Many consider Mykonos because the quintessential Greek island getaway:
It is in style for a cause, because it ticks all of the packing containers for what makes a summer time vacation spot nice, from the paradisaical seashores to the picture-perfect villages to the buzzing social scene—in the event you’re the type to look forward to some late-night bar crawling, you will definitely discover your crowd right here.
However, the unchecked ranges of tourism could be a tad extreme, and in the event you’ve been hoping for a heat welcome from locals, with real smiles and pouring candy ouzo, you will be stunned to seek out that a lot of them have in truth been pushed out of the primary cities.
Those have now been taken over by huge builders and seasonal residents, to the purpose Mykonos hardly looks like your typical Aegean escape anymore.
Luckily, there are 226 different islands in Greece to select from, and in the event you’re hoping for a Mykonos dupe that is comparatively nice for nightlife and with its justifiable share of cultural allure, you need to hit a rapidly-rising Ios as a substitute earlier than it, too, will get spoiled by the plenty:
Could Ios Be The Next Mykonos?
One of Greece’s vacation spot highlights for the earlier 12 months, Aegean island of Ios appears set to maintain growing in reputation for 2025.
Despite its small measurement, at roughly 11 miles lengthy and 10 miles broad, and small everlasting inhabitants of round 2,300 folks, it’s quickly establishing itself as one of many trendiest islands within the area after Mykonos and Santorini.
For starters, it has a Chora, or Main Town, with the standard Cycladic blanche homes and bougainvillea-framed streets.
Other than having its each nook be Instagram-ready, Chora is house to quite a lot of cultural landmarks, together with the cathedral, with its chalk-like exterior and blue dome, the open-air Odysseus Elytis Theater, internet hosting live shows in summer time, and a row of 12 windmills perched on a hilltop.
If we might add, they’re the right spot for catching these blood-orange Aegean sunsets.
The factor vacationers appear to like probably the most about Ios, nonetheless, is how welcome they really feel as vacationers right here:
Welcoming Locals & Hearty Greek Food
There are not any ‘go house’ placards being brandished, no dismissive appears from offended locals, and whether or not you are ordering meals at a restaurant or just searching souvenirs at an area market, it is good-old Aegean hospitality you will get.
The middle of city can be peppered with family-run eateries, the place they’re nonetheless serving yaya‘s home made pastitsio and freshly-caught octopus soaked in homegrown olive oil.
You have not actually engaged in a cultural immersion in Greece till you are mendacity again in your alfresco cushioned seat, discreetly loosening your belt slightly to raised digest all that scrumptious tzatziki and the slow-cooked lamb, or how they name it right here, kleftiko.
For the perfect conventional meals in Ios, be sure to try Drakos Taverna, by Mylopotas Beach, or the favored Almyra By The Sea—the latter even has quite a lot of vegan choices, a uncommon discover in any small, staunchly-Greek island.
Additionally, we love Pathos for its seafood and progressive tackle sushi, however it could get busy at sure hours: it’s a seashore membership with an attractive aqua-colored pool going through the Aegean, in spite of everything, and the thumping DJ music and inexpensive drinks have a tendency to attract the younger beach-going kind.
How Does Ios Compare To Mykonos On The Nightlife Front?
Speaking of clubbing, Ios is a mini Mykonos within the making, with out the stunning costs, and much more laid-back.
It had had a fame as a celebration vacation spot since at the very least the 80s when the primary hippies and backpackers made landfall right here, however as you will quickly discover when you hit a bar or two, it has none of Mykonos’ stuck-up angle.
In different phrases, you will not discover Lindsay Lohans and Paris Hiltons enjoying units right here all summer time and dragging together with them the same old hordes of friendship bracelet-wearing, braided-haired, high-waist-skirt-wearing, kumbaya Beverly Hills girlies.
If something, the smaller venues round Chora really feel a contact extra genuine, from the chilled-out cocktail bars, with Click and Atlas, to call a pair, to the full-fledged techno golf equipment, just like the aforementioned Pathos or Disco 69.
Beautiful Beaches For Miles
As for the seashores, the Ios coast is a vacationer attraction in its personal proper.
For the Ios-classic partying on a golden-sand strip, head out to Mylopotas, the place a plethora of taverns and vibrant bars await.
If you are eager on enjoyable slightly, Manganari is about on a peaceable bay laden with high quality, ivory-white sands, and the seas are of the turquoise-most blue.
For one thing within the center, not too quiet, however not as well-frequented as Mylopotas, Agia Theodoti Beach to the northeast has mushy sands, shallow teal waters, and it even has a solitary tavern in the event you’re ever in want of refreshments.
Looking for that secretive nudist spot?
You ought to know each Greek island has them, and on Ios, Kolitsani Beach is your greatest guess at baring all of it and changing into one with the plush Mediterranean nature with out the judgmental gaze of passerby.
How To Get To Ios This Season
Ios shouldn’t be precisely probably the most accessible of Greek islands, because it doesn’t have its personal airport.
Inconveniences apart, that is a part of the rationale why it feels much less impacted by mass tourism than Mykonos, Santorini, and different world-famous islands.
It does not imply you will have to embark on a Homeric journey to get there, both.
Ios can simply be reached by boat, and the perfect ferry connections are discovered within the port of Athinios, in Santorini, with crossings taking roughly 35-45 minutes, and tickets costing as low cost as $33 when booked prematurely.
In common, Ios is a really inexpensive island to go to, with vacationers spending a mean $85 per night time on motels, and round $20 on particular person meals every day, in response to Budget Your Trip.
This spring, the centrally-located Likno’s guesthouse, proper within the coronary heart of Chora, has total studio flats with sea views beginning at $63 per grownup, per night time.
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