Quiet Greek Islands to Escape the Crowds

The Greek islands are beautiful. There’s a good reason why so many people visit them every year. It’s that incredible combination of stunning scenery, good beaches, the bluest of seas and a slow pace of life that’s so appealing for a summer holiday. But how easy is it to find quiet Greek islands where you can escape from the crowds?

The beauty of the Greek islands has made them more vulnerable to overtourism and the problems that come with it, like overcrowding and traffic jams, especially on the most popular islands. Visitor numbers to Greece are going up year after year, making it one of the most visited countries in Europe. Over 2.5 million people visited Santorini last year.

So what do you do if you want a Greek island holiday but want to avoid the crowds – even in the peak summer months of July and August?

You can find quiet Greek islands in the summer. You just have to know where to look. There are an amazing 227 inhabited islands in Greece and many of them are every bit as beautiful as the famous ones.

These are the laid-back Greek islands that we prefer to visit. There’s a timelessness and old-fashioned feel on these more low-key islands which is hard to resist. You’ll find quiet fishing villages, simple tavernas serving delicious local food, good beaches and the slow pace of life we love about Greece. They’re often much better value for money too.

You may have to travel off the beaten track a bit but it’s worth it to find a more authentic island. Here is a selection of our favourite quiet Greek islands from tiny islands that feel like an insider secret to our tips on finding quieter places on some of the more well-known islands. We’ve visited all these islands in July and August so we can vouch for them being quiet even in the summer months.

Folegandros

Folegandros is one of those places that you dream of returning to. The tiny harbour here is one of the quietest seaside villages in the Cyclades:  fishermen untangle their nets at the quayside and families watch their children play on the sandy beach.

The road from the harbour zigzags up the hill to Chora, the walled medieval centre, and one of the prettiest towns in the Cyclades. Evenings here start with a climb up to the church high on the rocks to watch the sun set, before dinner in one of the many tavernas whose tables spill out onto the town squares.

Folegandros is only eight miles long yet it’s still one of our favourite quiet Greek islands. A drive across the island takes you past lemon and olive trees, grazing donkeys, isolated churches and octopus hanging up to dry outside a roadside taverna. You won’t find rows of sun loungers on the beaches, just a couple of tavernas, and you can get boats around the island to stop off at the beaches inaccessible by road.

How to get there: It’s a 40-minute journey by high speed ferry from Santorini (from where there are direct flights to the UK). There are also ferries from Athens and Mykonos.

Find out more about Folegandros by reading, Folegandros: Is this the Perfect Greek Island?

Kefalonia

Anyone who has read Captain Corelli’s Mandolin will be familiar with the charms of Kefalonia. This lush green island in the Ionians has world-famous beaches, pastel-coloured houses and a dramatic limestone scenery. There are goats on the hillsides and sea turtles in the harbours.

Kefalonia is no hidden gem – the chic harbour of Fiskardo on the north coast is more like a low-key version of St-Tropez in the summer months – but it’s not difficult to find unspoiled Greece, even so.

Head instead to Assos where you’ll discover a horseshoe-shaped harbour, with colourful houses and tavernas overlooking the water. There’s a small beach, a castle on the hill and plenty of good walks through the pine and cypress trees into the surrounding countryside.

How to get there: There are direct flights to Kefalonia from the UK.

Sifnos

It even smells good on the island of Sifnos – the scents of oregano, sage and thyme waft down from the hillside and wild lavender grows near the olive and almond trees.

It’s remarkable that Sifnos has remained under the radar for so long. It has everything I look for in one of our quiet Greek islands – small fishing harbours, chic hotels, walled medieval towns and pretty villages. Even the beaches are excellent (not always a given in Greece).

Hire a car so that you can explore more of the island – the rugged, rocky landscape is beautiful. Don’t miss a trip to the walled medieval Kastro and the extraordinary church on the rocks below, one of the most beautiful settings of any church in Greece. And be sure to enjoy lots of leisurely meals – the food on the island is considered to be the best in the Cyclades.

How to get there: There’s a daily ferry to Sifnos from Athens. It takes three to five hours, depending on the ferry line. There are also ferries from Santorini.

Find out more about Sifnos by reading Things to do in Sifnos.

Koufonisia

The first thing you notice when you step off the ferry dock at Koufonisia is the extraordinary colour of the sea. It’s a clear turquoise so vivid that it doesn’t look real.

This tiny island in the Small Cyclades is worth every bit of the effort it takes to get here. It only covers two square miles but it has some of the most beautiful beaches we’ve ever found in Greece, and a hippy chic vibe that’s impossible to resist.

There’s virtually no traffic on the island – there’s only one taxi so every one walks or cycles along the coastal path to get to the various beaches. Evenings are spent in the island’s only village, where you’ll find a selection of good tavernas and a couple of boutiques stylish enough for the predominantly Italian visitors who come here.

And if you ever find the beaches getting too crowded, just take the ferry across to Kato Koufonissi, the uninhabited island across the water, where you can have the beach virtually to yourself.

How to get there: You can reach Koufonisia from the other islands in the Cyclades. It takes two hours from Naxos and 90 minutes from Mykonos.

Read all about Koufonisia in Beaches, Blue Sea and Bliss in the Cyclades.

Ithaca

If you’re looking for somewhere quieter than Kefalonia in the Ionians your best bet is the little island of Ithaca, a short ferry ride across the sea. It’s an island most people only visit on a day trip so the atmosphere is even more low-key in the evenings when the day trippers have gone home.

It’s easy to see why Odysseus was so desperate to return home to this enchanting island in Homer’s Odyssey. You’ll be entranced by your first sight of the main port of Vathy with its pink, lemon and cream houses along the waterfront.

Base yourself in one of Ithaca’s pretty harbours – we loved the picture-perfect little harbour at Kioni with its colourful neo-classical houses and tavernas beside the sea – and spend your days sailing to the various beaches and hiking into the emerald green interior of the island.

How to get there: Ithaca is a 40-minute ferry ride from Kefalonia from where there are direct flights to the UK.

Schinoussa

A trip to Schinoussa is like going back in time to the Greece of the 1950s. Like Koufonisia, Schinoussa is one of the four islands in the Small Cyclades, described by Lonely Planet as “the best Greek islands you’ve never heard of.”

Schinoussa is a charming island that’s been virtually untouched by tourism. You arrive at the small harbour from where there’s a short walk up the hill to the main village, complete with cafés, tavernas and shops selling homemade potions. Then it’s just a matter of deciding which of the island’s 18 beaches you fancy visiting first. They’ll all be very quiet – the kind of places where you hang up your clothes in the branches of a tamarisk tree and head for the sea. Even quiet Greek islands rarely get as relaxed as this.

How to get there: You can reach Schinoussa from the other islands in the Cyclades. It takes two hours from Naxos and 90 minutes from Mykonos.

Find out more about visiting Schinoussa by reading The Dreamy Greek Island of Schinoussa.

Syros

Syros has a winning combination of cosmopolitan city with laidback fishing villages and family beaches. It’s hard to believe that this island is only popular with Greeks who’ve been coming back year after year – and a few Scandinavian families in the know.

The elegant, neo-classical buildings in the capital of Ermoupolis are beautiful and you’ll find plenty of smart tavernas and museums to visit. Yet just five miles down the road brings you to the seaside village of Kini, where a handful of simple tavernas serve delicious seafood right on the water’s edge and you can hire boats to take you along the coast to find your very own deserted beach for the day.

How to get there: there are regular ferries to Syros from Athens and Santorini.

Crete

You might not expect to find many quiet spots on an island as well known as Crete but you just have to know where to look.

On Crete you’ll find mountains and beaches, harbours and Venetian castles as well as famous Minoan sites from the oldest civilisation in Europe. It’s also the largest island in Greece so I’ve divided it up into the best areas in the north and the south.

Northern Crete

In the summer, the resorts closest to the airports of Chania and Heraklion are really busy and tourist sites like Knossos can get very crowded. But in the centre of the north coast, you can find charming seaside resorts like the one at Panormos, with a lovely traffic-free centre and tavernas overlooking the harbour.

Travel right round the north east coast, past the busy resorts of Elounda and Agios Nikolaos and you’ll discover more hidden gems, like the little fishing village of Mochlos. Life here revolves around the harbour and the fishing boats which bring the freshest catch back to the village tavernas. You can even hire a boat to take you across to the Minoan settlement on the island opposite.

Crete is famous for its Minoan sites. Most people have heard of Knossos but Gournia, one of the best preserved prehistoric settlements in Greece, is one of the least visited archaeological sites on the island and it only costs a couple of Euros to visit.

Further along the east coast is Vai, famous for being one of the most beautiful beaches in Crete. The summer crowds all flock here but if you travel a couple of miles further on you’ll reach the secluded beaches at Itanos where you’ve got the added bonus of an archaeological site to explore – there are remains of a Minoan city both near the beach and under the sea.

To find out more about the north east coast of Crete, take a look at 5 Places you Must Visit in Eastern Crete.

Southern Crete

If you head south from Chania you’ll reach the White Mountains. There are some lovely looking mountain retreats here – check out Smudged Postcard’s post for inspiration – and the area is ideal for hiking.

But if you’re looking for a picture-perfect harbour, brave the steep mountain roads and catch a boat from Hora Sfakion to Loutro, one of the prettiest harbours in Greece, and so remote that you can only reach it by boat. The view of the white-cubed houses clinging to the bottom of the mountain beside the gorgeously green water in the bay is one of my favourite sights in the whole of Greece.

The vibe here is so chilled that you stay in a simple hotel and spend your days kayaking or hiking up into the hills.

If you feel the need for somewhere even quieter than Loutro just follow the trail up the hill, through the olive groves and past the grazing goats. After about 20 minutes you’ll reach the tiny harbour of Finikas – just a little pebble beach and a taverna.

Read all about Loutro in Loutro: A Little Piece of Paradise in Crete.

How to get there: There are direct flights to Crete from the UK.

For more Greek island inspiration, take a look at Beautiful Greek Islands for your Bucket List and The Best Greek Islands for Families.

Do you have any favourite quiet Greek islands? I’d love to hear your recommendations.