Island Hopping : The Cyclades
The Cyclades are the most popular of Greece’s seven archipelagos but each island holds its own unique history, character and culture. Two in particular grace most travel addicts bucket lists - the beaches and parties of Mykonos and the dramatic caldera cliff coast of Santorini. Given, these destinations are worthy of your time but truth be told the lure of Greek island life has been lost amongst the throngs of people who descend each May to October. So, if you want an authentic Mamma Mia experience make the effort to visit an island you cannot fly directly to.
The following itinerary, should I have successfully run the numbers, will come to in and around £1,500 including return flights and your ferries.
Getting to the Cyclades for this itinerary you can fly to Athens and then home from Mykonos. Of course, you could reverse the itinerary or make use of Santorini’s International Airport
Santorini Hotels for a night or two tag on:
Mykonos Hotels for a night or two tag on:
Cali Mykonos $$$ The Wild $$
x1 night Asomaton Hotel, Athens
from £140 a night bed and breakfast
Athens is great. Sure, it can’t compete with the likes of Rome or Paris but trust me, the Acropolis will blow your socks off. The atmosphere is gritty but friendly and I promise you’ll never regret a night in the city chomping on kalamata olives in the shadow of Ancient Civilisation.
Asomaton is a new hotel in the heart of Plaka (Old Town) so no need to tackle the subway system or haggle with too many taxi drivers. Your 24 hour home will be a building so protected the Greek Ministry of Culture got involved with the architects to preserve as much as possible.
Watch the Changing of the Guard at Syntagma Square on the hour every hour
Get a table on the terrace at Psarras Tavern in Plaka. Save some food for the pussy cats on the walk back
Eat your first block of feta
Hail a taxi and head over to Heteroclito for biodynamic Greek wines
A ferry from Athens to Andros is approx 1 hour 45 minutes and costs approx €25
x2 nights Casa di Fiori, Andros
From £150 a night Bed & Breakfast
On Andros lemons were once so prized they were wrapped and sold individually; now the footpaths are decorated with fallen fruit. Lucky for the walkers who amble down the hundreds of miles of them.
Unlike the rest of the parched archipelago, Andros has plentiful springs and streams, waterfalls and wetlands. Every village has a communal marble washbasin fed by ice-cold mountain water.
Newly opened Casa di Fiori feels deep in the countryside whilst being in reach of Chora, the main town on the island. Owners want guests to feel at home so settle into your enormous Suite or sleep under the stars on the outdoor sofa on your veranda.
Achla, one of its most beautiful and secluded beaches, can be reached only by boat or by a six-mile dirt road
Skalakia this family-run spot spills down a set of stairs onto the main street in Chora
Paddleboard around Golden Sands Beach
The ferry to Syros from Andros is a little over an hour and costs approx €35
x2 nights Pino di Loto, Syros
from £120 a night Bed and Breakfast
Owned by the Rigouzzo family, the small hotel runs as a home from home and their knowledge of the island and things to do really is second to none. Hidden above the fishing village of Kini, Pino di Loto’s set up is as quintessentially Mamma Mia as it gets.
The same goes for the island of Syros. White washed homes and churches, local fisherman and private quiet beaches. Syros, overlooked by tourists charging about the more popular islands, is all the better a destination for it. Take the old town of Ermoupoli. A blend of neoclassical and Venetian architecture, with ornate balconies and shutters, cobbled streets, tiny squares and wrought-iron lamps; the whole place is straight out of a 19th-century opera with little traffic and best of all no tacky tourist shops to spoil the illusion.
Take the Perla speedboat (normally leaves around 11am) to the secluded beaches of Lia and Grammata in the north of the island; backed by rugged stony hills and without road access, you will feel truly away from it all
Capital Ermoupolis is a neoclassical wonder well worth a visit. Climb to the summit of Ano Syros, a winding hillful of photogenic, pastel coloured lanes topped by the Catholic church of St. George
Swim and snorkel along the coastline, two beaches are in easy walking distance. Local beaches busy with Greeks? Delfini beach (30 mins' hike): is stonier but there's sand at the far end, by a lovely seasonal taverna
Seaside Tzitzikia in Kini is an absolute must for your final meal on the island
The ferry to Paros from Syros is a little over an hour and costs approx €35
x2 nights Bohemian Hotel, Paros
From £150 a night Bed & Breakfast
I’ll be honest I hate the name. HOWEVER, you cannot fault the location in Naousa.
Historically Paros was billed as the ‘best kept secret’ of the Cyclades and although now the secret is certainly out, it is still more than worthy of a visit. Of time spent in Paros, Cecil Beaton once said “life is nothing but sleep, swim, eat and read”. Sign me up!
Explore Naousa, one of the most picturesque seaside villages in the Cyclades
The island offers some awesome water sports opportunities - learn to windsurf or, if your feeling less gnarly… rent a boat or kayak along the coastline to discover hidden coves and the chance to snorkel with turtles
Visit Panagia Ekatontapiliani church, built in the 4th century and known as "the Church with the Hundred Doors"
Head inland to the mountain village of Lefkes, favoured for its traditional character and tavernas.
Paros Park is great for hiking and worth checking if there are any outdoor performances on whilst you are there
Day trip to Anti Paros and eat lunch at picturesque Beach House Taverna
The ferry Sifnos from Paros takes just 55 minutes and costs from €50
x2 nights Niriedes Hotel, Sifnos
from £100 a night Bed & Beakfast
Sifnos has an incredibly special place in my heart. It is everything small island life should be - people are smiling, friendly and curious. Everyone you meet will know the owner of where you are staying. The rules of the road do not apply.
The island is famous for food, ceramics and has some of the best marked hiking trails in all of the Cyclades. It is so Greek you’ll throw a tantrum when you hear someone else speaking British.
O Drakakis - tables pouring out onto the street where Greek classics are served, have the chocolate balls for pudding (tuck your napkin into your top)
Sifnos Trails - for hikes around the island
Omega 3 - small plates of fresh fish, routinely seen as the best restaurant on the island
Kavos Sunrise Bar - iconic rum bar to hit after sunset at Church of the Seven Martyrs
The ferry to Mykonos or back to Athens from Sifnos is approximately 1 hour 45 minutes and costs from €35 per person. There is a high speed 3 hour ferry to Santorini daily from the island.