Book these before you arrive
- Your transfer from the airport or port — taxis are few and queues are real.
- A Delos trip, especially a guided one, in June to September.
- One boat day. Catamaran cruises with lunch are the signature Mykonos day and fill up in high summer.
- Dinner tables for any night you care about — sunset tables in Little Venice go first.
How the island is laid out
Mykonos Town (Chora) sits on the west coast with the Old Port at its north end and the Fabrika bus station at its south. The airport is a few minutes inland; the new ferry and cruise port is at Tourlos, just north of town. The famous beaches run along the south coast from Ornos eastward to Elia. Ano Mera, the only inland village, is in the middle; the north and east coasts are wilder and less developed.
Distances are short — nowhere on the island is more than about half an hour's drive from town — but traffic, parking and taxi scarcity make them feel longer in August.
The wind
The meltemi is a dry north wind that blows most days from late June to early September, sometimes strongly. It keeps the heat bearable, but it also closes north-coast beaches, cancels or reroutes boat trips and makes scooter riding unpleasant. On a windy day head for the sheltered south — Ornos, Psarou, Platis Gialos — and trust the skipper on any cruise you have booked.
Costs, honestly
Mykonos is among the most expensive Greek islands, and beach clubs in particular charge for the scene: reserved beds with a minimum spend, fish priced by the kilo, cocktails at city prices. None of that is compulsory. Tavernas in Ano Mera, the north-coast beach tavernas, the fish tavernas behind the Old Port and the town beach at Megali Ammos are all very good and priced like the rest of Greece.
Ask the price per kilo before ordering whole fish, and check what a sunbed booking includes.
Mistakes to avoid
- Assuming you can hail a taxi. You mostly cannot; book ahead or use buses, sea taxis and transfers.
- Staying on Paradise Beach unless you want the party. It is loud until late.
- Doing Delos in the afternoon heat. Take the first or second boat of the morning.
- Visiting in late October or April expecting beach clubs and sea taxis — most are closed.
- Riding a quad in flip-flops. Every summer proves the point.
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