Santorini and Mykonos still capture the postcards, but the most rewarding Greek island holidays are increasingly being planned around quieter Cycladic neighbours — Folegandros, Sifnos, Tinos and Amorgos.
Folegandros offers cliff-top villages of striking simplicity, with boutique stays at Anemi and Aegean Land that deliver the kind of refined, low-key luxury most travellers wish Santorini still had.
Sifnos is the quiet culinary capital of the Cyclades, home to traditional tavernas and the modernist hotel Verina, where summer evenings unfold over slow-cooked chickpea stew and crisp Assyrtiko.
Tinos has emerged as the art-and-design choice — small galleries, marble villages and a hotel scene led by Odera, all without the cruise-day crowds that overwhelm its larger neighbours.
Amorgos remains the most dramatic of all — the cliffside Monastery of Hozoviotissa and the wild coastline that doubled for The Big Blue. Reaching it takes effort, which is precisely why it stays so unspoiled.
For UK travellers, the most refined itinerary is a three-island combination of Mykonos, Tinos and Folegandros over ten to twelve nights, with private speedboat transfers and a Cycladic-style villa for the final stretch.
