Help! 4 single girls (Age:30's)traveling to Crete and need suggestions for best beach to stay in and what hotels? Nightlife?

Go to Chania for great beaches, beach bars, nightlife etc. I would stay in the Old Port of Chania, and rent a car to visit the beaches on the west side.

If you want to stay in a city that also has a good beach, then Hania would not be the one. It is the best city to stay in and has good nightlife but the town beach isn't very good. You would be going out on day trips to beaches which is an option.
Other options would be Matala on the south coast or Palechora also on the south coast. Both have excellent beaches and nightlife. Also Rethymion, if I recall, has a decent beach in town. My other 2 favourite beaches are Elofonissi and Falsarma but neither had accomodation or night life when I was there. http://www.interkriti.gr/fly/index.html

I would have thought Paleochora or some of the south coast places- Frangokastelo, Chora Sfakion, or Plakias as well as Malia.

Oh, or Agios Nikolaos

Malia is probably the nightlife 'capital' (- read: noisy) - and has a good beach.

I ended up there by mistake - but maybe it's what you're looking for

Steve

Ag. Nicholaos and Malia are good for nightlife.

Carolena

REally i haven't been to Malia so i can't comment on that, but Ag. NIkolaos is an ugly city.. don't go there! I suppose you don't want just nightlife.
I believe that next to Chania (as you see the map on the left side) there is a big beach with beach bars etc. I think it's in Platanias. You can stay there and rent a car to visit Chania and nearby beaches.