The Cyclades are what everyone thinks of when you think of the Greek islands – beautiful beaches and whitewashed houses where the blue sky meets the even bluer sea. Make no mistake though the most popular of the Cyclades – Mykonos, Santorini and Ios – can get very crowded during the summer. If you want to avoid the crowds but still have a picture-perfect Greek island holiday, check out the Western Cyclades. These islands are easily accessible from the mainland by ferry. For example, the high-speed ferry runs regularly from Piraeus (the main port of Athens) and takes only 3 hours to Sifnos. With a Sifnos holiday, it would be easy to spend three days in Athens enjoying all the cultural attractions of a city break and then head to Sifnos for a Greek island beach break for rest and relaxation.
Sifnos is the perfect Cyclades island for luxury-loving foodies and families.
The Western Cyclades
The four islands in the Western Cyclades are Kea, Kythnos, Serifos and Sifnos. Of these islands, Sifnos is the largest and most popular. Yet, when I say popular we are not talking the Santorini levels of tourism where the island gets saturated in the summer with tourists. In fact, Sifnos doesn’t even have an airport (hence our honeymoon at an airport hotel would have never occurred!). The only way to reach this island is by ferry.
The port of Kamares in Sifnos where the ferry boats and catamarans land from Piraeus.
Why Sifnos Greece Is Perfect
Sifnos is a beautiful island with great beaches and a reputation for being a foodie paradise. The ferries from Piraeus all come into the little town of Kamares.
When you get tired of lazing in the sunshine and feel motivated to work off all that excellent food, Sifnos is known for its hiking trails. Most of the trails are classified as either easy or moderate. Many of the trails are marked as kid-friendly and less than 5 kilometres long.
A traditional Greek taverna in Sifnos Greece
For a luxury vacation in Greece, look no further than the Verina group of hotels. Small and stylish the Verina hotels has three options to pick from – the clifftop Verina Astra with 7 suites, Verina Suites which has apartments by the beach and Verina Villas perfect for groups of families and friends.
The Greek luxury villa rentals at Verina Villas is located near the picture perfect village of Vathi. The sheltered harbour means a lot of boats moor here. Vathi has a sheltered sand beach with shallow water perfect for children (and a couple of tavernas for the parents to enjoy!). Some people think that Vathi is one of the best beach villages in all of Greece! Now that is a reputation worth checking out!
Sifnos is a small, quiet island perfect for enjoying the famous Greek sunshine. If you want crowds and parties, look elsewhere. If like us, you enjoy good food and quality time spent relaxing with family, then Sifnos is the perfect Greek island for you.
The beautiful island of Sifnos is known for its great beaches, food, and hiking trails.
Not convinced yet? If you would like to read more about Sifnos, check out The Sifnos Chronicles: Tales from a Greek Isle by Sharon Blomfield. She writes lyrically of the Greek isle we dream off – the Greek isle you imagine from the movie Mama Mia that might still exist.
If you feel like checking out the other islands, there are ferry connections from Sifnos to the other islands such as Santorini. I’m betting, however, that you will fall in love with Sifnos and don’t want to leave.
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