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The best things to do in Mallorca, Spain
Your vacations are fast approaching and you’d like to visit Mallorca in the Balearic Islands? Discover our complete guide on our travel blog!
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We set off to discover this island paradise, reputed to be very party-friendly and touristy. What if you discovered it out of season, to enjoy the island’s calm and beauty? At the end of September, we took off with our partner Misterfly to discover two Cycladic islands, Mykonos and Santorini. We fell under the spell of the sunrises and sunsets, the narrow cobbled streets, the wide open spaces and wild beaches.
In this article, you’ll find all our top addresses for restaurants in Mykonos, as well as dreamy, quiet and affordable hotels. But also, all the must-sees during your trip to Mykonos as well as the most photogenic and Instagrammable places. So if you’re looking for what to do in Mykonos, you’re on the right blog post!
Your choice of hotel depends very much on the length of your stay and whether or not you plan to have a car. For a short stay in Mykonos, the ideal place to stay would be in the center, although accommodation is expensive, so you’ll have plenty of time to explore the town without transport.
If, like us, you’re planning a stay of several days or a week in Mykonos, we have the perfect hotel for you. Hotel Pietra e Mare Mykonos is a 20-minute drive from the town center, in a very quiet location overlooking the magnificent Kalo Livadi beach. This hotel in Mykonos offers great facilities, with a swimming pool and large beds to relax in, private terraces… Rooms are simple but very comfortable. The real highlight of this hotel is its stunning sea views!
The little plus: it’s perfectly placed for sunrises.
It also has a very affordable and delicious restaurant, ideal after a day of island-hopping! The perfect opportunity to enjoy a souvlaki or Greek salad in peace and quiet.
Since the creation of this guide, we’ve written an article dedicated to the best hotels in Mykonos. We recommend you take a look at it if you’d like some inspiration for finding the right establishment for you!
This is where you’re sure to fall under the spell of Mykonos. The cobbled streets, the white houses with blue shutters, the little cats everywhere …Once again, to enjoy it 100%, even out of season, we advise you to get there early. Before 9.30 a.m., there really aren’t any tourists, and that’s when the city is at its most beautiful.
In town, you’ll find a multitude of shops, from luxury boutiques to small boutiques selling summer outfits and jewelry, as well as souvenir stores. The perfect opportunity to take a little piece of the island home with you! There are also plenty of cafés, bars and restaurants to suit all price ranges. You’ll find all our favorite restaurant addresses in Mykonos further down the article.
You won’t be able to miss them, the famous windmills of Mykonos attract all the tourists! It’s true that they’re beautiful and overlook the town, they’re a bit of an emblem of the town and therefore a must-see during your visit.
Little Venice is one of Mykonos’ most famous neighborhoods, and for good reason: the little waterfront houses are adorable. Each of the cobbled streets extends down to the sea, where you’ll find numerous cafés and small boutiques selling jewelry, clothes and souvenirs. It’s a very pleasant area, but one that’s quickly taken over by tourists, especially groups from cruise ships. Once again, go there very early in the morning to make the most of the area and the morning mildness!
Continue your walk past Little Venice and you’ll come to the level of the old port of Mykonos. We found it very pleasant and typical, with its small fishermen’s boats and waterside terraces. You can also take a shuttle to Delos, a tiny island close to Mykonos. Count €20 for a round trip.
This superb white church is the sum of five interlocking churches. It’s quickly being taken over by tourists, but since you’ll be following our advice you’ll be there in the early hours of the morning and you’ll be all alone to photograph it!
The cobbled streets of Mykonos are painted white on the ground, encircling the stones, which gives them a crazy charm. It’s easy to get lost here, as you stroll past little white houses with blue shutters and blooming bougainvillea! It’s one of the things we loved most about Mykonos. Along the way, take the time to stop for a coffee and a pastry.
This tiny village on Mykonos is very charming and typical. Take the opportunity to lunch or dine in Ano Mera, in the main square, where you’ll find a number of fine, affordable addresses. You’ll have done the whole thing in an hour or two, but it’s a nice change from Mykonos Town, and as a bonus you’ll see lots of little cats!
This Monastery can be visited for 1€, it’s not very big but it’s possible to visit the interior, the worship hall, a small museum room displaying paintings as well as the outside courtyard. It’s a quick visit, but interesting all the same!
In Mykonos you’ll find a huge number of beaches, each one different from the next. Here’s a small selection of the beaches worth a visit to Mykonos and their characteristics!
These beaches are quite festive, and you’ll find plenty of beach bars where you can rent deckchairs. From 5 p.m. onwards, there’s music and a great atmosphere for dancing with your feet in the water and a drink in your hand!
Both beaches are accessible by bus from Mykonos Town for those without vehicles.
This spot was our favorite! It’s a little out of town, and while it’s certainly windy, it’s very calm. The color of the water won us over! It’s so transparent that you can see lots of fish following you as you swim, it’s almost disturbing.
This wild beach has beautiful scenery and transparent water!
If you want to go windsurfing or take a ride on a fishing boat, you’ve come to the right place! You can also rent a deckchair for €20 a day on this rather quiet, family-friendly beach.
If you’d like to find out more about the best restaurants on Mykonos, we invite you to discover our dedicated article.
To find the best mode of transport to your destination, we advise you to always look on the OMIO comparator. This will give you an overview of all available modes of transport. You’ll be able to compare prices very easily.
In Mykonos, and in the Cyclades in general, the distances between each tourist point are quite great, so if you want to get out of Mykonos Town and go to a beach, another village, or set out to discover the island, better have a vehicle! The roads are often narrow and not always in good condition, so it’s best to be an experienced driver. In fact, Greeks are rather aggressive (and forceful) even on bumpy roads, so be careful.
To discover Mykonos, you have 4 options for getting around:
If you’d like to rent a car during your trip, we recommend looking on the RentalCars website. This will enable you to find the best prices and conditions for your rental.
For parking in Mykonos, there are numerous parking lots, both paid and free, right at the entrance to the town. You can choose to park in the heights of the town for free, which is what we did most often, parking just in front of the Ifrati Gastronomia di culto. All you have to do is walk the rest of the way for about 10 minutes, while enjoying a superb view of the city’s rooftops.
Another option is to drive down to the Kato Mili Mills, at the very bottom of the town, where there is both free and paid parking. For paid parking, you’ll need to pay €5 for 24 hours for scooters and quads, and €10 for cars. FYI, it’s a bit long and adventurous to drive all the way down in the narrow streets with pedestrians and vehicles!
In order to find the best hotels and benefit from the best conditions (security, cancellation…) we go almost exclusively through Booking.com for our trips. We recommend that you take a look at the available hotels before you leave. You can filter them according to their ratings. There are plenty of recent customer reviews, so there are no unpleasant surprises when you’re traveling!
It all depends on what you’re looking for! For those who love partying and high temperatures, prefer July or August. Then the beaches are all in beach club mode, with a very festive atmosphere. For those who like peace and quiet, mild temperatures and perfect sunshine, go in June or September! We were there from September 23 to 30, with temperatures ranging from 23 to 27 degrees. Although the island is still touristy, it’s much quieter and more pleasant.
If you want to get ideas for things to do on your vacation and want to book in advance, we’d also recommend taking a look at the GetYourGuide website. This will give you an overview of the activities on offer in your destination, so you don’t have to wait until you get there to book your places.
We can’t tell you enough, but it’s even truer here… Get up early! What’s more, the sunrises are splendid – you won’t regret it! Before 9:30 a.m., you’ll have the streets of downtown all to yourself, which makes all the difference. For photo enthusiasts, this is the only time you’ll be able to enjoy it, before the thousands of tourists arrive (notably dropped off by cruise ships).
We ended our trip to the Cyclades with the island of Santorini. To continue the journey and discover our must-see places to visit during your stay in Santorini click on the button below!
We hope that the tips and addresses on our travel blog will help you plan your next trip to the Cyclades.
your next trip to the Cyclades. 😃
You can also follow our daily adventures on Instagram 🙂
Clem & Alex
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