonga — the buoy with the Υ.Δ. flag is mandatory. No shore nearby, never solo.
access
Boat only, about ten minutes out of Agios Nikolaos or Elounda; you cannot swim here from shore. Park over the reef and drop straight off the side. Leaving the harbour, keep 200 m off port structures and anchored boats — that is a legal requirement.
Reef 15–22 m in the sheltered Mirabello gulf; boat.
Get in at first light, before the Spinalonga boats start — in summer they run all day. Your mark on the water is the reef head that sticks out. Best months September to November. All of May is banned by law, and so is night: from sunset to sunrise you stay out of the water.
tide
Level has nothing to do with anything here, and there is practically no current — that is exactly what the site is valued for. Something else moves instead: wind shoves the top layer, and after rain or a hard blow the Elounda lagoon and the old salt pans push warm murky water out.
shelter
The most covered corner of the gulf: Spinalonga and Kolokytha stand as a wall to the N and NE, and the reef itself breaks the surface at one point and kills the chop. There is reliably no wave and almost no current here — which is why beginners get taken here. Only a hard E wind gets in.
conditions
It works even when the meltemi is wrecking the outside coast. It only falls apart in a strong NE or E blow that runs up the gulf. The bonus of a shore entry: you walk up, look at the water with your own eyes and decide whether to drive on or get in right here.
hazard
An ancient anchor close to two metres long lies on the bottom at 14 m, with old shells beside it. Touch nothing and lift nothing: raising antiquities is a criminal offence and the ordnance is old. Sunken Olous is nearby, so this stretch may be declared an archaeological zone with a full speargun ban — ask the port authority.
access
You can go in from shore at the Elounda corner — a rocky entry, shoes are mandatory, urchins on the rocks. Or by boat, about fifteen minutes out. The ground starts right after a short swim off the rocks. Keep 200 m off the Elounda quay and the boats lying at anchor.
Rocky 9–20 m, sheltered behind Spinalonga/Kolokytha; shore from Elounda or boat.
Very early. The cove is small and famous, excursion boats arrive from mid-morning, and in August it is busy all day. September to November is better, once the boat traffic thins. All of May is closed by law, and so is night, from sunset to sunrise.
tide
Level is not something you count here. Water does genuinely move in the narrows, though: between the peninsula and Kolokytha islet, and through the 1897 canal that links the Elounda lagoon to the gulf. Lagoon water is warmer and murkier, and a wind push carries that murk out.
shelter
The Kolokytha peninsula (Kalydon) is the wall itself: it shuts the whole Elounda side off from N and NW, and the west-facing coves hold the calmest water in the gulf. The outer, east-facing side of the peninsula, though, looks straight into the Cretan Sea and takes everything from NNE and E.
conditions
The sheltered side works in almost any meltemi — you just move round to whichever side of the peninsula is calm. If the wind swings NE or E, cross to the Elounda side. The rule is simple: work the side that has the land upwind of you, not behind your back.
hazard
On the shore north of the cove lie the remains of a 5th to 6th century early Christian basilica, and on the isthmus next door sits the sunken city of Olous, still under archaeological survey. Such a stretch can be declared an archaeological zone with a full speargun ban: check with the port authority and keep off visible ruins.
access
From Elounda east along the shore, past the old salt pans, over the little bridge at the 1897 canal and onto the peninsula. Then a dirt track, right after 200 to 300 m, three or four minutes across to the church of Saint Luke where you park. From there two or three foot trails drop to the cove. Or come by boat.
Turquoise sheltered peninsula across from Spinalonga — the cleanest, most sheltered water in the gulf; hike or boat. Coordinate approximate.
The first water of the day is the honest one: before 11:00 to 13:00, while the daytime breeze has not come up. Season April to November, best September to November when the water is still warm and already clear. May is closed across Greece; night and a torch are out entirely.
tide
Nobody counts level here, the swing is tiny. What you count is the water exchange at the point: an along-shore flow runs past the cape, the water is colder and clearer than in the bays, and a mild current is reported. The bottom drops from 8 to 40 m, so below the wall you hit the cold layer.
shelter
Pleora is a small cape on the deep edge of the gulf, about ten minutes west of the Agios Nikolaos harbour. The cape makes its own lee: in N and NW it is calm behind it and the wall works. In NE and E the cape is exposed and there is no side to hide on.
conditions
Come in N and NW and in a settled sea. Skip it in NE and E, and skip it after several days of meltemi when the wave is already up inside the gulf. Working depth is 17 to 35 m and the wall runs to 40 — this is not the place for your first outing of the season.
hazard
Two aircraft engines from an old plane lie at 20 to 22 m — look, but do not go inside and do not lift anything. There are overhangs and a small cave: on breath-hold you do not go under a roof. The wall pulls you down, 40 m arrives without you noticing. Lionfish turn up in the holes — no bare hands.
access
Boat only: under ten minutes west of the Agios Nikolaos harbour. There is no trail and no parking here. You set up on the wall side and work the reef northeast from there, out towards open water. Leaving the harbour, keep 200 m off the quays and the anchored boats.
Rock/drop 17–35 m on the deep gulf edge; boat, advanced.
Dawn, and only dawn: boats run from Elounda and Plaka every half hour, and by nine in the morning in summer the strait is packed. Night is banned by law from sunset to sunrise, and so is an underwater torch. Quietest is September to November. All of May is closed across Greece.
tide
This is where the water genuinely moves. Level still means nothing — centimetres — but the strait is only about 750 m wide and the whole mouth of the gulf breathes through it: the current is real and it changes direction. Enter upstream and come back to the boat on the drift.
shelter
The island plugs the northern mouth of the Elounda gulf. The inner, western face and the strait of roughly 750 m across to Plaka village hold flat water while the meltemi blows outside. The north side is sheer cliff and the east side is open to the Cretan Sea — in NNE and E it does not work.
conditions
Inside the strait the water works up to a moderate N or NW. Once it swings NE or E, or the meltemi has run for several days, do not come: wave gets into the strait and the boats do not stop anyway. Here the tour-boat timetable matters more than the wind forecast.
hazard
The most dangerous of the six. Tour boats run through the strait all day and the island has its own landing: the law wants 200 m off port structures and off boats at anchor, and the buoy with the Υ.Δ. flag has to be visible from 300 m. Add current in a narrow gap — this is no place to go solo.
access
Boat only. Spinalonga itself is a fee-paying archaeological monument with a fortress and its own landing — its shoreline is no place to carry a gun. The seabed here covered the entrance of the ancient harbour of Olous, and the strait IS a declared underwater archaeological area — Spinalonga, Vathy and Poros Elountas, ΦΕΚ 731/Β/1981 as extended by ΦΕΚ 1262/Β/2003 — so ΚΥΑ ΦΕΚ 336/Β/2004 closes the whole of it to spearfishing.
Rocky islet and channel with walls; boat, sheltered water but ⚠️ heavy tour-boat traffic — diver flag. Coordinate approximate.
SOLO is the biggest risk: underwater you can black out from lack of oxygen silently and fatally, with no one around. Solo is never truly «safe». Below are the best weather windows; carry a buoy, tell someone your plan and exit time, and any doubt — don't go.
One morning glance — and you know.
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≈
Surfacing
Cameras, map and reference — to hand as you come up.
Live cameras, map & reference
Cameras · live
Look at the water right now.
Check the cam BEFORE you leave. Foam, brown/green murk, or waves washing the entry rocks = No-go. At night/in fog the cam is useless — treat it as «unknown», NOT «green».
National minimum sizes + a 150 g floor (in the table below); grouper 1/day. Spearfishing is closed all May (ΠΔ 373/1985).
In season now
dusky grouper
Epinephelus marginatus · 8–35 m · EU 1967/2006
Grouper: max 1/day (shared genus-Epinephelus limit).
white grouper
Epinephelus aeneus · 15–45 m · EU 1967/2006
Grouper: max 1/day (shared genus-Epinephelus limit).
goldblotch grouper
Epinephelus costae · 10–35 m · EU 1967/2006
Grouper: max 1/day (shared genus-Epinephelus limit).
common dentex
Dentex dentex · 12–40 m · min 150 g
Premier reef target. No EU size — the 150 g minimum only. Ethical ≥40 cm (not law).
red porgy
Pagrus pagrus · 15–40 m · EU 1967/2006
white seabream
Diplodus sargus · 0–12 m · EU 1967/2006
saddled seabream
Oblada melanura · 3–15 m · min 150 g
No EU size — only the 150 g minimum applies.
greater amberjack
Seriola dumerili · 5–30 m · min 150 g
No EU size — only the 150 g minimum applies.
Mediterranean barracuda
Sphyraena viridensis · 3–25 m · min 150 g
No EU size — the 150 g minimum only. Histamine: bleed and chill at once.
Mediterranean parrotfish
Sparisoma cretense · 2–20 m · min 150 g
Eastern-Med delicacy (Crete/Dodecanese). No EU size — the 150 g minimum only.
brown meagre / corb
Sciaena umbra · 5–30 m · EU 1967/2006
common octopus
Octopus vulgaris · 0–15 m · weight ≥750 g
Minimum by weight: ≥750 g (ΠΔ 62/2024). Don't take egg-bearing females.
devil firefish (lionfish)
Pterois miles · 5–40 m · invasive
⚠️ Invasive — removal encouraged, excellent flesh. Venomous spines: never grab bare-handed, cut the spines, treat a sting with hot water (>45 °C).
silver-cheeked toadfish
Lagocephalus sceleratus · 5–40 m · invasive
☠️ Invasive — kill, but DO NOT EAT: deadly toxin (TTX). Sale banned (Reg. 853/2004, Annex III Sect. VIII Ch. V(E)). Powerful beak bites — never string it live on a stringer.
rabbitfish
Siganus rivulatus / luridus · 2–20 m · invasive
Invasive — removal encouraged, edible and tasty. Venomous dorsal/anal/pelvic spines — remove carefully, treat a sting with hot water.
wreckfish / stone bass
Polyprion americanus · 30–60 m · EU 1967/2006
Deep wreck species. Does NOT count toward the grouper limit (different genus). 45 cm — to verify.
striped seabream
Lithognathus mormyrus · 2–15 m · EU 1967/2006
striped red mullet
Mullus surmuletus · 3–30 m · EU 1967/2006
gilthead seabream
Sparus aurata · 2–20 m · EU 1967/2006
European seabass
Dicentrarchus labrax · 0–15 m · EU 1967/2006
leerfish / garrick
Lichia amia · 2–20 m · min 150 g
No EU size — only the 150 g minimum applies.
flathead grey mullet
Mugil cephalus · 0–8 m · min 150 g
No EU size — only the 150 g minimum applies.
Law
✓⚠️ MAY — a TOTAL spearfishing ban for the whole month, every year (ΠΔ 373/1985, art. 3§1α). This is law in force, not a draft.
✓No licence required: the was abolished in 2014 (Ν. 4256/2014) — every standing prohibition stays in force all the same.
•Recreational-fisher registry (ΟΣΠΑ / Μητρώο Ερασιτεχνών Αλιέων): Reg. (EU) 2023/2842 obliges member states to register recreational fishing, and the Greek registry is described as being prepared. We found neither an act in force nor a working registry as of 08.2026 — not confirmed. Check gov.gr before you travel.
✓Age: 16+ (under-16 spearfishing is forbidden; ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§1γ).
✓Daytime only: sunrise to sunset. Night is forbidden (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§1β).
✓Freediving only: scuba/any air-supply apparatus is banned — it may not even be carried aboard (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§2γ).
✓Distances: ≥200 m from bathers, harbours, moored vessels and marked nets; no hunting in fairways or harbour entrances/exits (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§1δ/ε).
✓Buoy MANDATORY: a yellow float + a yellow flag with a red diagonal stripe and the letters «Υ.Δ.», visible from ≥300 m; stay within 50 m of the buoy (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§3).
✓Limit: 5 kg/day (or one trophy heavier than the limit). Grouper (Epinephelus) — max 1/day, not banned (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 2§2).
✓Sale/trade of the recreational catch is prohibited (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 1§7).
✓Load the speargun only in the water — never keep it loaded out of the water (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§2β). Underwater light while hunting is forbidden (art. 3§2ζ).
✓Sea urchins — 20/day per person and 30/day per boat (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 2§2). Nets at any stage of the hunt are banned, and you may not take the catch out of somebody else's gear or nets (art. 3§2). Sponges and corals are off limits to the recreational fisher (art. 1§6).
✓Pneumatic and band guns are ALLOWED (a myth in English guides). Only spears with an explosive/chemical charge — — are banned (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§2δ).
Min. sizes: seabass 25 cm · gilthead 20 cm · white seabream 23 cm · grouper 45 cm · octopus 750 g (ΠΔ 62/2024). Any fish — not under 150 g (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 3§2στ). No-size species (dentex, amberjack, barracuda, parrotfish) — the 150 g minimum only. See the species card.
Safety protocol
Sets: watch the wave trains ≥15 min before entering; Hmax ≈ 2×Hs, the wash can run 50 m past the foam line. A lull >10 min with period >12 s = a big set «overdue», do NOT enter; enter right after a full set passes and re-check at minute 30.
Exit FIRST: find your exit AND a backup before entering. On a rocky/boulder shore a 0.5 m rise in swell can make the exit impossible — getting pinned/unable to climb out is the main killer.
Headland rip: prominent points often have a permanent topographic rip regardless of the model — locate it, enter/exit on the windward side, never swim against it.
Cold: wetsuit per the SST chip; the first shiver = a metabolic surge and a drop in breath-hold → get out at the first steady shiver. Cap the session at 45–60 min below 15 °C.
Solo discipline: buoy up; tell someone the spot and exit time; conservative breath-hold (never push it in cold/murky/surfy water); visibility <3 m — don't enter.
Afternoon wind: on many coasts the wind builds from midday — plan to be out of the water by midday; the chop builds — get out.
UV 11:00–15:00 (UVI ≥6): sunscreen and cover up on the surface interval.
Solo is a fundamental risk (hypoxic blackout with no buddy). Any doubt = No-go.
Local guide · Agios Nikolaos
Spearfishing in Agios Nikolaos: spots, seasons and rules
Updated 2026-07-09 · By Oleksandr, spearfisher
Spearfishing in Agios Nikolaos is Mirabello work first of all: deep clear water, rocky slopes, caverns and quick drop-offs, with usable lee behind Elounda, Kolokytha and Spinalonga. That makes the gulf one of the more wind-forgiving north-coast bases in the local notes. Jimmy's Reef and Pleora are boat plans, while Corallbeach and Kamini sit closer to shore. The Greek rule set still frames the day: May is off the calendar, the 2014 licence change means no new permit is issued, hunting is on breath-hold only, and the standard daily take is 5 kg.
TL;DR
Agios Nikolaos spearfishing is Mirabello work: Elounda, Kolokytha and Spinalonga create real lee in moderate meltemi.
Local notes spots are Jimmy's Reef, Pleora, Kamini / Elounda corner, Corallbeach, Kolokytha peninsula and Spinalonga channel.
Do not plan Agios Nikolaos for May: ΠΔ 373/1985 shuts Greek spearfishing for that entire month every year.
Outside the closure, this is freediving-only work, with no new licence issued since 2014, a 5 kg daily bag and Epinephelus grouper held to 1 fish/day.
Where can you spearfish in Agios Nikolaos?
For Agios Nikolaos, the table does not invent safety grades; it marks a level only where the source gives one. The local frame is Mirabello, where Elounda, Kolokytha and Spinalonga wall off a genuine lee. Spinalonga channel also carries a source warning for heavy tour-boat traffic and a diver flag.
Spot
Type
Depth
Level
Access
Notes
Jimmy's Reef (Elounda)
Reef in sheltered Mirabello
Deeper clean water around the reef
-
Boat
A boat reef inside the Mirabello and Elounda shelter pattern. No difficulty grade is supplied for this reef.
Pleora
Rock and drop on the deep gulf edge
Deep gulf edge with a drop
Advanced
Boat
The description explicitly says advanced. Do not treat it as a beginner option because it lies inside a gulf.
✓Full ban on taking: Pinna nobilis (πίννα), corals and sponges (ΠΔ 373/85, art. 1§6 + Habitats Directive 92/43).
✓Invasives: taking the lionfish (λεοντόψαρο) is encouraged — ⚠️ venomous spines. The silver-cheeked toadfish (λαγοκέφαλος) ☠️ DO NOT EAT — deadly toxin (TTX), sale banned (Reg. 853/2004, Annex III Sect. VIII Ch. V(E)), it bites. The rabbitfish (γερμανός) is edible — venomous spines.
✓In ANY declared underwater archaeological site, and in the submerged historic sites, spearfishing is BANNED — the act names ψαροντούφεκο in so many words (ΚΥΑ ΥΠΠΟ/ΓΔΑΠΚ/ΑΡΧ/Α1/Φ41/11228/1865, ΦΕΚ 336/Β/2004, part Α §2 δ + part Β). It reaches the sites our map does not draw, too. Do not touch antiquities (Ν. 3028/2002). Map of the zones — the ENALIA geoportal (thalchor-2.ypen.gov.gr/layers/geonode:ENALIA).
•The national marine parks of Alonissos/N. Sporades and Zakynthos (Laganas): spearfishing is BANNED in the park. But Alonissos zone Β4 is not solid — ΦΕΚ 1741/Β/2011 reopened four stretches inside it (the N shore Αγ. Δημήτριος–Άκρο Απύθμενο, Μηλιά–Σπαρτίνες, όρμος Κλήμα on Περιστέρα, the Μεγάλος Αδελφός shore), while the same act creates the ΕΕΑΧ Περιστέρας, where fishing IS banned. Our layer paints the park whole, i.e. stricter than the act. Check the limits with the park authority.
•The Southern Kynouria/Arcadia diving park: Ν. 4688/2020 establishes underwater parks, but we have not read a spearfishing prohibition inside it in the act — we treat that as NOT PROVEN rather than as confirmed. The park's boundary is not on our map either (the act publishes no coordinates). Ask the Leonidio/Tyros λιμεναρχείο before you go.
•Local bans: on top of the national rules, every port authority issues its own (ΓΚΛ/ΕΚΛ and λιμενάρχης decisions). In the ΛΣ-ΕΛ.ΑΚΤ registry we counted ~163 of them that reach a speargun, across 48 ports — our map does NOT draw them. Check your own port: alieia.hcg.gr/prohibitions/local/local17.php.
•Locally STRICTER than the national rule: Corfu (Kerkyra) — from 01.04 to 31.10 spearfishing is banned within 200 m of the shore, even where nobody is swimming (απόφαση Λ/Χ Κέρκυρας 2141.1/2939/2024, ΦΕΚ Β΄3269/2024). In practice that closes shore entry on Corfu for the season. We read the act in the registry, not in the ΦΕΚ — confirm with the λιμεναρχείο.
•Locally STRICTER: Lefkada — 300 m instead of 200, and not only the speargun: ψαροντούφεκο, nets and longlines are banned within 300 m of those sea areas, beaches and shores of the port district THAT ARE USED BY BATHERS (απόφαση Λ/Χ Λευκάδας 2131.13/1477/2022, in its own words «όπου χρησιμοποιούνται από λουόμενους»). The act ran to 30.09.2022 and we found no extension; an expired act is not proof that the ban is gone. Ask the Lefkada λιμεναρχείο.
•Locally STRICTER: Symi — from 15.06 to 15.09 fishing BY ANY MEANS is banned within 200 m of beach areas and in inhabited coastal areas WHERE BATHERS ARE PRESENT OR GATHER (απόφαση Λ/Χ Σύμης 2131.13/882/2016). Separately, year-round: fishing by any means is banned inside the port and its sea zone, except line/rod fishing from land (ΓΚΛ Σύμης, art. 151, ΦΕΚ 362/Β/2004). The acts were copied from the registry, not checked against the ΦΕΚ.
•Locally: inside the ports of Lavrio and Kea spearfishing is banned across the WHOLE port water, not merely under the 200 m rule; separately, in front of the hotel beaches (ΓΚΛ Λαυρίου, art. 240, ΦΕΚ 460/Β/1978). The act was copied from the registry, not checked against the ΦΕΚ.
•Coming: two new national marine parks are being created (Ionian + South Cyclades, ~27,500 km²). NOT yet in force (ΠΔ under review, mid-2026). Once live — a trawl ban + a seasonal coastal closure 15.04–31.05; in the strict zones spearfishing will be banned. Check before the season.
⛔ Pinna nobilis (πίννα, fan mussel) — full ban on taking/killing (Habitats Dir. 92/43 Annex IV; critically endangered).
Rules change, and the local Λιμεναρχείο (port authority) may impose local restrictions. Before heading out, check the current rules and the declared archaeological zones (ENALIA).
Boat
Sheltered water, but the source states heavy tour-boat traffic and a diver flag.
How is the water visibility in Agios Nikolaos today?
There is no live bottom-visibility figure in the Agios Nikolaos file. The local description is deep clear Mirabello water, often above 30 m of visibility. Elounda, Kolokytha and Spinalonga create lee, so the gulf can still fish in moderate meltemi. Treat the webcam as a surface-weather clue, not a seabed reading.
What fish can you spearfish in Agios Nikolaos, Crete?
The city profile names grouper, dentex and white grouper. The Crete list also includes red porgy, white seabream, saddled seabream, amberjack, barracuda, parrotfish, brown meagre and octopus. Grouper and white grouper are 45 cm, white seabream is 23 cm, octopus is 750 g, and Epinephelus grouper is capped at 1/day.
When is the best time to spearfish in eastern Crete?
The Agios Nikolaos season window in the local notes is September to November. Its value is wind tolerance from Elounda, Kolokytha and Spinalonga, though Spinalonga channel still needs respect for heavy tour-boat traffic. Put May aside entirely: under the national Greek closure, no spearfishing is allowed that month.
Do you need a license to spearfish in Greece?
Agios Nikolaos follows the national system, not a Cretan local permit. The former spearfishing licence is no longer required, and after the 2014 change Greece stopped issuing new ones. Check gov.gr because the free ΟΣΠΑ recreational-fisher registry is being rolled out until 31.12.2026. Use freediving only; scuba and any air-supply apparatus are barred even aboard. The take limit is 5 kg/day, or one heavier trophy, and Epinephelus grouper stays at 1 fish/day.
FAQ
Where can you spearfish in Agios Nikolaos?
The local notes names Jimmy's Reef, Pleora, Kamini / Elounda corner, Corallbeach, Kolokytha peninsula and Spinalonga channel. Corallbeach is the town-edge shore option, while Pleora and Spinalonga channel are boat-led choices.
Do you need a license to spearfish in Greece?
No former-style licence is needed for Agios Nikolaos. Greece has not issued new spearfishing licences since 2014, but the ΟΣΠΑ recreational-fisher registry should be checked on gov.gr before travel.
Is spearfishing banned in May in Greece?
Yes. For Agios Nikolaos, May is simply closed: ΠΔ 373/1985 makes the entire month a nationwide Greek spearfishing shutdown every year.
What is the daily catch limit for spearfishing in Greece?
Plan on 5 kg per day as the normal ceiling. If one fish alone exceeds that weight it can count as the take, while Epinephelus grouper has its own cap of 1 per day.
Is scuba spearfishing allowed in Greece?
No. Around Mirabello the legal method is breath-hold spearfishing only; scuba or another air-supply device is not allowed, including on the boat.
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