The colourful fisherman houses in Klima are a must-visit in Milos. Unlike the traditional blue & white buildings typical to the Cyclades, Klima bucks the trend with a rainbow of colours splashed across doors, balconies and windows of tiny syrmata, traditional fishing huts that hug the cliffs. Between the colourful syrmata and the view across the bay, I think Klima is one of the most beautiful places in Milos (along with Mandrakia, the other famous fishing village).

Milos is one of the most dazzling islands in the Cyclades, littered with extremely beautiful villages, beaches and vistas. Even amongst such tough competition, the colourful fishing village of Klima stands out on the island for it’s unique and mesmerising beauty.

Read More: Milos Travel Guide

A brief history of Klima

Klima was once a much larger village, settled by the Dorians in the 7^th Century BC, who had come to Milos from Sparta. Klima, with the rest of Milos, flourished and was filled with monumental buildings, beautiful artworks, and developed its own alphabet. In 416 BC, Klima fell into decline during the Peloponnesian War, when the Athenians invaded and sacked the city. Today, all that is left of Klima are the colourful, two-storey syrmata. The lower level of each of each syrmata is a boat garage, and the top floor is a living space. The fishing huts are no longer used by fishermen, but some are available to rent to tourists.

Visiting Klima

Klima is at the bottom of a steep hillside, accessible by car, below the village of Trypiti, and not far from Plaka. The drive to Klima, in our tiny, tinny rental car, was hair-raising to the extent that we decided to park at the top of the hill and walk the narrow dirt track down to the town. Of course, after about ten minutes the treacherous narrow trail turned back into a wide, paved road, and we realised we had a long walk down – and a long walk back up, which I started dreading before I was even halfway through my lunch down in Klima. There’s a car park at the bottom, be brave and drive.

You can walk along the syrmata, but be prepared to get wet! Waves crash over the narrow rocky landing between the ocean and the syrmata, and we were up to our ankles in water at a few points.

Astakas Restaurant in Klima

We had lunch on the water at Klima’s only restaurant, Astakas. In so many parts of the world, a prime location and zero competition can be a recipe for over priced, mediocre food, but not here. We both had salads; I had a peach and prosciutto salad, because I cannot go past a peach salad in summer, even if it means lifting out the layer of prosciutto on top and giving it to David. He had a traditional greek salad, which came with an entire block of feta. I love Greece. For dessert, we had spoon sweets, a traditional dessert which is popular in Greece and the Balkans. Spoon sweets are a preserved fruit or vegetable, served syrupy and sweet with a dash of greek yoghurt. Astakas had three varieties that day: grape, watermelon and pumpkin. Heaven! I would love to revisit Milos one day, as there’s so much to see and enjoy here, and I would love to come back for a longer lunch at Astakas – without dreading the walk back up the hill, ha.

After lunch, we started our long, hot walk in the blazing sun back up to the top of the hillside, where we’d parked. Luckily for us, about half way up, a local offered us a lift the rest of the way back to our car, a reminder that we were in a much friendlier and more open part of the world than the part we’d came from.

Have you been to Klima, or Milos? Or would you like to? What’s the most colourful village you’ve ever visited? Let me know in the comments.