Five secret Greek island escapes

Kea Island

Where? Around 37 miles south east of Athens

Kea Island is easily one of the most charming of the Cyclades, its varied landscapes encompass oak forests, scatterings of olive trees, rugged rocky slopes interspersed by almond groves and tasteful summer homes.

Kea is a haven for artists and musicians, as well as cosmopolitan Athenians, who draw inspiration from the island’s serenity. Take a leaf out of their book and wander along the winding alleyways of Ioulida, taking in fig trees and small covered alleys and courtyards filled with herbs, cacti and geraniums, and call in at a medieval castle.

The island offers no less than 40 magnificent beaches, with many reachable only by sea on a private boat tour. Despite being a peaceful retreat, you can find a lively slice of nightlife in Kea Town while divers are rewarded with a variety of shipwrecks.

Get there: Fly to Athens and stay at the One & Only Kea Island clifftop Resort. From Athens airport, travel to Port Lavrio and catch a ferry. The crossing takes around an hour.

Before you leave Kea Island…don’t miss the annual summer Fairy Tale Festival, when storytellers tell tales under the plane trees in squares and ancient paths dotted around the island.

Milos 

Where? A horseshoe-shaped island midway between Athens and Crete

You may have heard of Milos without even knowing: the Venus de Milo was discovered here, in the village of Tripiti, in 1820. Milos itself feels a little like going to the moon: the dazzling white cliffs jutting out at peculiar angles and volcanic coastal rock formations lend the place an otherworldly feel. The volcano still produces heat, and that’s a good thing as it means that the island has hot springs that you can bathe in. Perhaps the best of its 80 beaches is Sarakiniko, with twisted white rocks sprawling into a sparkling blue sea. There’s more to see underground, too: Milos’s labyrinthine catacombs, which date back to between the 1st and 5th centuries AD.

Get there: Fly to Athens and stay at the four-star Royal Olympic Hotel or the five-star Cape Sounio, A Grecotel Resort to Live. From Athens you can fly on to Milos in under an hour.

Before you leave Milos… Check out the popular fishing village of Klima, with its syrmata houses, originally designed with their lower floors as boat garages. All have pretty colourful doors, and some are still used by locals.

Holiday package prices shown exclude local taxes, fees and charges that may be payable at your accommodation. If applicable, these will be displayed in the price breakdown when booking.

Paros

Where? 93 miles south east of Piraeus.

Paros is a popular island famed for its traditional Cycladic architecture and surfeit of alluring sandy beaches. It is also known for its green mountains, clifftop villages, enchanting rural villages and historic monuments.

Known for being a go-to spot for kitesurfing and windsurfing, the island has hosted international tournaments for decades. Ramble around its picturesque villages such as Parikia, Lefkes and Naoussa, where whitewashed houses, flower-filled courtyards and cobbled alleyways meet upscale dining and vibrant nightlife.

Get there: Fly to Athens and stay at Cosme - A Luxury Collection. A ferry from Piraeus takes around four hours, or you can fly from Athens in around an hour.

Before you leave Paros… Check out the extraordinary, unique rock formations known as the Kolymbithres. These have been sculpted by the wind and sea over millennia to resemble striking sculptures dreamt up by artists.

Naxos

Where? 114 miles south east of Piraeus

Naxos is often considered a smaller, viable alternative to Crete. Here you’ll find abundant beaches, stunning scenery and a smattering of ancient sites to discover. For starters, the island is blessed with uncrowded sandy beaches. Head south of Naxos Town along the west coast where you’ll find some gems, such as the four-kilometre-long Plaka Beach and Agios Prokopios Beach, with crystal clear waters and a long promenade leading to the port and many good restaurants along the way.

Naxos’ charming, whitewashed towns stay open year-round to welcome visitors. Don’t miss Chalki, with its well-preserved Neoclassical homes and Venetian-style towers that hark back to a time when the town was the island’s main trading centre. The more traditional village of Koronos offers a dramatic hillside setting and narrow cobbled streets to wander around. The Church of Panagia Argokoiliotissa here is also worth a look.

The island offers up a plethora of ancient sites, starting with the iconic Portara, a giant 6th Century doorway to the unfinished Temple of Apollo which is immediately visible from the ferry, going on to Naxos Kastro (Castle) and the striking 7th Century Kouros statues.

Get there: Fly to Athens and stay at Lagos Mare. From Athens, take a ferry from Piraeus. The journey takes between three and five hours, depending on which operator you use. Alternatively, you can reach Naxos by ferry from a neighbouring island like Santorini, which is 90 minutes away..

Before you leave Naxos… Call in at the Vallindras Kitron Distillery in Chalki and take the free tour during which you get a chance to sample the famed local liqueur Kitron.

Kyllini

Where? 17 miles north east of Zante

Strictly speaking this one isn’t an island as it’s on the Greek mainland, but it’s well worth a detour to reach this enticing western corner of the Peloponnese. Kyllini first made waves when it was namechecked by none other than Homer in his epic poem the Iliad and continues to attract small numbers of discerning visitors today.

Visitors are drawn here by its huge volume of Kalamata olives, its sublime uninterrupted stretch of sandy beaches, one of Greece’s best preserved castles, Chlemoutsi, and its location 40 minutes from Ancient Olympia, which of course hosted the very first Olympic games. You’ll find yourself in fly-drive heaven here too, with numerous other ancient sites to explore across the Peloponnese.

Get there: Fly to the island of Zante and stay at Grecotel LUXME Oasis at Riviera Olympia, south of Kyllini. Take a ferry from Zante Town to Kyllini – the crossing takes 75 minutes.

Before you leave Kyllini… check out the restorative powers of the open-air thermal springs at Loutra Kyllini, which date back to Roman times and are dedicated to the Greek god of healing, Asclepius. Take an invigorating mud bath here to revive your senses and exfoliate your skin.

Holiday package prices shown exclude local taxes, fees and charges that may be payable at your accommodation. If applicable, these will be displayed in the price breakdown when booking.

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