Milos
Volcanic Cycladic Island Of Some Seventy Beaches, The Moon White Rock Of Sarakiniko, The Sea Caves Of Kleftiko And The Find Spot Of The Venus De Milo · Adamas, South Aegean
Milos is a volcanic island at the south-west edge of the Cyclades, and for many visitors the most surprising landscape in the Aegean. Millions of years of volcanic activity and centuries of mining have left cliffs in white, red, ochre and grey, some seventy beaches of every shape, and sea caves you can only reach by boat. Its best-known places are Sarakiniko, a bay of smooth moon-white rock on the north coast, and Kleftiko, a cluster of arches and caves on the south-west once used by pirates. On land there are fishing hamlets with brightly painted boathouses such as Klima and Firopotamos, the hilltop capital Plaka with its sunset castle, early Christian catacombs, and the field where the Venus de Milo was found in 1820 (the statue is in the Louvre). Milos was once a quiet island and is now very popular. The honest caveats: summer is crowded and pricey, the wind decides which beaches are swimmable, many roads are dirt, and without a car or quad much of the island is hard to reach.
Milos, western Cyclades; Adamas port, Plaka hill town, Sarakiniko on the north coast; ferries from Piraeus and flights from Athens, Adamas, South Aegean, Greece
An island, open all year, but seasonal: most hotels, boats and tavernas run roughly May to October, and in winter the island is quiet with few boats and limited services. Sarakiniko and the other beaches are free and open at all hours. The catacombs, the Archaeological Museum in Plaka and the Mining Museum keep short daytime hours and close one day a week - confirm current hours. Ferries run from Piraeus (roughly 3-4 hours by fast boat, 5-7 hours by conventional ferry) and flights from Athens take about 40 minutes. In July and August book ferries, the car or quad and rooms well ahead.