The Cyclades are amongst the most popular group of Greek Islands, and for a good reason! The towns are lively and photogenic with their whitewashed houses and blue-domed churches, and there are plenty of picturesque bays and beaches to swim at, including sea caves to explore. My first foray to the Greek Islands and on a sail boat was 9 years ago to Santorini, Naxos and Koufonisia, and you can probably tell from the number of other Greece and sail trips I have done since then, what a positive lasting impression it made on me. So when MedSailors announced the Greece Cyclades route, it was time to round up another group of friends to have a relaxing week at sea once more 🙂
This August, we set sail from Paros (Parikia marina), after first spending 3 days in Naoussa. To get to Paros, you can either take a ferry to Parikia, or fly into the airport on the southwest side of the island, which is close to Antiparos. There are a couple of supermarkets and retail shops next to the marina in case you want to pick up some snacks and beverages or do some shopping, but the boat also supplies bottled water, orange juice, and 2 beers and wines every lunchtime for free.
We boarded our MedSailors/Yacht Getaways catamaran at 3.30pm, met our skipper Dal and host Bri, and had a briefing before heading out of the port towards Naoussa. Mother Nature or rather, the Meltemi winds had their own agenda however, so we changed course to Antiparos for a smoother sail. With the catamaran being a Yacht Getaways charter, this meant we had both a skipper and a host, and a more spacious boat. Compared to other MedSailors catamarans I have been on, the Lagoon 42 has 4 double bedrooms with ensuites, and the two back bedrooms have full standing showers. There is also panel controlled air conditioning in the rooms and you can charge your electronics via a European plug socket when the generator is on, or via 2 USB-A ports 24/7.
As we approached Antiparos, we saw dozens of kite surfers making the most out of the ideal wind conditions. We anchored in the port’s bay and tendered over to the island, exploring the bougainvillea-lined main street shops, until we reached Sifneiko Beach for sunset. We enjoyed drinks and nibbles at Sifneiko Cafe before heading back to Antiparos town for dinner.
The next morning, we sailed over to Blue Lagoon next to Tigani Island and enjoyed our first breakfast and swim of the week. All breakfasts and lunches on the boat are included and cooked by our lovely host Bri 🙂 Breakfast is continental (fruit, cereal, bread, spreads and yoghurt) with a changing cooked option daily, and boy, I was looking forward to diving back into the local Greek yoghurt and Mediterranean diet, yum!
Our longest sail stint of the week to Ios followed, a bit choppy here and there but nothing a lie down didn’t cure. We docked at port Gialos and had lunch (pesto pasta and salad) with a side of people watching, and Dal and Bri picked up some ice for our drinks and maps of the island. At each location, Dal & Bri messaged into our WhatsApp group restaurant and sightseeing recommendations, and this was also how we stayed in touch with each other for tender/dingy pick ups and Mr Bean memes lol. They also made a booking in advance for sunset drinks at the gorgeous Alma Sunset Bar, and dinner at Katogi Tapas Bar – another winner 😀
We took the public bus to Chora town (€1.60) and wandered up through the maze of white buildings until we reached the Elitis Open Theatre which had views over Mylopotas Beach. A lot of the shops and restaurants are closed during the day, but the views of Chora and the port are excellent on this walk and the streets are quiet. You can also rent an ATV at €35 for 24 hours, but you will need an international car driver’s license and €100 cash deposit for one of the rental places at the port. Parking is available at the bottom and top of Chora town (no vehicles are allowed in the maze which is made for pedestrian strolling).
Tip: bring walking friendly sandals due to the hilly terrain of this island!
We caught the bus from Chora to Mylopotas Beach next (€1.60), and enjoyed an hour on the wide stretch of soft, golden sand beach, home to various restaurants and beach clubs. You can hire a sun bed and umbrella starting from €30 for the back row, and the ocean water here has gentle waves. On the bus ride back to Ios port, there was a man checking if your swimming togs (mainly men’s board shorts) were too wet, and if they were, you were not allowed on the bus (despite the seats having plastic covers on them)
At night, Ios is a different beast, and Chora town is bustling with cheap drinks on offer and plenty of restaurants and bars, ready for a good time. At Alma Sunset Bar, there is an infinity pool and views of the port and Sikinos in the distance, drinks and nibbles on offer with a €15 minimum spend pp. Dinner at Katogi Tapas Bar was delicious, a diner style restaurant serving Greek tapas e.g. Souvlaki Tacos and Feta and Honey Buffalo Sliders, with a line snaking out of its door and up the stairs and street!
We sailed over to the bay by Koumpara Beach in the morning and enjoyed a pancake breakfast with some spanakopita. The stone fruit in Greece is worth mentioning – the nectarine and peaches are huge and oh so sweet, perfect with yoghurt. There were some sea caves to explore in this bay after breakfast, situated beneath a rich listers house with interesting sculptures dotted along their property.
We made our way over to the Small Cyclades Islands, starting with Iraklia and Alimias Beach. There was a plane wreck to snorkel in this bay, accompanied by a salami and vegetable quesadilla lunch with salad.
Next, we sailed over to Schinoussa and anchored near Tsigouri Beach for the afternoon and evening. Schinoussa was the quietest of the islands we stayed at over night, and the small town centre is perched on top of a hill that takes about 10-15 minutes via steps and road to get to from the beach. There were plenty of super yachts dotted around the island despite it being relatively quiet and mellow, and we had dinner at Deli Taverna Restaurant which also has an all day bar and offers good views and pasta and grill options. Note: Be careful of sea urchins amongst the rocks when swimming in the bay.
Breakfast with poached eggs was served in the bay before we set off to Kato Koufonisi and anchored in the most beautiful turquoise waters with a sandy floor. Lunch was gnocchi with chorizo and caprese and orange beetroot salads.
The island of Koufonisia was just a short sail away and we managed to score a spot at the marina for the night. The town centre is just up from the marina/port, and Ammos Beach to the right of the port has the most gorgeous pale turquoise water colour.
For those wanting to venture further, the island’s coast is dotted with a combination of pebbly, rocky and sandy beaches, some walkable, and others a bit further afield so we rented e-bikes for the day (€18). The road to Pori Beach winds up and down a few hills and ends at some impressive cliffs and sea caves. On a calm day, it is possible to do cliff jumping, but since it was pretty windy, we parked and locked up the bikes and walked along the coast to Natural Pool.
It can get a bit dusty on the bikes, and no helmets are provided so cycle carefully! A key also broke when unlocking one of the bikes, so a couple of our group had to cycle back to the rental place and the worker brought a box of ~100 keys with him which was sifted through until we found a duplicate.
We also visited Angel’s Eye in the late afternoon (only 500m from the bike rental stand), which was a little more choppy compared to Natural Pool, and had the place to ourselves 🙂
We had dinner at Michalios Grill that had generous portions of classic local Greek food at a good price, and then headed to the town centre for some gelato and to check out the shops. We stopped at Moon Bites Loukoumades and shared some yummy Bueno praline loukoumades (€6 for 16). As it was a public holiday that day (August 15th, Dormition of Virgin Mary), there was loud music all night long, that didn’t cease until 7am, and fireworks at 1am. A stroll through the town in the morning revealed many empty bottles and cans, people sleeping on the beach and the clean up crew ready for action.
We set sail at 8am to Naxos, the largest of the Cyclades Islands, and enjoyed a French toast breakfast at Rhina Cave on the south side of the island, accompanied by a couple of bakery treats that Bri picked up in the morning (ham and cheese and Nutella doughnuts). We had the bay to ourselves despite it being mid August and peak season, and swam over to the cave and did some small cliff jumps too.
We headed towards Naxos’ port next and anchored up in the bay with a view of the Temple of Apollo. After lunch (orzo and potato salads with pita and dips), we spent the afternoon exploring the old town and enjoying some ice creams (Waffle House had an exceptional hazelnut blond chocolate flavour). Naxos was busy with a lot of people enjoying the sunset at the Temple of Apollo, and we finished the evening at Flamingoes for dinner, with live Greek music, dancing and plate smashing. The Greek food was good and had large portions.
We found the service at bars and restaurants to be quite slow across all the islands, and if you wanted another drink, you would need to actively search out a waiter for one. Being part of a big group, most restaurants would also only give 2 or 3 menus per table, nothing a quick snap on the phone camera didn’t fix. We were lucky that Dal and Bri called ahead to make our dinner reservations each night as the popular restaurants can get very busy at 8pm!
For breakfast, we had scrambled/fried eggs on toast, apple and spinach and feta pastries before sailing to Paros’ Monastiri Bay. Having already spent some time at the beach and beach club’s restaurant when Franky and I drove there during our 3 days in Naoussa, we opted to enjoy our time on the boat with a side of exploring Paros Park. There are a few hiking trails that take you around the peninsula to visit beaches, a natural arch, the hilltop, a church and a light house. You can also do some water sports in the bay, and whilst hiring is the usual way to go, you can also try your hand at sweet talking guests from the super yachts to share their toys hehe! Lunch was lemon and thyme risotto with 2 salads, and then at 6.30pm we went via water taxi (included) to Naoussa, and checked out the Venetian Fortress and shops before dinner at Sigi Ikthos.
We had a wonderful dinner at this restaurant, the atmosphere was great, the service was the best of the trip, and the seafood was perfectly cooked. Some of the highlights that our group ordered included shrimp saganaki, grilled calamari, shrimp linguine with zucchini or fresh tomato, crayfish orzo, shrimp risotto, and mussels. They did try to charge us €2 pp for bread which we didn’t have, so keep an eye out for this. We also picked up some takeaway baklava and sweet treats from Ragoussis Bakery before taking the water taxi back to our catamaran.
Our final morning was spent in Monastiri Bay and sailing back to Parikia, having brunch along the way which was shakshuka with tomatoes, feta, eggs and flat bread. Most of us stayed in Paros for the night before heading our separate ways, and Franky and I enjoyed our evening wandering Parikia town, seeing the Frankish castle, various churches and picturesque cobblestone streets as the sun set. Our final dinner was at Henri G La Terrasse which had a great view overlooking a blue-domed church and photogenic street, as well as relaxing bossa nova tunes accompanying the tuna tartare, ceviche, truffle and mushroom risotto, and chocolate fondant with cotton candy.
We stayed at White Blossom Paros (adults only) on our final night, which I can highly recommend. The hosts Nikos and Stelios were very helpful in arranging our taxis to the airport, and the hotel is modern, bright, spacious and clean with a Greek flair. Amenities include a swimming pool, air conditioning, patio and a kitchenette with a bottle of water, Nespresso machine and pods, fridge, cookware, crockery and utensils. It is situated only 300m from the Parikia marina with Livadia beach, supermarkets, restaurants and laundry shops nearby. I particularly enjoyed the shower after disembarking from the boat, the slippers, and the close proximity to Dash Coffee shop.
We had an awesome time sailing the Cyclades Islands, a windy/choppy route for sure, and the elevated experience with a host and larger boat this time was wonderful. Thank you to Dal and Bri for looking after us and for more information about the MedSailors sail routes, check out https://www.medsailors.com
There are two YouTube videos from this trip on my channel to check out as well 🙂