Milos: My Favorite Greek Island (so far)
The island of Milos is spectacular. It feels like a hidden gem, though it is starting to get more recognition recently. In fact, it wasn’t even on my radar when I first started planning our trip to Greece. After reading about it on a few travel blogs, I decided to add it to our itinerary. I am so grateful that I did. If you are visiting the Cycladic Island Group, or Greece in general, I strongly urge you to add Milos to your trip. It was by far my favorite island in the Cyclades and it is one of the most enthralling and relaxed places I have ever visited.
Last June we took our first trip to Greece and we loved it. This post will detail our second stop in Greece to the island of Milos. My first post in the series was about our stop in Santorini. Follow up posts will outline our other stops on the trip. This includes the Cycladic Islands (Santorini, Milos and Naxos), Athens, and the Ionian Island of Corfu.
Trip Planning: Before
As I mentioned in my Santorini blog post, I did a lot of research and planning before visiting Greece. My main focus was on building a good itinerary that didn’t feel too rushed. Specific to Milos, I made sure I had our transportation and lodging booked ahead of time. I researched anything related to Milos that could help me understand the island better. A few articles that helped me are here, here and here.
For transportation, I booked our ferry and rental car beforehand. Most of the islands in the area are not too far apart, so ferry hopping is easy to do. For lodging, I looked at a lot of hotels and Airbnbs, but ended up picking an Airbnb that was affordable and in a great location. I generally leave the day to day activity planning until once I have arrived.
Getting There & Around
We took a short two hour ferry from Santorini to Milos. I booked my tickets by looking at schedules on this site and then booking directly with Seajets. On the ferry you have assigned seats and you can purchase food on board. There is also an airport on Milos with direct connections to Athens.
Once we arrived at the Adámantas port, we were able to take a short walk to the car rental agency. We used our car to get everywhere and we were grateful to have it. If you’re not planning on renting, many hotels and Airbnbs offer to pick you up from the ferry port or airport. It’s important to note that there are limited public transportation options on the island. Due to how spread out everything is, I’d suggest you rent a car for at least part of your visit to experience the picturesque villages and unique beaches.
Milos Basics
Milos is the fifth largest Cycladic island, at a size of roughly 58 square miles. The population is just under 5,000 people. The main language spoken on Milos is Greek, with many people also speaking English. Most of the menus at restaurants are in both Greek and English. ATMs are widely available and many places take credit card.
Milos can feel like you are on another planet with it’s otherworldly landscapes and geological formations. It was created from a series of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, which explains the lunar looking surfaces and dramatic coastlines. There are large swaths of the western part of the island that are inaccessible to tourists, with rugged terrain in some areas that should be avoided in a rental car.
The weather in Milos is hot and sunny in the summer. It was hot during our visit, so we spent most of our time at the beach to avoid the heat. We were grateful to have AC at our lodging in the evenings. Due to the location of the island, it can get quite windy at times. This is something to consider when traveling by sea.
Where to Stay
There are a lot of options for lodging on Milos, with most of it located on the northern part of the island. The main lodging areas are the port of Adámantas, the main town of Plaka, and the smaller villages of Klima and Pollonia. Where you choose to stay depends a lot on where you want to be on the island. Some like to be closer to the port or in town, but we opted to be in a more tranquil village setting in close proximity to the beaches.
We stayed at a basic, but cute little Airbnb in Pollonia, which is a charming fishing village on the northeast part of the island. The village has an intimate collection of houses and fishing boats mixed in with tourist lodging and seaside restaurants. Our Airbnb had AC, a small refrigerator and a balcony looking out onto the water. Our host was very knowledgeable and gave us great advice for food, beaches and what to do with our time. We couldn’t have asked for more during our stay.
The Food
We had some amazing food on Milos. We lucked out that our Airbnb host gave us a great list of places to eat at and all of her recommendations were spot on. Even better, so many were within walking distance from where we were staying.
On our first night, we visited the Armenaki Restaurant in Pollonia, which had some really yummy selections. The restaurant has outdoor seating along the beach and a staff with a sweet personal touch. Armenaki also has an extensive cellar collection of wines from all over Greece.
On our second day there, we ate at a hidden gem called Ergína’s Restaurant. It is located on a hilly perch in Trypiti with great views out to the sea. The food at Ergina’s was amazing and the salads were some of the best we had during our entire trip. I highly recommend making a stop there for lunch or dinner.
We stopped by the Kivotos ton Gefseon bakery and restaurant repeatedly for their delicious bakery and breakfast items. The restaurant sits at the entrance to Pollonia and it is an easy stop on your way out of town. It has delicious and well priced food and baked goods with an adorable back courtyard. This place is well worth a visit for a meal or some baked goods.
Kivotos ton Gefseon 
Kivotos ton Gefseon
What To Do
Milos is relatively spread out and there are many things to do with your time. You won’t regret taking a drive around the island and visiting some of the smaller villages, churches and restaurants. Aside from the beaches, there are some cool points of history to check out. One of the most popular are the Milos Catacombs. We tried to make a visit there, but it was unfortunately closed when we went. There is also a mining museum and an archaeological museum if you are up for that type of activity.
Go To The Beaches
Papafraga Beach & Caves
The Papafraga beach and caves are more of a geographical wonder to gawk at than they are a beach to swim in. The rock and cave formations are very unique and worth checking out, even if briefly. You can hike down the craggy rocks to the water to see the underside of the cave area. Many people do go swimming, but we opted to take some pics from above and move on to the next spot.
Algomandra Beach
The Algomandra Beach is very beautiful cove-like setting with a small beach and crystal clear turquoise water. We were able to lay out on a small area of the beach and take a dip in the cool and refreshing water.
Sarakiniko Beach
The Sarakiniko Beach feels like you are on the moon. The lightly hued rock formations are in stark contrast to the emerald blue water and sky. There is an inlet of water that enters the rocks where most people fan out to swim or lay out. This area doesn’t seem so much like a beach, but more like a rocky swimming hole. I recommend making a stop here to check out the fascinating rock formations and taking a quick swim.
Paliochori Beach
The Paliochori Beach was the largest, most typical feeling beach that we visited while on Milos. It has some really cool colors due to the geothermal rock formations. The water is a beautiful dark turquoise that nicely contrasts with the orange red hue of the sand and rocks. There are chairs and umbrellas for rent all along the beach that offer protection from the sun. The water was chilly, but it helped beat the heat. We enjoyed our time here and I would recommend making a visit.
RUNNING ON MILOS
We took all of our runs in Milos on the roads around Pollonia and directly outside of town. Since Milos is not super crowded like Santorini, we felt safe enough running on the main roads. We were vigilant about cars and ran opposite traffic. Due to the heat, we took our runs in the evening, which was a lot cooler. The sunset views on our runs were absolutely incredible.
Getting Away: Scary Ferry to Naxos
We took a ferry to get to our next stop of Naxos. The morning we were due to head out, our Airbnb host warned us that the wind was bad and that the sea would be rough. We proceeded as planned to our ferry. During the 4-5 hour ride, we were tossed around as if we were in a washing machine. It was an extremely unpleasant experience, but I learned a lot from it. Mainly that you should always pay attention to local advice. If it is very windy out and the sea is rough, change your plans accordingly. Thankfully, our next ferry ride to Athens was extremely smooth sailing.
Visit Milos
In short, we loved the chill atmosphere, stunning beaches and scrumptious food of Milos. I hope to return again some day and I recommend that you add it to your next trip, too.
