Pserimos (Kapari)

Map of Pserimos

The little island of Pserimos (or Kapari), 80 population-15km² extension, filled with remote beaches, is one of the smallest islands of Aegean and is located between Kalymnos and Kos. Belongs to Dodecanese complex. The northern end of the island called "Akra Vasiliki", while the southernmost "Akra Roussa" and the north "Akra Koraki." It got its name because of the homonymous plant that grows there.

Throughout the season, so many excursion boats arrive that they have had to build a second jetty at little Avlakia port. In midsummer, day-trippers blanket the main sandy beach that curves in front of Avlakia's thirty-odd houses and huge communal olive grove. Three other beaches are within easy reach: the clean sand-and-gravel strand at Vathy is a well-marked, 30minute walk east, starting from behind the Taverna Iy Pserimos. It takes 45 minutes of walking north along the main trans-island track to get to grubbier Marathounda, composed of pebbles. Best of all is Grafiotissa, a 300m-long beach of near-Caribbean quality half an hour's walk west of town.

Ios

Map of Ios

Ios is the 8th bigger island of the Cyclades with 2.024 population and 108km² extension. Though not terribly different -geographically and architecturally- from its neighbours, no other Greek island attracts the same vast crowds of young people as Ios. Although it has worked hard to shake off its late-twentieth-century reputation for alcohol excesses and to move the island's tourism one class up with some success, Ios is extremely popular with young backpacker set who take over the island in July and August.

The only real villages, Yialos, Hora and Mylopotas, are clustered in a western corner of the island, and development elsewhere is restricted by poor roads. As a result there are still some very quiet beaches with just a few room to rent. Most visitors stay along the arc delineated by the port, at Yialos, where you'll arrive, in Hora above it, or by the beach of Mylopotas. Despite its past popularity, sleeping on the beach on Ios is strictly banned these days and so is nudism.

Hora or Ios Town, the capital, is a twenty-minute walk up behind Yialos port, and is one of the most picturesque towns in the Cyclades, filled with meandering arcaded lanes and whitewashed chapels. Still, it gets pretty raunchy when the younger crowds moves in for the high season. The main road divides it naturally into two parts: the old town climbing the hillside to the left as you arrive and the newer development to the right. The archaeological museum (Tue-Sun, 8:30am-3pm, free), in the yellow town hall, is part of an attempt to attract a more diverse range of visitors to the island. It contains some interesting finds from ancient Skarkos, a few kilometers inland from Yialos.

Yialos, with its surprisingly peaceful beach- isn't in the same league as Hora, but it provides a refreshing, breezy escape from the hot, noisy capital. Alternatively there's the popular Mylopotas, the site of a magnificent beach, lots of water activity outlets and surprisingly little nightlife.

Mykonos

Mykonos has become the most popular, the most high profile and the most expensive island of Cyclades. Boosted by direct air links with Europe, it sees several million tourists a year pass through, producing some spectacular August overcrowding on the island's 86 square kilometers. Its striking capital is one of the most photogenic Cycladic towns with whitewashed houses concealing a dozen little churches, shrines and chapels.

Map of Mykonos

The cosmopolitan Mykonos is famous for its lively and hectic nightlife and this is one of the many reasons that attracts many visitors from Greece and abroad every year. The narrow streets in the country begin to fill with people in the afternoon, while traffic is increased in the evening. Bars and nightclubs with loud music for all tastes from well known dj's marks the nightlife of Mykonos.

Mykonos is the 10th bigger island of Cyclades with 86km² extension and 10.134 population. Mykonos Town or Chora is the capital of the island. The best time to explore the capital is in early morning when most people head out to the beaches. The labyrinthine design of the capital was supposed to confuse the pirates who plagued Mykonos in the 18th century, and it has the same effect on today's visitors. Getting lost in the convoluted streets and valleys is half the fun of Mykonos, although there are few places worth seeking out, like Archaeological museum, Maritime museum and Folklore museum. But the best place to enjoy coffee and the magical landscape is Little Venice, named by the high, arcaded Venetian houses built right up to the water's edge on its Southwest side.