Have you ever participated in Greek island hopping? If not, this is an experience you should really go for. You will have the opportunity to visit different destination in just few days. Probably the most famous islands for Greek island hopping are Cyclades. Due to their location and distances between them, you will not lose many hours on the ferry. Cycladic complex is also not that far from Athens. This fact makes those destinations more suitable for island hopping as well.

It really depends on how much time you have at your disposal for your vacation, as well as on your budget. Due to good connection, during high season more than 4 times a day, destinations which we propose for Greek island hopping are Paros, Naxos, Ios, Santorini. Of course, you can mix things up by adding another island like Mykonos, Tinos or Sifnos. But, four islands that we mentioned are close and offer a different experience of vacation. Therefore, it might be the best choice. Because your days for vacation might be limited, you can choose only two, like Paros and Santorini.

Onar Hotels Collection inspires you to enjoy Greek island hopping!   

PAROS ISLAND 

Paros can be the starting point of our Greek island hopping. This is one of the most popular islands of Cycladic complex. Due to the fact that it attracts visitor of all ages, you also will have a nice time here. There are many varieties of choices for swimming here as well. The island features countless beaches, both organized and unspoiled. Therefore, it covers all tastes. Organized and famous sandy beaches are Kolymbithres, Santa Maria, Small Santa Maria, Marcello etc. Unspoiled and amazing are Molos beach and Kalogeros. You should know that Paros features more than 40 beaches around its coast. Almost every beach, because of the popularity of the island, has sunbeds, umbrellas and a beach bar.

Due to its size, Paros Island has many villages. It has two main settlements; Parikia and Naoussa village.

Parikia

Parikia is the capital of the island and this is the place where the main port is. As it is situated in a bay, there are three beaches near Parikia: Livadia (the main beach of the capital), Marcello and Krios. The last two feature the village for a view, as they are located on the opposite side of the bay. To reach Marcello and Krios you will need your own mean of transport.

Naoussa

Naoussa village is one of the most beautiful places in Greece. Therefore, you have to visit it at least once. Amazing Cycladic alleys and picturesque port with caique boats are the main attractions here. The location of the village is in a bay as well. You can find two famous beaches here: Kolymbithres and Monastiri. The unique aspect here is that you can get to them using caique boat from Naoussa. This is an amazing experience. Of course, both beaches are also accessible by car or bus. Naoussa features its two main beaches. One on the north side (Agioi Anargyroi beach) and one on the south side (Piperi beach). On Piperi beach, our Senia Hotel offers private umbrellas and sunbeds to its guests.

You can choose Onar Hotels in Paros.

NAXOS ISLAND

Naxos Island is an amazing destination. Therefore, if you will participate in Greek island hopping, you should definitely visit it. It is situated less than 1 hour away from Paros and 5.5 hours away from Athens by ferry. By plane, the flight takes about 45 minutes. Most of the “tourism life” of Naxos Island can be found on the north-west side. Main town of the island is beautiful and it features spectacular ancient monument in its port. Like in most capitals in Cyclades, the largest number of taverns, restaurants and shops are found here. Cocktail bars can be found here as well. On the south end of the capital, there is the main beach of the town. Because of the distances, it can be reached on foot from the port, as it is only 1 km away. It is organized and therefore, you will find sunbeds and umbrellas here.

When searching few things about Naxos Island, you definitely found some of its famous locations. Agios Prokipios, Agia Anna, Plaka and Mikri Vigla are the most well-known locations, as well as beaches. The amazing fact is that all of them consist of powdery sand. Also, the sunset view from all the above locations is amazing. Although those beaches are situated next to each other, it would be suitable if you had your own mean of transport. That is because there are huge in length. Just imagine that the distance from Agios Prokopios to Mikri Vigla is about 9km.   

The organization

As Naxos Island is one of the most famous destinations in Greece, all the main beaches are well organized. Across almost the entire west coast line, until Plaka, you will find sunbeds and umbrellas. Therefore, you will also find beach bars. If you are looking for more luxurious touch on the beach, Agia Anna is your place to be. This regards beach bars and sunbeds. Of course season after season, other beaches might catch-up.

If you are love nature, this Greek island hopping destination will cover your needs like no other island of Cyclades. Mountains of Naxos are interesting and you can even find small waterfalls. Therefore, participation in a daily trip with nature for a theme is highly recommended for those who love mountains.

The cuisine

Do not be surprised, but Naxos, in contrast to other destinations of your Greek island hopping, has cuisine based on meat. Don’t get us wrong, seafood is as good as anywhere. Yet, because of the fact that Naxos features its own meat production, the quality of dishes is extraordinary. Therefore, on this island maybe you should skip fish, octopus and shrimps for a couple of days.

Onar Hotels does not feature any hotel on Naxos Island by we recommend IRIA BEACH ART HOTEL, KOUROS HOTEL.

IOS ISLAND

Ios Island is the smallest destination of your Greek island hopping, but not regarding the area which it covers. This island does not have villages like other destination. It features the capital called Chora, the main port and of course Mylopotas area. It is situated between Naxos and Santorini. Chora is one of the most beautiful settlements of Cyclades. It is built on a steep hill with churches on the top. Therefore, Chora is also called “the ornament of Cyclades’. That is how beautiful it is.

You probably heard of Mylopotas beach, a sandy paradise about 1 km long. This is also one of the most recognizable beaches of Cyclades. It is very wide as well. From here, you will have the opportunity to participate in water sport, relax on a luxury sunbed and enjoy the sunset. Many beach bars, restaurants can be found here. The most well-known is Far Out.

The second most popular beach on Ios island is called Manganari. This location is quite distant (17 km away from Chore) yet due to its beauty, it is worth a visit. Manganari consists of two sandy bays and it truly is an amazing landscape. You will find sunbeds and umbrellas here, as well as beach bars and tavern. Manganari can be reached by your own mean of transport or by a sea taxi. Of course the second choice requires calm seas.  

Third most popular beach on Ios Island is called Gialos. Due to its location, in the bay where port is, it attracts many visitors. It also consists of sand and it features sunbeds and umbrellas. There are also few unspoiled spots.

The charm

Ios Island is more famous among young people, because of its fame of all day party. For few years now, this destination of Greek island hopping is changing. It is becoming more luxurious with high quality visitors. Everything here is about the sunset during evenings. Many people walk to the top of Chora’s hill to admire this event. You should do it to, as it will be unforgettable.

Onar Hotels does not feature any hotel on Naxos Island by we recommend LIOSTASI HOTEL.   

 SANTORINI

This is an island which does not need an introduction. It definitely will be the highlight of your Greek island hopping. Santorini is the top destination in Mediterranean. A geological disaster few thousand years back made this island a magnet for travellers from around the word. There is something unique about this place. Therefore it has to be on your Greek island hopping list. Because of its charm, it is a different experience to walk around during the day and totally different thing during the night.

The capital of Santorini is called Fira. Other famous villages built on the cliffs are called Oia and Imerovigli. There are other villages as well, like Finikia, Firostefani or Akrotiri, situated on the impressive cliffs. As you will wake up on the cliffs with sea view and breakfast on you table, you will understand what Santorini is all about.      

The sunset

The highlight of Santorini is thought to be the sunset. Yet, after visiting this island you will understand that this is only one of miracles on this island. There are few top spots to admire the sunset here. One is in Oia village, in the castle area. It is the west point of the village and the view is panoramic. The second is in Imerovigli. As this is the highest village built on the cliffs, the view is stunning. Of course, there are also spots in the capital Fira.

In Oia you will have two choices of accommodation regarding the view. First is with sunset view and the second is with volcano view. We would like to point out that if you choose accommodation with sunset view, which keep only for few minutes, you will not have volcano view. On the other hand, volcano view is there for 24 hours and you can walk to see the sunset.

The volcano

When visiting Santorini, you have to visit the volcano. Due to its popularity, there are regular cruises all day long. You can disembark and walk all the way to its center. There are daily cruises towards hot springs as well. They include stops in several locations for swim and therefore it is also a good choice. Most of them include on-board lunch as well.

You can choose Onar Hotels in Santorini: ONAR VILLAS.