Cycladic Island of the Day: Timeless Ios

There’s more to Ios than parties. Here are three tips we always give our friends headed for the island.


What is more predominant here, the bars or the churches?

Legend has it that there are 365 churches on Ios, one for each day of the year. There are about so many bars, restaurants and cafes, at least in the public’s mind, as the island has become a timeless destination for leisure and pleasure. If you are curious to see how these two diametrically opposed identities of Ios can coexist – the religious and the cosmopolitan – then head to Hora where you will see foodies and drinkers wandering through the shops and churches – from Panagia Gremniotissa and Agios Nikolaos to the pastry shops and sunset bars.

Which site will surprise me?

Skarkos (Tel. (+30) 22863.91236), one of the most important archaeological spaces of the Aegean and an early Cycladic settlement stretching across 110 acres, offers valuable insight into the Early Bronze Age in the Cyclades, with artifacts mostly from looted graves.

What does the island taste like?

 

Fine cheese. The Ios Dairy Plant (Tel. (+30) 22860.92506) uses milk from local cows, goats and sheep to produce small gastronomic miracles: cheeses such as graviera (gruyere), kefalotyri, mizithra, xino, Homer’s trilogy (made with three types of milk) and the classic, all time favourite spicy skotiri with savory. Prior arrangements for visits are needed.

Read more about Ios here.



Read More

Mykonos

See Robert McCabe’s Images from a Mykonos Before Tourism

Acclaimed photographer Robert McCabe's images from Mykonos in the 1950s...


Aegean Islands

Milos: Sweethearts and the Summer Wind

A journey across time on the beaches of Milos, from...


Greece Is Blog Posts

An Ode to Local Products

BY Yiouli Eptakili

No more avocado toast and croque-madames. From Thessaloniki to Crete...

read more >

How Can Greece Become a Gastro-Tourism Destination?

BY Yiouli Eptakili

It’s about more than just taking a trip...

read more >

Leaving Room in Greece for Everyone

BY Greece Is

Labor Day, this year September 5, marks the...

read more >