On rugged, mountainous Milos, you’re at the mercy of the wind. The Greek island has more beaches than any other island in the Cyclades, but the day’s wind will dictate which ones to visit. The windswept, volcanic terrain creates other-worldly landscapes across the island, like the famous, moon-like Sarakiniko beach. The island was once popular with pirates, who hid out in the chalky white caves of Kleftiko. In the 19th century, a farmer discovered the Venus de Milo here, before it was was whisked away to the Louvre. Today, the island’s claim to fame are magnificent beaches, like Sarakiniko and Firopotamus, and dazzling fishing villages like Mandrakia, Klima and Pollonia.

We had five days in Milos, and I was glad for the extra time. Of course, in Greece, all the time in the world is still not enough! The western half of Milos is only accessible by SUV, but we had plenty to explore on the eastern half of the island for five days. In 5 Days in Milos, we stayed in Pollonia, and visited the famous colourful villages of Mandrakia & Klima, the capital, Plaka, sailed through the Kleftiko caves, and visited Milos’ most beautiful beaches, such as Sarakiniko, Plathiena, Papafragas, Aghia Kiriaki and Paleochori.

Villa Mary Elen, Pollonia

We travelled from Sifnos to Milos by ferry, which was a smooth journey. It definitely pays to take shorter ferry trips within the Greek islands. We arrived in Adamas, Milos’ port town, and took a taxi across the island to Pollonia. We stayed in Pollonia rather than Plaka, the capital, because it’s on the water and has its own beach. We stayed at Villa Mary Elen, which is a short walk from the heart of Pollonia. Our room had a balcony with ocean views, and we could see the neighboring island of Kimolos from the property. I was tempted to visit Kimolos on a day trip, but we had too much fun in Milos to look farther afield.

We took the ferry from Kamares in Sifnos, which was less than an hour’s trip. Luckily for us, the entire trip was very smooth. From Adamantas, the port, we took a taxi to Pollonia, a pretty village on the northeast tip of the island. Our hotel, Villa Mary Elen, was less than a ten minute walk from the centre of town, and is the last building on the peninsula, with panoramic ocean views, and views to the neighbouring island Kimolos.

Paleochori

We only hired a car for one day on Milos, so on our first car-less day we had to rely on the island’s bus service. We took one bus to Adamas, and then a connecting bus to Paleochori, one of the island’s most popular beaches. At the time, I thought Paleochori was pretty but not breathtaking, at least not compared to the beaches on Sifnos and Paros. Becoming an insufferable beach snob is an occupational hazard of travelling in Greece.

We took a pair of chairs at the beach club and relaxed for the afternoon. Most of my happiness memories from Greece are from doing nothing, at the beach. The water was warm and pleasant, despite the tiny biting fish which were harmless, but unnerving.

Sunset & Dinner in Pollonia

We returned to our room in time to watch a spectacular sunset over the ocean. So far, we’d only caught one other sunset during our trip, at Parasporos beach in Paros. We decided to make it back to the balcony every night in Milos. Greece is full of stray cats, but Milos’ has the most of anywhere we visited. I don’t mind cats at all, but a hefty tomcat joined us on the balcony and became quite insistent, on eating our food. We couldn’t make it leave, and it was getting a little aggressive, so we ended up moving inside. Yes, I felt quite pathetic!

After sunset, we walked into town for dinner. In Pollonia, you’re spoiled for choice when it comes to waterfront restaurants. In Australia, waterfront restaurants are often terrible and over-priced, or excellent and very over-priced. In Greece, this wasn’t a problem. We had dinner at Aliki, which is little more casual than the others, but had simple and delicious food. We couldn’t believe how cheap it was compared to New York City, and spent some time brainstorming how we could fund a life in Greece. We didn’t get far, but a girl can dream.

Adamas

The next morning, we collected our hire car from Adamas. It’s a typical port town: busy, crowded and a tourist hub. There’s not much to see, so we set off straight away for the northeast coast of the island.

Klima Fishing Village

Our first stop, Klima, is one of the most beautiful sights on Milos. It’s famous for its tiny colourful fishing shacks, called syrmata, built into the side of the cliffs. It was a traditional fishing village, once upon a time, but today the huts are often used as vacation rentals. Klima is one of the prettiest sights of our trip to Greece, and so uniquely Greek.

The drive to Klima was absolutely nerve-wracking. The steep roads weaved through tiny villages, and grew narrower by the minute. Several times in Greece, we’d have to reverse out of these winding rounds when we could go no further. We ended up letting our nerves get the better of us, and parking at the top of the road down to Klima. We set off down the steep dirt road on foot, and before long it turned into a wide, paved road. It was a very long walk down to Klima, and an even longer walk back up, so don’t chicken out like we did! There’s a large car park at the bottom, so there’s plenty of room to turn around, too.

I expected a restaurant with no competition, at one of the most beautiful waterfront locations in Milos, to rest on its laurels. I was thrilled to be proven wrong. David had the most beautiful Greek salad I’ve ever seen and I had a fresh and delicious peach and prosciutto salad. For dessert, we shared a trio of spoon sweets, a traditional Greek dessert. Three pots of Greek yoghurt were each topped with a different candied fruit. That day, they were serving pumpkin, watermelon and grapes!

Spoon sweets are so delicious and one of my favourite traditional Greek desserts. This trip began with my friend’s wedding in her hometown, Chalkida, and she gave all of her guests cherry spoon sweets as a gift. I didn’t realize what this was until we had lunch in Klima, and I was so excited when I realized I had my own to enjoy back in New York.

Read about visiting Klima in Milos

Plathiena Beach

Our next stop was the Plathiena, a beautiful and relatively quiet beach that is only accessible by car. We skipped the beach club fees and found a spot on the sand instead. The strong northerly wind made the water irritatingly choppy, so I spent most of my time lazing about on the sand. Plathiena’s and is studded with pretty purple stones, which I had fun collecting from where I was sitting while David finished his swim. He’s more patient than I am.

Read more: The Most Beautiful Beaches in Milos

Firapotamus Beach

When we reached Firopotamus, we realized we were nearly out of petrol and nowhere near a petrol station. Fun! We walked down to the beach, but it is tiny and there wasn’t much free space. I much preferred the views over the pretty pink cliffs of Firopotamus from where we parked the car, above the beach.

Mandrakia Fishing Village

Mandrakia is one of the most gorgeous hamlets in the Greek Islands. Colourful boat garages are built into the cliffs of its tiny harbour, and it is so picturesque that it’s hard to believe it’s real. We admired the view for a while, and then went to the restaurant overlooking the ocean, Medousa, for a glass of wine. I wish we’d been hungry – Medousa is one of the most beloved restaurants on Milos. The setting is spectacular, so if I ever returned I’d come for lunch rather than dinner to make the most of the view.

Near the entrance of the restaurant there a model sailboat, which a litter of kittens were using as a fort. Adorable!

Dinner at Enalion in Pollonia

When we were back in Pollonia later in the evening, we had dinner at one of my favourite restaurants of the trip, Enalion. . Most of the produce is sourced from the owners’ farm on the island, and the food is simple and delicious.

Papafragas Cliffs

The following morning, a strong northerly wind was still blowing. We still visited a few beaches on the north coast, but didn’t swim until we reached the south coast beaches in the afternoon.

The beach at Papafragas is small, and surrounded by steep cliffs. It’s only accessible only by ignoring the multiple warning signs on your way down a treacherous path to the water. For some reason, it’s hugely popular with Instagrammers, but I think it pales in comparison to every other beach I visited. We admired the view from above, and then carried on.

Sarakiniko Beach

Sarakiniko is one of the most famous sites in Milos, because the white, rocky landscape resembles the moon. It’s the most unusual place I’ve seen in Greece, and it’s absolutely beautiful. It was very crowded here, and we didn’t go for a swim again because the water was so rough and it was so busy near the water anyway. Even though it wasn’t good for swimming that day, I loved spending some time here.

Read about visiting Sarakiniko Beach 

Plaka

Our next stop was Plaka, the capital of Milos. It reminded me a lot of Lefkes, the medieval capital of Paros, which is also built inland in the hills. We parked outside Plaka, as you can’t take a car inside the village, and spent a few hours wandering through the pretty streets. We stopped at a bakery to try some traditional local desserts, including watermelon pie. It’s much tastier than it looks, and is unique to Milos. We also had a slice of super sweet galaktoboureko, which is widely available throughout Greece. I loved learning more about Greek desserts on this trip!

Aghia Kiriaki Beach

Our final stop for the day was a swim at the beautiful Aghia Kiriaki, which is on the south side of the island. For some reason, Aghia Kiriaki receives little publicity. I can’t figure out why, but I’m glad for it! It was the most beautiful beach we visited on Milos, and one of my favourites from the whole trip. It was not too busy, which was also surprising. The water is crystal clear and the round pebbles aren’t too bad underfoot.

After our swim, we headed up to the beach bar and had some calamari and a glass of wine on the deck. I don’t think there’s any better way to spend a lazy afternoon than with seafood & wine by the sea.

Sunset & dinner in Pollonia

We were back for sunset again, and this time the cat only bothered us for a little while! We had dinner at Gialos, which came highly recommended by our host, Themis. The food presentation was more refined than the other restaurants we ate at in Greece. It wasn’t neccessarily better, but it was a novel change from the rustic tavern food I’d been enjoying. There’s always a long wait for a table at Gialos, and I felt a little more rushed here than at the other restaurants.

Sailing Around Milos to Kleftiko Caves

We spent our final day on Milos sailing around the island to the Kleftiko caves. We joined a small group sailing tour, with ten other people. There were a few beach stops along the way, and plenty of opportunities for snorkelling and swimming.

Before we left for Adamas, the tour meeting point, we had breakfast in Pollonia at Cafe Opsidianos. Breakfast isn’t Greek cuisine’s strong suit, but it was fresh and simple. More than anything, Cafe Obsidianos is such a tranquil spot to start the day, with beautiful views over the bay. It’s a few minutes walk away from the main part of town, so it’s also nice and quiet!

I was so glad to spend a day out on the water. I wish we’d taken one more boat trip while we were in Greece, maybe in Paros or Sifnos, but then I don’t know what day I would have traded on the land. There was so much to see and do on every island, and I like that we often could spend a few hours or half a day at our favourite places. We made some friends on the boat, so we had dinner with them in Pollonia that evening.

We made some friends on the boat, so at the end of the day we had dinner and drinks with a group of them back in Pollonia, which was a nice way to end the day.

Pollonia Beach

Our last day in Milos came around too fast! Milos was our last island of the trip, before a final few days in Athens. We hired chairs at the beach club in Pollonia and had a very lazy day by the beach. We ate pastries from the nearby bakery on the beach for breakfast, and then went to Aliki again for a simple calamari lunch. It was nice not to be rushing around on the last day.

Our flight was delayed, so we flew out in the early evening and arrived at our hotel in Athens by 10pm that night. I’d love to re-visit Milos, especially so I could spend a few nights in a fishing shack in Klima.

I’m determined to revisit the Greek islands one day, the challenge would be choosing where to go! I’d love to return to the Cyclades and re-visit some favourite places like Cheronissos on Sifnos. At the same time, islands like Naxos, Tinos and Folegandros are tempting for a first-time visit. Beyond the Cyclades islands, there are so many other islands to choose from in Greece alone. There’s Crete, fabled to be like a country of it’s own. Rhodes and Symi in the Dodecanese islandS. The farflung Sporades islands of Skopelos and Skiathos, where Mamma Mia was filmed. The western Ionian islands of Kefalonia, Ithaca, Corfu and Lefkada. There are so many beautiful places to explore in Greece, that it’s hard to choose where to go, but I suspect it’s also hard to go wrong.

Have you been to Milos, or the Greek islands? Would you like to? Let me know what you think in the comments!

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