May signals the transition from spring into summer. Average temperatures are around 20°C, the sun shines on average 10 hours a day but nights remain cool. You might still get some rain (around 3 to 4 days during the month) but it's generally of a short duration.
The sea temperature is around 19°C and most people find it just about warm enough to swim in.
The spring flowers are still plentiful but the vegetation is starting to dry out a little at low altitude.
The table below lists weather averages in May for 7 towns of Crete.
Note that these weather stations are located near the sea, more or less at sea level and they generally get less rain than inland locations, especially higher up. Temperatures in hills and mountain areas can be considerably cooler.
May weather averages in Crete |
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City |
Monthly Max. Temperature |
Monthly Min. Temperature |
Monthly Average Temperature |
Average Rain |
Days of rain |
Chania |
24.7°C |
15.2°C |
20.1°C |
14mm |
3.5 |
Rethymnon |
24.2°C |
15.6°C |
20.7°C |
14mm |
3.1 |
Heraklion |
23.5°C |
15°C |
20.3°C |
14mm |
4.4 |
Sitia |
23.7°C |
15.5°C |
20.3°C |
12mm |
3.1 |
Paleochora |
24°C |
16.2°C |
20.7°C |
2mm |
|
Tymbaki |
24.5°C |
14°C |
20.6°C |
9mm |
1.9 |
Ierapetra |
24.5°C |
15.2°C |
20.9°C |
14mm |
2.8 |
Average Sunlight Hours/ Day (data recorded for Heraklion) 10:19 Average Sea Temperature 19°C Highest recorded temperature (in Heraklion) 38°C Coldest recorded temperature (in Heraklion) 6°C Winds: Winds are extremely dependant on the specific location at which you are so I prefered to avoid any wind averages because they will be misleading. If you want to study wind statistics for Crete please check the Advanced Wind Rose on this paper. |
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