Can you drink the tap water in Rethymno?

Yes. The tap water in Rethymno is safe to drink. It is treated, it meets standards, and it is fine for brushing your teeth. What you may notice is the taste: coastal water in Crete is hard and can carry a hint of chlorine, and that is the reason plenty of locals buy bottled anyway. Taste is not safety. Fill your bottle from the tap and save both the money and the plastic.

Safe to drinkYes

Brushing teethFine

TasteHard, sometimes chlorinated

Why locals buy bottledTaste, not safety

CostNothing

Before the FortezzaFill up, there is no shade

Why so many people ask

Because they see Cretans carrying six-packs of bottled water out of the supermarket and draw the obvious conclusion. The conclusion is wrong. Coastal water on this island is hard, the treatment can leave a chlorine note, and a lot of households simply prefer the taste of bottled water for drinking while using the tap for everything else. I drink it from the tap at home.

Fill up before you climb

This matters more than it sounds. There is almost no shade on the Fortezza hill and nothing inside worth planning your visit around, and a proper visit runs to 1.5 to 2 hours on rocky ground. Free water in your own bottle is the cheapest thing you will do all day. The rest of the kit list is on what to wear.

The other Crete questions

Safety, walking at night, the sea and the wind all get asked in the same breath as this one. The calm answers are on the safety page.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I drink tap water in Rethymno?

Yes. It is treated, it meets standards and it is safe. Some people prefer bottled for the taste, because coastal Cretan water is hard.

Can I brush my teeth with tap water in Crete?

Yes, in Rethymno that is completely normal and safe.

Why do locals buy bottled water then?

Taste, not safety. The water is hard and can carry a chlorine note. Fill a bottle from the tap before you climb to the Fortezza, where there is almost no shade — see what to wear.