It is located 8 miles south of the city of Ierapetra, and every summer is flooded by thousands of tourists who come to the island with boats that sail from Ierapetra.

The island is surrounded by many beautiful beaches, with the most impressive to be the Golden beach. Moreover, most of the cedars on the island are at least 200 years old and some of them reach a height of 7 meters.

The island got its present name (Chrissi) due to its soft golden sand. Regarding its second name (Gaidouronisi), it comes from the fact that the citizens of Ierapetra used to transport their aged donkeys to this island, in order to spend their last days with peace and serenity.