After exploring Santorini, it was time to spend a few relaxing and sun-soaked days in Mykonos. The legendary Mykonos, also called Ibiza of Greece, is mostly famous for its glamorous and vibrant nightlife. It is also well-known for its idyllic town, beautiful hidden beaches, romantic restaurants and iconic windmills.
We’ve spent four days on the island, which was more than enough time to unwind and to explore the island. Since Mykonos is a relatively small island, you can easily explore the island in a few days. We created the ultimate Mykonos travel guide for first-timers, filled with travel tips to help you plan an amazing trip to this legendary island.
🇬🇷 Language: Greek, English widely spoken
💰 Currency: Euro
⏳ Best time to visit: June to September
What to do in Mykonos
Since we wanted to alternate our lazy beachdays with exploring the island, we decided to rent a scooter near our hotel. We paid around € 30 a day (for 3 days).
Mykonos Town
Strolling around beautiful Mykonos Town was our favorite thing to do. There are many small walking streets with traditional white houses with blue accents, surrounded by some beautiful flowers. You can stroll around the town for days to see every corner of it and you’ll still be amazed. The scooter ride from our hotel to the closest parking to Mykonos Town (the city center is car-free) took about 10 minutes. We were in Mykonos town in no-time!
Little Venice
One of the most iconic parts of Mykonos Town is the picturesque Little Venice. It is a charming little area with white buildings and colorful balconies. The balconies are literally hanging over the waves of the sea. In Little Venice you can find the iconic Kastro’s Restaurant, with its Instagrammable scenic alleyway. Close to Little Venice you can find the famous windmills of Mykonos. However, it was so busy there that the magic was a bit lost due to the crowd. We tried going on different times of the day, but were always met by a big crowd of tourists so lower your expectations when visiting them!
Ornos Beach
Mykonos has countless beautiful beaches, including many party beaches. Since we rented a scooter we also wanted to discover other beaches than Agios Stefanos. We ended up at Ornos beach, on the island’s quieter side. There are a lot of restaurants and bars near the beach where you can rent a sunbed and enjoy some cocktails and food.
Where to eat in Mykonos
Limnios Tavern
Limnios Tavern is a cozy restaurant where you can drink delicious (and affordable) cocktails and authentic meals. We tried the moussaka and the pasta with shrimps, both delicious dishes! This restaurant was recommended to us by our host at Villa Elina, which we really appreciated.
D’Angelo
One of our favorite restaurants in Mykonos is definitely D’Angelo, an Italian restaurant near the famous windmills of Mykonos. When looking for an affordable place to eat in the center of Mykonos Town, D’Angelo is the place to be! We highly recommend the pizza “El Greco”, a pizza topped with tomatoes, mozzarella, feta, olives and peppers. They also offer a wide selection of cocktails for a reasonable price. We had a loooot of cocktails there (tried may be 6 or 7 different ones) and our bill (including food) was still below € 100!
Kalosta Restaurant
On our last evening we went to Kalosta Restaurant, a charming restaurant with an incredible view over the beach of Panormos. The menu consists of authentic local specialties. We ordered mussels and grilled vegetables, accompanied by a bottle of cava. We also must mention our waiter, he was one of the friendliest people who served us and made sure everything was to our liking. This place really offers the total package: an amazing setting with an incredible view, delicious food and friendly service! The location of the restaurant is a little distant however, so we recommend going here only if you rent a scooter
Where to stay in Mykonos
We knew in advance that this was going to be the more “easy going” part of our vacation, and what place is better suited for that than a room with a jacuzzi on the terrace, seaview and a less than 5 minutes walk to the beach?
Villa Elina Suites and More
We were staying at Villa Elina Suites and More, an elegant hotel near the beach and also quite close to Mykonos town. We booked the Deluxe Suite with Sea View and Outdoor Hot Tub through booking.com. Our room was truly beautiful and elegant, with typical island vibe decor and a lot of wooden details. Our balcony with ocean view had an amazing jacuzzi, we have to admit that this was the best functioning jacuzzi of our entire trip (we had a jacuzzi in every hotel we stayed in on Santorini as well as on Mykonos, so that says something!). The jacuzzi never cooled down, the hardness of the bubbles could be adjusted and the jacuzzi was soooo comfortable.
Nothing but good things about the host either, we were even picked up for free at the port and got a free ride to the airport as well. They recommended some local restaurants (more about this later) and gave us some general tips on the prices of the island (what to look out for when choosing a restaurant, where to find less expensive restaurants, etc.).
Why Villa Elina Suites and More?
If you want to unwind and have fun in the sun, Villa Elina is the perfect location. During the day you can enjoy the beach Agios Stefanos, in the evening you can admire the sunset from your heated jacuzzi. The beach is less than 500 meters from Villa Elina, but keep in mind that you have to take a big staircase to get there. The downwards journey took 5 minutes, the return walk up took about 15 minutes.
We paid € 270 per night, which is quite expensive. Mykonos is a lot more expensive than any other islands in Greece, especially during summer. Personally we think Mykonos is way overpriced, whether you’re looking at accommodation or at the prices of food/drinks/activities. Nevertheless, we were very satisfied with our stay and would definitely come back – off season of course. 😉
