The ultimate travel guide To Milos
It is that time in the year where we all start daydreaming of our summer vacations. Perhaps you are researching a European summer getaway. Have you recently come across pictures of influencers on a moonscape beach? The Greek Cycladic island of Milos is rising in popularity for good reasons! Milos is still a quiet island, but not for long! The raw beauty of the moonscape beach and sea caves make this a highly sought Greek island. If you haven’t been convinced to visit yet, I am about to!
Activities
One of the main draws to Milos is for the sea caves, natural rock formations, and swimming in the bluest waters. The best way to experience some of the most beautiful parts of the island is by taking a boat tour to Kleftiko. Kleftiko is not easily accessible by land and wouldn’t recommend trying. I would consider a boat tour is a mandatory part of your Milos vacation.
My family and I took the Polco Sailing West Milos Sailing Boat cruise. Sailing around half of the island, swimming in multiple locations, drinks, and GoPro photos of your adventure are what you can expect. On the tour you can expect to get off the sail boat and take a small dingy boat through caves, it is a real life Pirates of the Caribbean. If Stavros is still a captain with Polco sailing (shoutout Stavros!), I guarantee he would make it a great experience for you. My favorite part of the tour is the dragon breath cave, it will give you chills!
Sikia Cave is a unique spot on the tour that can only be accessed by boat. It is a caved in rock wall that exposes the sun to a beautiful alcove of water. My husband, father and I climbed up the rock pile for the view of the water below. Sikia cave is featured in one of my travel photography prints! Purchase print here and see the photo below 🙂
Besides the sea caves along Kleftiko, one of my favorite views of all of Milos is sunset at the Venetian Castle in Plaka. The photo at the top of this blog is the Venetian Castle. I will not lie and will say this photo is heavily edited to remove all the people that were in this image. This is a popular sunset spot and it is a little hike to the viewpoint. If you are able to do a steep hike, I highly recommend making the trip up to this viewpoint for sunset.
After your adventurous hike up to the Venetian Castle, I recommend getting dinner at Avli Milos restaurant. Avli Milos is a popular restaurant and you may need to wait a little bit for a table, but the food is worth it. After a big meal, walk around the shops of Plaka. This would be a good area to shop for souvenirs.
Beaches
Milos has many beaches that are unique and the most famous one being Sarakiniko. The moonscape beach of Sarakiniko isn’t what you would traditionally think of as a beach since it is all limestone rock. But, you can jump off the rocks into the sea or wade in from a narrow beach in between the rock formations. Sarakiniko is on the north side of the island so be aware the waters can sometimes be rough here.
My family and I visited during sunrise when there were less people around. It will be busy during the peak of the day. This beach is beautiful at any time of day though! Walk to the right side of limestone formations to catch a glimpse of the Sarakiniko ship wreck.
Sarakiniko isn’t the only beach worth visiting! If you are up for an adventure, where you think you may get lost or stuck, this next one is for you. Kastanas Beach really is a gem of Milos. It may be a little stressful to reach this beach, it would be easier for an ATV rather than car but still can venture with a car. Kastanas is on the east side of the island and worth spending a good portion of the day at. It is a rocky beach that is really colorful and an amazing swimming spot. I recommend getting here earlier in the day as areas to park are limited and it will get busier.
One of my other Mediterranean prints is from Kastanas Beach. You can purchase that print here and see how amazing it is below!
One other adventurous beach to visit that is popular, but I only saw from the boat tour is Tsigardo Beach. You have to climb down ladders and in between rock crevices. I will definitely want to visit here next time I am in Milos. If you want a beach with sand and more space to roam, visit Alogomandra beach.
Viewpoints
Besides the gorgeous beaches of Milos and the Venetian Castle, there are other viewpoints on the island you must visit. Papafragas is a great viewpoint but you can also get down into the caves and visit the small beach as well. Also, Papafragas is just so fun to say as well! A lot of the popular sights to see are along the north side of the island. This includes some of the beaches and viewpoints.
Visit Mandrakia to look over cute fishing homes and boats. There is a cute church here as well, see what I mean below.
Visit Klima which is another small area with fishing shacks similar to Mandrakia. You can go for a swim at the small beach there as well.
Where to stay
After looking through all of the picturesque spots and you are ready to visit, you must be wondering where to stay. Where my family and I stayed for our visit to Milos was near the main port town of Adamantas. Santa Maria Village is a great hotel with views over the port in the distance. This hotel has great breakfast and a lovely pool to relax by. It is nice this hotel is tucked away from the port so it is more quiet and relaxing. Still close enough to quickly get to town for restaurants and shops.
Another great part of the island to stay in is Pollonia. I haven’t personally stayed here but there are plenty of restaurants nearby. Milos Breeze Boutique Hotel looks like a great place to stay in Pollonia. From my opinion it is easier to stay in Adamantas as it is close to port and can access other parts of the island pretty quickly. It is a central location.
How long to visit
Now that Milos is high on your list of Greek islands to visit, you may wonder how long to stay. At minimum I recommend staying in Milos for 2 nights. I wish I stayed longer than 2 nights myself. 3-4 nights would be the ideal amount of time for staying in Milos. After that, continue venturing onto other idyllic Greek islands!
If you have any more questions about Milos, definitely feel free to comment on the post or reach out to me privately! As mentioned above, check out my Milos prints for purchase! Until next time…
Wander On,
Christina
