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Even for those who’ve by no means laid eyes on it earlier than, you may most likely simply describe Santorini with precision: everyone knows it for the whitewashed, cliffside homes, caldera inns with out of doors plunge swimming pools overlooking the Aegean… and the crowds.
Oh, the crowds.


We can’t mislead you: Greece’s most well-known Cycladic gem is certainly attractive, however the stage of mass tourism it faces would make you have got second ideas about coming this 12 months, set to be the busiest but, particularly if you cannot stand lengthy traces and overpriced providers.
Fortunately, Santorini is not the only Greek island to have all these wonderful options.
A brief 2-3 hour ferry journey away, there are two alternate options yet to be spoiled by the plenty, the place yow will discover dreamy boutique inns at less expensive charges:
Milos
Lunar-Like Landscapes, Colourful Harbors & The Venus Of Milo


The southwesternmost island within the Cyclades, Milos, is an uncommon horseshoe-shaped island characterised by its lunar-like, village-dotted panorama, pure springs crammed with gin-colored waters, and full with blue-dome church buildings and archeological zones.
Its essential port city, which is the entry level for vacationers arriving through ferry, boasts a excessive focus of eating places the place you may eat affordably for round $15, with Oh Hamos being notably fashionable for contemporary Greek salads and pasta and the family-run Lydia for his or her freshly-caught fish.


Different fashionable cities for tourism embody Plaka, the island’s capital, and a maze of pathways line with blanche homes, Klima, with its harbor-facing homes with brightly-painted doorways, and the fishing village of Pollonia, well-known for its wonderful seafood and local-owned taverns.
Wanna be actually mind-blown? Make sure that Sarakiniko Seaside is in your to-do record: a collective of small, ashen-white coastal cliffs lining the Aegean Sea; it’s the essential motive why Milos could possibly be known as Greece’s Moon Island.


For those who’re right here primarily for the coastal vibes, Papafragas is to not be missed, both: discovered on the finish of a cavernous passage, this seaside has smooth, heat golden sands and crystal-clear seas.
Now, if it is the tradition you are most obsessed with, the hilltop village of Trypiti must be a high precedence: it options a big archeological zone comprising a partially-preserved Roman theater and the location the place the world-famous Venus of Milo (now exhibited within the Louvre Museum in Paris) was discovered.
Naxos
A Whitewashed Port, Lush Inland Nature & Historical Temples


Some 100 nautical miles northeast of Milos, Naxos is one more hidden gem of the Cyclades island group that Santorini-obsessed vacationers usually bypass––to their very own detriment.
Opposite to Milos, its terrain is rather more fertile, with lush mountains traversing its hinterland, and loads of visitor-friendly hikes resulting in tiny waterfalls that vacant into pure springs (try Routsouna), and a number of the most breathtaking viewpoints in Greece.
It is also well-known for being the house of the door-like Temple of Apollo, or what’s left of it, in addition to the deserted Hellenic settlement of Yria Naxos, courting again hundreds of years.


Naxos takes its title after its capital, alternatively referred to as Chora, an attractive coastal settlement stuffed along with your traditional successive uphill rows of cube-shaped white homes, interrupted solely briefly by the intrusion of Venetian-style mansions and topped with a Thirteenth-century fortress.
Naxos City is the perfect spot on the island to be primarily based in, not solely as a result of it’s related by bus to different factors of curiosity, just like the sleepy village of Montsouna out east and the unspoiled sandy seashores to the south, however as a result of it provides a large choice of eating places and lodging.
Shock, inns listed here are nowhere close to as costly as Santorini, regardless of Naxos being simply as attractive!


This Polis of Naxos boutique lodge, as an illustration, situated within the coronary heart of Chora, has in a single day charges from solely $93 an evening early this summer season, and over in Agios Prokopios, one more stylish space to remain in, Hotel Francesca is charging as little as $41 per night time.
How To Get To Milos And Naxos In 2025
The perfect time to go to Milos and Naxos is from April to mid-October, when temperatures are heat and nice sufficient, reaching their summer season highs in July and August––when connectivity between the islands is at its peak.
Through the off and excessive seasons, each Milos and Naxos are well-served by a mess of ferry routes linking them to different Greek islands, Santorini and Mykonos included, and even the mainland.
Getting From Santorini To Milos


The quickest ferry from Santorini to Milos takes 2 hours, whereas the longest completes the scenic crossing in 5 hours, and tickets common $16 to $81, relying on the route you go for and the pace.
Three of the principle ferry traces working on this route are Seajets, often the quickest, with as much as 7 weekly crossings, Aegean Sea Traces, which carries passengers from everywhere in the Cyclades to the Greek mainland, twice per week, and the slowest of them, Zante Ferry, with 6 weekly visits to Milos.
Alternatively, you may fly on to Milos from Athens with SKY Categorical, with tickets beginning at $54.
Getting From Santorini To Naxos


Going from Santorini to Naxos, ferries can be found day by day, with the island serviced by Blue Star Ferries, Minoan Traces and Seajets.
Costs vary from $32 to $106, as seen on Ferryhopper, and the common crossing time is a suitable 1h58.
Equally to Milos, Naxos has a small airport internet hosting solely home flights from bigger Greek mainland cities like Athens and Thessaloniki, and from Heraklion, the bustling capital of Crete, Greece’s largest island.
With SKY Categorical, flying from Athens to Naxos will set you again by roughly $47 when booked upfront.
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