Teeming with past past and acceptable against stunning backdrops, the Greek islands are dissimilar immoderate different spot connected Earth.
They pull each benignant of traveller, from backpackers to celebrities, each looking to bask successful the relaxed mode of life, instrumentality successful the stunning scenery, and bask the crystal-clear waters of the Mediterranean Sea.
Having lived, studied, and vacationed successful Greece, I’ve had the accidental to sojourn rather a fewer Greek Islands, which lone scratches the surface; determination are 6,000 islands successful total, though lone 227 Greek Islands are inhabited.
Hopping astir the Greek islands you’ll rapidly larn that each land has its ain unsocial property and communicative to tell. But since we don’t each person the luxury of being capable to spot them all, present is our database of the champion Greece Islands to sojourn for 2023!
The Best Greece Islands To Visit successful 2023!
1. Hydra
This quirky Greek land is the lone of its benignant that outlaws vehicles, truthful you volition request to get astir connected ft oregon by utilizing 1 of the island’s donkeys.
In the past, Hydra, oregon Ydra oregon Idra arsenic it’s besides known, drew acclaim for being an artist/writer’s colony, but these days it’s much frequented by Athenian city-dwellers connected play getaways.
The ample bulk of Hydra’s colonisation lives successful the halfway of municipality wherever each of the tavernas and restaurants tin beryllium found. Come to this Greek land expecting a quiescent retreat and stunning Venetian architecture.
It’s a tiny land and doesn’t instrumentality agelong to explore, which makes it cleanable for those looking for a Greece Island to sojourn for a weekend.
It’s besides precise adjacent to Athens, which makes it a large land to sojourn connected a time travel from mainland Greece if you are abbreviated connected time.
Tip: Do not trust connected Hydra to beryllium a formation escape, arsenic they are recovered sparingly and are highly rocky.
2. Aegina
Aegina is lone a speedy 30-minute hydrofoil thrust from the main larboard of Piraeus making it an casual prime for tourists who are seeing Athens sights but don’t person the clip to island-hop.
The beaches connected this Greek Island are alternatively lackluster, but the halfway is filled with cute cafés cleanable for escaping the summertime heat.
Aegina is celebrated for its accumulation of pistachios, beryllium definite to prime up a container from 1 of the galore shops located adjacent the port.
3. Evia
Don’t expect thing remotely resembling wide tourism from Evia, the second-largest land successful Greece and the past location of Aristotle.
Evia is composed of respective quaint villages, sportfishing towns, and coastal resorts and offers a genuinely authentic portion of Grecian life.
If you’re looking for the champion Greece Islands to sojourn for beaches, past you’ll find immoderate beauteous ones here. It’s besides known for having a year-round lukewarm climate, truthful nary substance what clip of twelvemonth you program your vacation, you tin expect lukewarm days here.
Chilaro formation successful the colony of Vitalo is hands-down the astir serene, beauteous formation I’ve seen successful each of my travels. Ask locals however to find it.
4. Santorini (Thira)
Undoubtedly 1 of the astir celebrated of Greece’s islands, Thira (as it’s known to the Greeks) balances jaw-dropping quality and intriguing past past with a lively enactment country and is genuinely the land that offers thing for everyone.
As portion of the Sporades Islands, Santorini boasts unthinkable landscapes with precocious cliffs, dropping into the chaotic water below. Many of the island’s municipality person been built onto the broadside of the cliff, which gives the land that iconic postcard backdrop.
Oia is the municipality of each the emblematic Grecian images of achromatic churches with bluish domes. It is simply a spot isolated astatine the bluish extremity of the land and is simply a large spot for older couples and families to stay.
Seeing the sunset successful Oia is an implicit must!
Fira, the main town, and Perissa, wherever the achromatic soil formation is located are the champion places to spell out. Akrotiri, the tract of the reddish soil formation and past Minoan ruins marque for a large time trip.
5. Ios
Ios, different known arsenic Io oregon Nio, has a hedonistic estimation arsenic a enactment land and it attracts young crowds looking for nightlife.
That being said, it’s amazingly relaxing (without losing its consciousness of fun) extracurricular of precocious season. It’s a tiny land with a colonisation of little than 3,000, truthful if you privation a quieter vacation, this is the spot for you.
If you truly privation to debar the crowds, caput to the beaches furthest from Chora for a genuinely tranquil experience.
Ios is simply a hilly land known for its rugged landscape. Think craggy cliffs dropping into the chaotic sea. Since it’s lone 18km successful length, it’s casual to explore.
Tip: Pack a picnic and hike to the churches connected the apical of the elevation successful the aged town’s (Chora) halfway for a 360 panoramic presumption of Ios successful clip to drawback the sunset.
6. Mykonos
The playground of elite jet-setters successful years past, Mykonos has retained its glamour portion inactive charming successful each way.
The halfway is simply a maze of constrictive cobble-stoned streets that buzz with vigor heavy into the nighttime erstwhile the bars and clubs unfastened and are bustling during the time with shoppers. The celebrated windmills and small Venice (pictured) are a must-see arsenic they are conscionable arsenic beauteous successful idiosyncratic arsenic successful photos.
Get to cognize the section broadside of Mykonos distant from the tourists with a guided circuit to tiny villages, farms, and concealed beaches!
Tip: The meltemi winds that aboveground successful precocious play are fiercest successful Mykonos, which offers small earthy structure truthful bring a sweater adjacent if you’re coming successful August.
- For places to enactment connected Mykonos click here
- For circuit options successful Mykonos, drawback your tickets here.
7. Naxos
Agricultural astatine its core, Naxos offers immoderate of the champion beaches connected the Aegean (and situation I say, the Mediterranean) and a lively formation promenade and municipality center. It hasn’t mislaid its charm, apt due to the fact that it isn’t reliant upon tourism similar truthful galore of the different Greek islands are.
Since it’s located successful the bosom of the fashionable concatenation of Cycladic islands, Naxos makes an fantabulous basal for land hopping successful Greece.
Make definite to spot the ruins of Apollo’s Gate adjacent the larboard (pictured above.)
Consider a full-day circuit of the land which includes highlights of visiting the oldest distillery, past greek temples, wandering done the celebrated marble colony of Apiranthos, and overmuch more!
Tip: Naxos is large and therefore, the perfect spot to rent a moped and research its much isolated beaches and countryside.
8. Corfu
Corfu is 1 of the Ionian Islands successful the Ionian Sea, and is made up of stunning beaches and rugged mountains.
It’s world-class resorts pull thousands of visitors each year, but determination is much to the land than staying successful your all-inclusive luxury hotels.
The land has an absorbing architecture, which reflects its years nether Venetian, French and British rule. The astir beauteous architecture is that of the Venetian castle successful Corfu Town, which is surrounded by cobbled streets and medieval alleyways.
9. Rhodes
Rhodes is the largest land successful the radical of Dodecanese islands and is good known for its luxury hotels and formation resorts.
For those looking to beryllium backmost and unbend connected a sandy beach, this is the Greece Island to visit.
Other than beaches, Rhodes has past ruins that day backmost to the Crusades, arsenic good arsenic medieval buildings successful the Old Town – the astir striking of which are connected theStreet of the Knights.
If you’re a foodie fan, Rhodes is simply a large spot to find immoderate delicious, caller Greek cuisine, paired with section wines.
10. Crete
Crete is Greece’s largest land and is packed afloat of things to spot and do. Do not miss a accidental to cheque retired the archaeological sites and research the past ruins of Aptera and Malia.
The astir fashionable attraction connected the island, too its beaches, is the Palace of Knossos successful Heraklion.
If you don’t privation to walk your days connected the formation and fancy doing immoderate hiking, past caput retired to the 16km-long Samariá Gorge that has much than 50 canyons to explore. The Aradena Gorge is besides a large hike connected the land which takes you to Marmara, a beauteous cove connected the Libyan Sea.
For those looking for a quieter broadside of Crete, caput to Chania. This tiny port-city is known for its 14th-century Venetian harbor, arsenic good arsenic its beauteous constrictive streets lined with venetian architecture.
11. Zakynthos
You won’t find waters arsenic bluish arsenic the ones successful Zakynthos, which is simply a Greece Island each astir the water. The main city, Zakynthos, is simply a harbor metropolis wherever each the goings-on hap astir the waterfront of Solomos Square.
If you privation to soak up the sun, caput to the adjacent beaches of Agios Nikolaos, Alykanas and Tsilivi. The astir celebrated formation of each is Navagio Beach, which houses a shipwreck that sits successful a sheltered cove, protected by cliffs.
Zakynthos is besides a fashionable diving destination, since overmuch of its marine scenery has been unspoiled, you tin dive done oversea caves oregon astatine fashionable turtle spots, wherever the endangered Caretta oversea turtle comes to mate.
It’s the cleanable spot to spot wildlife. If you’re lucky, you whitethorn adjacent spot immoderate babe monk seals playing successful the waters.
12. Syros
Syros is tiny but it packs a punch, which is wherefore it’s 1 of our favourite Greece Islands to sojourn successful 2023! It was erstwhile a precise affluent metropolis and was constructed by European architects during the Renaissance period, truthful its archiecture is simply stunning and vastly unsocial compared to different Greek Islands.
It’s besides location to respective stunning beaches, coves and hidden bays. It’s known for having a vibrant nightlife scene, but it’s much blase than the backpacker bars oregon Santorini oregon Mykonos.
You’ll find plentifulness of jazz bars, taverns and vino bars playing elegant soft music, arsenic The Apollon Theatre hosts an yearly classical musical, jazz and modern euphony festival.
For this reason, it’s 1 of the champion Greece Islands to sojourn for couples.
13. Paros
Located adjacent doorway to Naxos is Paros, location to the Panagia Ekatontapiliani, a celebrated Byzantine religion that dates backmost to the 4th period A.D.
As good arsenic immoderate humanities attractions to discover, Paros offers a akin vibe to Mykonos and Naxos, with white-washed buildings, world-class restaurants and bars, and a buzzing nightlife scene.
Like astir Greek islands, Paros is besides known for its beaches, but arsenic good arsenic brushed sandy beaches, determination are besides immoderate people formed coves that you tin aquatics successful astatine Kolimbithres Beach which is 1 of the astir celebrated places to sojourn connected the island.
14. Delos
UNESCO World Heritage tract of Delos is simply a hidden gem successful the Greek islands. The full land is an archaeological site, and is celebrated for being the mythological birthplace of Apollo.
In its prime, it was a large spiritual halfway and its ruins day it backmost to the 1st millennium B.C.
Visitors tin spot the ruins of Doric temples, past markets, an amphitheater, arsenic good arsenic respective houses with mosaics. The astir celebrated landmark is the iconic Terrace of the Lions statues.
You tin larn much astir the excavations and past astatine The Archaeological Museum.
While you cannot enactment connected Delos, you tin get a ferry from Mykonos and instrumentality a time travel there.
15. Kastellorizo
Although not arsenic celebrated arsenic the different Greece Islands to sojourn connected this list, Kastellorizo is simply a hidden gem that’s cleanable for a quiescent getaway.
It’s celebrated for being the determination of the Oscar-nominated movie, Mediterraneo, astir Italian soldiers who washed up connected a distant Greek land during WWII that was filmed successful 1991.
The astir celebrated attraction connected the land is the Blue Grotto, oregon the Blue Caves, which are located connected the southeast coast. They are celebrated for the agleam bluish reflection created by airy seeping into the cave’s entrance, bouncing disconnected the waters inside. You tin aquatics wrong the cave erstwhile the tide is out.
At lone 10 quadrate kilometers, you volition find this is 1 of the astir distant islands successful the Greek Islands, but is easy accessible by ferry from Rhodes.
Final Thoughts On The Best Greek Islands
So determination you person it, those are the champion Greek Islands to sojourn this year, and arsenic you tin see, there’s truthful galore astonishing islands to explore.
Whether you’re looking for those iconic Greek beaches, oregon you privation to research immoderate past ruins, there’s each that and much successful these islands.
We anticipation this usher helped you program your adjacent travel to Greece and gave you immoderate inspiration astir which Greece islands to visit.
BIO: Christine Medina is the writer down Christine successful Spain. She has been traveling since she archetypal fell successful emotion with Europe successful 2008, and present calls Spain her location distant from home.
More Greece Travel Tips
Looking for much inspiration connected travelling successful Greece? Then you whitethorn similar these different resources!
- Check retired this coastal portion that made this database connected destinations successful Europe connected a budget!
- 20 Awesome Things to bash successful Crete
- Scuba Diving successful Zaykynthos Island, Greece
For much ideas astir things to bash connected that roadworthy trip, readying information, beauteous photos, and applicable maps to assistance you program your travels, cheque retired ZigZag On Earth’s eBook: Explore and Photograph Santorini