I've just returned from a 6 day visit to Milos, Greece with my (Greek) wife and her family at the end of August. Defying assumptions about travel with in-laws, it was a great trip. I've visited a number of Greek islands now (Seriphos, Kea, Santorini, Syros, Naxos and Milos, in chronological order) and Milos is a stand-out favorite. It's a volcanic island like Santorini, so the landscape is similarly spectacular, with lots of great beaches. It also has a large permanent population (as opposed to purely tourist-catering populations that disappear in October) so there are plenty of scenic villages, full of friendly locals and great Greek food. All around a winning combination. In fact, in my list of all-time favorite Greek trips, I'd put this second only to Meteora.
Bonus features of Milos include an ancient amphitheater and the earliest Christian catacombs in the world, and of course Milos is the site where the Venus de Milo was found.
Here are a few pictures from around the island.
That's my wife about to get doused, if you're curious.
Hopefully that gives you a taste of what a beautiful island Milos is. As I was checking out of our hotel, the owner's nephew asked me what I thought of Milos. I answered something along the lines of, "Milos has to be the most under-rated island in Greece." I immediately regretted the phrasing of my response. What I was really thinking was, "This place is amazing! Why does everyone go to Santorini? Milos is better, but it's a secret?" He seemed to understand. He explained that with the huge mining operations going on on Milos and the associated revenues, the Greek government has never been willing to promote Milos as a tourist destination. For the most part, I don't understand that thinking on the part of the Greek government. I seriously doubt that increasing tourism on Milos would interfere with mining. The mining areas are restricted to maybe 15% of the island, and they're largely off-limits to tourists. On the other hand, with about 140 inhabited islands, I suppose Greece figures they have enough tourist destinations to leave Milos to the miners.
In coming posts I'll give more pictures and details for various beaches and towns around the island, with travel tips as much as I can remember them. But this is also my own personal travel journal, so there will probably be a few more pictures of family members in these posts than some would like. I apologize for that in advance.
Bonus features of Milos include an ancient amphitheater and the earliest Christian catacombs in the world, and of course Milos is the site where the Venus de Milo was found.
Here are a few pictures from around the island.
Hopefully that gives you a taste of what a beautiful island Milos is. As I was checking out of our hotel, the owner's nephew asked me what I thought of Milos. I answered something along the lines of, "Milos has to be the most under-rated island in Greece." I immediately regretted the phrasing of my response. What I was really thinking was, "This place is amazing! Why does everyone go to Santorini? Milos is better, but it's a secret?" He seemed to understand. He explained that with the huge mining operations going on on Milos and the associated revenues, the Greek government has never been willing to promote Milos as a tourist destination. For the most part, I don't understand that thinking on the part of the Greek government. I seriously doubt that increasing tourism on Milos would interfere with mining. The mining areas are restricted to maybe 15% of the island, and they're largely off-limits to tourists. On the other hand, with about 140 inhabited islands, I suppose Greece figures they have enough tourist destinations to leave Milos to the miners.
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