Mykonos in Greece

Mykonos is located in the northern Cyclades just north of Naxos. The island has more than 10,000 permanent inhabitants, and that makes Mykonos the fourth most populated island in the Cyclades. The surface area is 86 km2. The two largest villages are Mykonos Town and Ano Mera. The two closest neighbouring islands are Syros and Tinos. The highest mountain Profitis Ilias Anomeritis measures 341 metres above sea level. Tourism is the main source of income for the islanders.

Little Venice in Mykonos Town.

Mykonos is one of Greece's most popular islands, and also one of the most famous islands. Many people think that Mykonos Town is the quintessential image of Greece: narrow alleys bordered with whitewashed houses with blue doors and windows. It is no wonder that Greece's tourist agencies often use pictures from Mykonos when they market Greece. But Mykonos do not need any marketing because the tourists comes anyway.

Little Venice from the other side.

People from all over the world travel here to sunbathe and swim, to shop in luxury boutiques, to see and to be seen and to enjoy the vibrant nightlife. However, nobody goes here to experience the authentic Greece, because there is no such thing. It is many years ago that you could visit traditional cafes and ouzeries in Mykonos Town.

One of many cozy alleys in Chora.

Agios Stefanos is the best beach near Mykonos Town.

The first tourists came to Mykonos for more than 60 years ago. At that time it was the historically interesting neighbouring island of Delos that attracted, but today the tourists come for completely different reasons. The Finland-Swedish author Göran Schildt travelled for several years in the 1950s in the Greek archipelago with his sailing boat Daphne. Each trip resulted in a book, the books are very interesting and should be read by all Greek lovers. Göran Schildt wrote this (my translation) in his amazing book In the Wake of Ulysses after his first visit to Mykonos in the early fifties:

"We also discovered to our amazement a lot of tourist dressed in shorts and carrying cameras, weird animals we have not seen before in Greece. Mykonos is one of the very few tourist and holiday destinations in Greece."

Paradise beach is one of Mykonos most popular beaches.

Shorts were probably not common in those days, nor could tourists have been particularly common. (One wonder why he describes tourists as animals?) That Mykonos was "one of the very few tourist and holiday destinations in Greece" is not strange. At that time, there were few who could afford to go on a vacation, and if they could they usually travelled to historically interesting places, perhaps to boast for their friends when they came home.

Other islands that became popular early are Rhodes and Crete, and that for the same reason as Mykonos. Tourists travelled to Rhodes to see the Old Town and Lindos, and in Crete it was mainly Knossos that attracted well-off tourists. Thus they travelled to Mykonos to visit Delos, the place that in ancient times was not only the centre of the Cyclades but also a centre of Greece. Incidentally the name the Cyclades come from the Greek word kyklas which means around. Delos was the centre and the islands around were later named the Cyclades.

Panormos beach is one of the least developed beaches on Mykonos.

Mykonos' attractiveness is nowadays of a completely different sort. Above all the magnificent sandy beaches (few other islands can compete with Mykonos) and the amazingly beautifully Chora, or Mykonos Town, attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists to Mykonos every year. Many travel here on a package-holiday, others come with one of the many cruise ships calling the port every day. Some cruise ships are so big that you get dumbfounded when you see them, but worse is the sight when all the passengers in a body enter the narrow alleys of the village.

Agia Anna is one of many very nice beaches on Mykonos.

When I first travelled here (early 80s), Mykonos was one of the hottest destinations in Greece. It was by the time when Mykonos began to attract gay tourists and the island went from being a beach paradise to a chick island with exclusive hotels, fashionable fashion boutiques, trendy restaurants, bars and discos.

Read about the 15 best beaches on Mykonos here »

Mykonos is still a playground within the gay culture, but not nearly as it was in the 1980s. I think that the reason why some tourists avoid going to Mykonos is due to the stubborn rumours that the island is expensive. Okay, it's not just a rumour, Mykonos is generally more expensive than most islands. But you do not have to eat, drink or stay expensively, if you do not really want to, there are cheap alternatives if you're just looking for them.

You can read more about Mykonos via the links at the end of this page.

A short summary of the information comes here:

You can go on a package-holiday to Mykonos from many countries. If you are travelling independently you can choose to go by air directly to Mykonos, or fly to Athens and continue by ferry or domestic flight.

There are two villages in Mykonos: Mykonos Town and Ano Mera in the centre of the island. Mykonos Town (see picture at the top of the page) is so beautiful that it almost feels unreal. Almost no other Greek village can be compared to this architectural masterpiece.

The sunset from Little Venice is one of the most beautiful in the Cyclades.

Mykonos has some of Greece's finest beaches. They are not only good, they are also countless. Psarou, Paraga, Agrari, Elia, Kalo Livadi, Kalafati, Agia Anna, Agios Ioannis, Agios Sostis, Panormos, Agios Stefanos, Ornos, Paradise, Platis Gialos and Super Paradise are just a few of the beaches.

Mykonos Town itself is the most important attraction. In addition, there are many interesting churches, a bunch of domesticated pelicans and the super interesting island of Delos is located near Mykonos.

Don't miss the neighboring island of Delos when you visit Mykonos.

Accommodations can be found almost everywhere in Mykonos. Where to stay is a matter of taste. Many choose to stay in, or close to, Mykonos Town. The most popular places near Mykonos Town are Agios Ioannis, Agios Stefanos, Ornos, Platis Gialos and Tourlos.

READ MORE ABOUT MYKONOS

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