26 Editor-Recommended Greek Island Hotels
The Greek Islands never go out of style, but 2023 is set to see them return to their glory as one of the most beloved summer holiday destinations in the world. If it has been a minute since you've enjoyed a slice of island life, then you're in for a treat. New stays, from world-class resorts to boutique hideaways, are ready to welcome guests with open arms, sweeping azure views and the freshest of seafood. Some are adult-only havens ideal for that postponed honeymoon, others are designed with families in mind with spacious suites and entertaining kid's clubs. Whatever your style, there's certainly no shortage of choice. To steer you in the right direction, Condé Nast Traveler's UK editors have handpicked their favorite hotels on the Greek Islands.
How we choose the best Greek Island hotels
Every hotel on this list has been selected independently by our editors and written by a Condé Nast Traveler journalist who knows the destination and has stayed at that property. When choosing hotels, our editors consider both luxury properties and boutique and lesser-known boltholes that offer an authentic and insider experience of a destination. We’re always looking for beautiful design, a great location and warm service—as well as serious sustainability credentials. We update this list regularly as new Greek Island hotels open and existing ones evolve.
All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors. If you book something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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George Fakaros/Santa Marina, a Luxury Collection Resort, MykonoshotelSanta Marina, a Luxury Collection Resort, Mykonos
$$$ |
Gold List 2023 
Readers' Choice Awards 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021The gold standard
When I chose hotels for honeymooning in southern Greece, where my mom's family is from, it was important to me that I support Greek-owned hotels in the aftermath of the pandemic. I was ecstatic to discover that Santa Marina, the beloved five-star resort on Mykonos, remains owned by the same local family that opened it four decades ago. The only resort on the island with its own private stretch of sandy beach—and on calm and sought-after Ornos Bay, no less—Santa Marina includes 101 seaview rooms and suites with private plunge pools, plus a selection of 13 sprawling villas, a cove-nestled beach club shielded from the mighty Cycladic winds, and two infinity pools to mix up the lounging scenery. Two restaurants, including sushi spot Buddha-Bar Beach Mykonos and Mykonos Social by Jason Atherton, serve inventive plates ranging from Asian-inspired poke and ceviches led by the Mediterranean’s abundant fish, to taverna-style dishes: slow-cooked lamb, sun-dried grilled octopus, classic horiatiki, and bread baskets served with traditional dips like taramosalata (roe puree) and htipiti (spicy whipped feta). The on-site spa has a traditional hammam as well as aromatherapy massages, medical-grade facials, and a sauna that are well worth breaking from the sun and sand for an afternoon. But the real magic of Santa Marina is in the simple pleasures afforded by its fabled location—sipping assyrtiko from a shady cabana while the mega yachts go by, you’ll forget all about the island's hard-partying reputation. —Shannon McMahon
Pnoé, Crete
The adult-only retreat
Translating simply as ‘breath’ in Greek, Pnoé is a stylish fly-and-flop adults-only designer beach resort with a strong wellness offering and an easy-going private-club vibe. Just 10 minutes from Heraklion airport, this debut hotel concept has an edgy crispness, with a pleasing nod to the dramatic Minoan architecture celebrated in Cretan history. The open-plan architecture provides all-day sunshine with 60 private pool suites from a central courtyard with an almond-shaped pool at its heart. Spacious suites are all decorated in the same earthy palate reflecting the surrounding rocky landscape, and graceful eyelines have been carefully considered throughout. Pnoé’s ethos revolves around selecting the highest offerings from ‘home-grown’ Crete, backed up by partnering with some of the island’s chief players, namely Crete’s best chef Panagiotis Magganas. Fullness of flavor guaranteed freshness, and minimal food miles are guaranteed, along with conscientious service that’s setting a new standard on Karteros beach. —Sarah Siese
F Zeen RetreathotelF Zeen Retreat Hotel Kefalonia
Readers' Choice Awards 2022A simple yet sumptuous island bolthole with wellness at its core
Family-owned F Zeen, a smart and earthy adult-only retreat, does a stellar job at showcasing its cinematic setting. Along the steep and verdant hills of Livathos—a pocket-sized seaside town of pastel-hued houses looking onto a bay—the hotel splays out in natural-stone villas and sun-bleached terraces with rustic tables and pools, all of which command views of the Ionian Sea and the crimson streaks cast across it at sunset. The organic, health-focused outlook is evident across all aspects of the refuge: in the locavore mezze and vegetables plucked from the kitchen garden; in the natural colors and fabrics in the understated but sophisticated villa bedrooms; in the roster of fitness classes, from alfresco yoga to guided gym sessions, and, of course, in the spa where Greek herbs and seaweed-infused products are folded into sun-kissed skin.
Guests recline on soft, whitewashed sunbeds while dipping warm, olive-doused pitta into bowls of creamy hummus. Active types drift back from paddleboarding sessions along the beach for cool fruit smoothies. Wafts of thyme, cypress, and salt fill the evening air at Selini, the hotel’s open-air restaurant where pretty plates of lemon-drizzled calamari, lamb kotzi, and salads honor both Hellenic traditions and modern palates. F Zeen’s power to disarm the most overloaded visitor lies in this clever blend of luxury and healt—where Pilates and meditation followed by herb-steeped cocktails and rosemary flatbreads with lashings of tzatziki is all food for the soul. —Rosalyn Wikeley
Courtesy Porto ZantehotelPorto Zante Villas & Spa
$$$ | Gold List 2020 Readers' Choice Awards 2022A villa stay with hotel service
Tucked away on Zakynthos’s green east coast, Porto Zante’s nine hillside houses are surprisingly under the radar. For those in the know, the villa stay has all the bells and whistles of a hotel. An irresistible formula, especially for families in need of privacy and homely creature comforts along with the luxuries of someone else making the bed or preparing breakfast in your kitchen—there’s a 24-hour in-villa dining service. Rooms are decked out in Armani Casa and Bang & Olufsen, with Bulgari soaps and lotions (and special kids’ versions) in the bathrooms, while outside teak sunbeds shaded by zingy, canary-yellow umbrellas surround each pool. Down on the beach are paddle boats, paddleboards, and canoes on standby for the energetic, or you can simply sit back and admire the Ionian Sea views with nearby Kefalonia and the Peloponnese peninsula in the background.
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Courtesy Summer SenseshotelSummer Senses
Readers' Choice Awards 2021, 2022The Paros escape
One of Paros' more recent additions, Summer Senses Luxury Resort has 100 contemporary rooms ranging from deluxe hideouts to suites with private pools. Two large outdoor pools, a spa, and a fitness center are among the five-star offerings, with fine dining options including a collaboration with Michelin-starred Athens restaurant Hytra. The sandy stretches of Punda Beach, with its bars, DJs, and pool parties, is a three-minute walk away. Paros' lively capital Parikia can be reached by car in less than half an hour, with some of the most picturesque Cycladic villages just a stone’s throw away.
At this get-away-from-it-all haven, guests are looked after with the utmost care and attention. Visitors are invited to drift from one temptation to the next—from an utterly restorative spa treatment to a bespoke cocktail by the pool with infinite views of the Aegean sea. A meal at fine dining restaurant Galazia Hytra is imperative, with generous yet refined modern dishes served in the most stunning setting under the Mediterranean stars. Each thoughtful detail at Summer Senses reflects the hotel’s commitment to offering the ultimate Cycladic island escape. The service is faultless and every feature is perfectly calibrated to ensure guests feel rested and refreshed. A true Grecian paradise. —Anna Gladwin
Once in Mykonos Luxury Resort
A trendy chilled out escape
New to the scene in Mykonos, this swish spot built into the steep hillside of the cozy western bay has some of the best views on the island. Swim up to bedrooms along a private pool or dip a toe into the rooftop infinity pool, which has a sunken bar and floating sun beds. Sleek white interiors and pale marble floors run through 59 suites, which have hammam walk-in rain showers, crisp white bedding, and a terrace for sipping sea view sundowners. Young families and dapper partygoers are all looking for a chilled hideaway here. Staff are friendly, attentive and know all guests by name—they won’t forget how you want your coffee in the morning.
Young-gun Cretan chef, Marion Toutountzoglou serves innovative dishes, taking inspiration from his travels and incorporating traditional Greek flavors. We had to refrain from ordering the hummus with every meal. Supper is best taken on the terrace at golden hour when the sun is sinking behind the craggy hillside dotted with bright-white villas and windmills. You chose this hotel to quietly laze, chill out, and nurse off the ouzo from the night before. —Sophie Knight
OKU HotelshotelOKU Kos
A cool, laidback summer hangout
Pure relaxation is difficult to find, but it’s near-impossible not to lean into the chilled-out vibe you feel immediately as you enter Oku’s open reception. Inspired by the relaxed Greek way of life, Oku aims to combine local culture with relaxation, and easily succeeds. Somehow there are 100 rooms in the hotel, but it feels more like 20; the property is wonderfully private, and Greek-style whitewashed buildings blend seamlessly into the open landscape. Guests can choose from rooms with private or semi-private pools (shared with two other rooms, but surprisingly personal), or opt for a larger villa with a roof terrace and sea views. Special mention to the showers, which are some of the best I’ve used in a hotel thanks to the strong waterfall current and moody, stone walls that lean into the minimal aesthetic.
Food at Oku, overseen by executive Chef Mark Vaessen, is impeccable and unapologetically Greek. Salads are topped with crumbly feta and tomatoes that burst in the mouth, while the tzatziki is so good it's impossible not to order a bowl at every meal. Take your dinners outside where you can watch the sunset—which sets over nearby Kalimnos and is guaranteed to be one of the most stunning you've seen—over the hotel's private beach, with a cocktail made at the bar in-hand. —Abigail Malbon
Heinz Troll/MarBella ElixhotelMarBella Elix
$ |
Hot List 2022 Readers' Choice Awards 2022A 2022 Hot List winner for the best new hotels in the world
It might not be located actually on the islands but from its hilltop location, MarBella Elix affords otherworldly views of Paxos, Antipaxos, Corfu, and the glistening Ionian. Elix’s reception is like a sort of celestial spa, with barn-high ceilings and windows that frame the infinity view. Colorful tapestries hang throughout, infusing the place with local artisanal history, complementing the overall sunshiny modern-luxe feel. From the very popular Greek and Mediterranean buffet to the even more creative Greek fine dining, the food and drink are uniformly local and delicious. Available activities range from kayaking into hidden bays and mountain and coastal biking to alfresco yoga sessions, sailing courses, and snorkeling around underwater meadows. —Becky Lucas
Courtesy Domes Zeen ChaniaDomes Zeen Chania, Crete
The multi-gen crowd pleaser
Originally launched as a Casa Cook hotel last summer, Domes Zeen Chania has since changed hands but remains one of our favorite family-friendly hotels in Europe. Palm Springs–style concrete villas designed by Athenian architect group K-Studio—also responsible for Mykonos beach club Scorpios—dot the hillside towards the sea, and there’s a black-tiled pool surrounded by thatched parasols for snoozing under. Some villas have private pools and there’s also a smart spa using Elemis products. The kids’ club keeps little ones entertained, plus guests can take a boat trip or venture into pretty Chania.
Courtesy Casita CasitaCasita Casita, Rhodes
A chilled-out peaceful hotel
Lovely, low-key Lindos, on the southeast coast of Rhodes, tends to be known for two things: the hilltop acropolis with its fourth-century BC temples and the fact that Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour used to have a house here. Beyond that, the fishing village has remained largely the preserve of summering Greek families taking over crumbling villas, so when this bohemian hangout opened quietly last summer, it turned heads. The former nightclub had been abandoned for more than a decade, and architect Vana Pernari found it by chance. Her studio specialises in big projects such as Casa Cook half an hour north and Cretan Malia Park on Crete, but when she began the restoration in 2019, the plan was to create a holiday home for friends. And that remains the spirit of seven-bedroom Casita Casita—the vibe is more house party than hotel stay. Its subtle and knocked-back palette ensures that the richness of the surroundings takes center stage, and the barren, rocky landscape is broken up only by heady-smelling herbs and gnarled olive trees under which breakfasts of fresh fruit, homemade cakes, and Rhodian honey are served.
As you lie by the swimming pool looking up to the castle within the acropolis, the only sounds are the rustling leaves, the cicadas’ sonata and bleats of goats and, if you listen very carefully, the waves—sandy Palestra Beach is a three-minute walk away. Inside, each room references Pernari’s travels around the world; there are carpets from nomadic tribes, Suzani throws, ceramics, and vintage vases from various bazaars. The styling is as much about form as function, with crisp cotton sheets, organic mattresses, and Apvita bath products made with medicinal plants. Time slows down here, and things just feel simpler—it’s a sensation that makes you wish summer would stretch on and on. —George Lagoudakis
hotelAngsana Corfu
An Asian-inspired stay in Corfu
With sweeping views over the Ionian Bay, it’s easy to see why Banyan Tree Group chose a hill in Benitses in Corfu as the location of its first venture into Europe. The result is Angsana, a slick resort that combines Asian-inspired design with all the hallmarks of a luxurious Mediterranean stay—private beach, beach club, yoga deck, and a spa. A generously sized world class spa at that, home to a hammam, wellness pool, 11 treatment rooms, gym with new Technogym equipment, and a 82-foot-long indoor pool. Then there’s the outdoor pool and cabana set ups—quite possibly the most photogenic on the island.
In the rooms, bathrooms are majestic with egg-shaped baths and floor-to-ceiling marble. Geometric orange kimonos with matching slippers enhance the overall Japanese aesthetic. When it’s time for supper, there are three options: Koh, which serves new twists on Asian classics, the upscale Italian-with-a-local-twist restaurant Botrini, and a rooftop bar that’s the place to be for a sundowner. Or whenever you want—the resort is open year round. —Jemima Sissons
Courtesy Ypseli Anafi's HiveYpseli Anafi's Hive, Anafi
A secret escape with dramatic sea views
A tiny outcrop on the rim of the Cyclades, east of over-visited Santorini and facing the Cretan Sea, the island haven of Anafi is a well-kept secret. Legend has it that Apollo revealed it to Jason and the Argonauts by lighting up the stormy sky with his glimmering golden bow. This new opening is on its southern shore, where all the best beaches are found. Athenian owner Antonis Chalaris spent childhood holidays here playing in the barn of his beekeeper grandfather, and what he has created now is a unique spot surrounded by sun-baked scrubland.
Named after the traditional pottery beehives slotted into stone walls, Ypseli has eight rooms laid out with a great sense of balance and proportion in effortless Aegean style. Mustard linens spice up peaceful whitewashed spaces while basket lampshades cast woven shadows on walls covered in traditional crochet pieces and framed photographs of Anafi. The reverence for crafts is also evident in the covetable organic shapes created by a local ceramicist and displayed in the kitchen between flowerpots filled with oregano and thyme. All private terraces as well as the pool face out to a dramatic sea view dominated by Mount Kalamos, the Mediterranean’s second-highest rock after Gibraltar, and Katsouni beach is a five-minute stroll away for morning dips in the pristine surf. Anafi was always on the radar for in-the-know Greeks looking for a hazy escape from the crowds, but with Ypseli it has opened its arms to savvy travelers from further afield too. —Isabelle Zigliara
Salva LopezhotelKalesma Mykonos
$$$ | Hot List 2022A 2022 Hot List winner for the best new hotels in the world
For his new-wave retreat, restaurateur Aby Saltiel secured a stellar spot between the beaches of Ornos and Agios Ioannis (of Shirley Valentine fame), a world away from the busy thrum of town. But rather than a traditional Cycladic reimagining, he and business partners Makis Kousathanas and Sofia Kousathana have pulled together something altogether cooler. When you add fashion designer Rick Owens’s furniture and Serbian Aleksandar Vac’s artwork, the atmosphere takes on a certain edge. That’s not to say it is intimidating. Kalesma means invitation, and everything here is to be used, enjoyed or sat on, even if your bikini bottoms are wet from the pool. And the thrust for the owners is still very much a celebration of their Greek roots and local craftsmanship.
In the dappled shade of a pergola is Pere Ubu restaurant, where guests chat while sipping spirulina cocktails or tucking into cauliflower tarama and grilled octopus. Couples from New York exchange notes about the Hamptons; a photographer paces around trying to capture the light. The mix is eclectic—aesthetes and party lovers, as well as those looking for some downtime.
But there’s no hierarchy or competition to get the best suite or villa: all three types of accommodation—including the larger villas that sleep up to eight guests—have their own pool, with interiors designed by Vaggelis Bonios of Studio Bonarchi and architecture by hip Athens-based K-Studio in milky stone and sugar-cane-brown wood, and in a nod to island tradition, the ceilings are made from osier willow. Once a week, on the sunset side, everyone gathers around the firepit and a DJ plays a few sets. —I.Z.
hotelAristide Hotel
$$ | Hot List 2023An ambitious eco-hotel
This aristocratic and eccentric nine-room hotel was launched last summer in the port of Hermoupolis. Slightly set back from the water on a quiet street, the seashell-pink neoclassical building was constructed for a wealthy textile merchant in the 1920s and later sold to a shipowner before being transformed into the headquarters of the Cycladic tax authorities. It then lay empty until ex-Londoner, economist and writer Oana Aristide and her sister Jasmin, a doctor, reimagined it as the smartest place to bed down on Syros. They had both fallen in love with the island and on the spur of the moment decided to buy a holiday villa, but ended up with this grand townhouse instead. Despite having never run a hotel before, the duo, who happily describe themselves as amateurs, have created something wonderfully unexpected.
References run the gamut from pop to baroque with velvet, oak herringbone-parquet floors and exquisite bathrooms decked out in Greek marble from the same quarries that supplied the Acropolis, Buckingham Palace, and the Louvre. Portraits from the owners’ contemporary art collection, including the soulful Anton Chekhov on the Road by Riccardo Vecchio, line the stairway and salon. And instead of the white-and-blue or grey palettes of most Greek island hideouts, here the colors range from intense duck-egg blue to soft powdery peach; the lobby, flanked by doric columns, is painted a majestic pistachio green and the bar is a den of cardinal red. It’s a splendid restoration of one of the regional capital’s historic buildings—no mean feat for a seasoned hotelier, and quite extraordinary for first-timers. A strong eco commitment and upcoming artist’s residency show that their ambitions go well beyond a simple B&B. —I.Z.
The RoosterhotelThe Rooster
$$$ | Hot List 2022A 2022 Hot List winner for the best new hotels in the world
“I came here 10 summers ago from Mykonos and never really left,” says Athanasia Comninos. Wearing tinkling gold anklets and an embroidered waistcoat, she embodies the aesthetic of this boho hideout, which has been incubating under her rigorous watch for seven years. Although Comninos comes from a shipping family, she always wanted to be a hotelier. She is equally determined to preserve what drew her to Antiparos in the first place—untouched landscapes of wind-tangled cedar, sheltered coves unblemished by sunbeds and a relaxed vibe. The island has changed in the past decade—there are more chic shops, oversized four-wheel-drives, and minimalist villas (Tom Hanks owns one)—but essentially it’s still the same go-slow speck in the Aegean.
Set in a gently sloping valley of dry-stone terraces, The Rooster makes a virtue of stillness. Even the smallest suites are the size of summer houses, and interiors are spare but soft, with honey-toned walls, handmade driftwood four-posters, Turkish ikat cushions, and leather ottomans from Indonesia. Outdoor showers are enclosed by walls made of locally quarried stone and lush greenery, and swallows nest in the drought-resistant gardens. Calm staff in billowing linen hum past on electric scooters. A footpath leads to Livadia beach, a wild bay shored up by drifts of seaweed, and the spa delivers authentic Ayurvedic treatments and incredibly effective facials. Food is unpretentiously wholesome, and much of it is sourced from the fledgling organic farm: tahini granola with lavender petals for breakfast; fluffy mizithra cheese with blood orange and toasted coriander seeds for lunch; tingly margaritas at sunset in the mellow outdoor bar. You’ll leave feeling grounded yet unfathomably lighter. —Rachel Howard
Courtesy Bill & Coo Suites and LoungehotelBill & Coo Suites and Lounge
$$ | Readers' Choice Awards 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022Sleek, crisp Grecian villas
When the original Bill & Coo opened its doors in 2006 just above Mykonos town, it made a big impact. Boutique stays were only just starting to take root on the island, and here was one that connected umbilically to the thrills of the buzzy capital with its shopping and restaurants while also providing a retreat from it all. It has offered a point of reference for many subsequent arrivals, and rather than resting on its laurels, the brand launched Coast Suites at Agios Ioannis beach in 2016 and this year sees the addition of three one-bedroom villas to the side of the Bill & Coo Suites and Lounge hotel.
It’s an alluring set-up, more private and peaceful than the hotel, with space to squeeze in a couple of children too, and yet is just steps from the tasting menu at chef Ntinos Fotinakis’s elegant restaurant, the spoiling spa and all the other bells and whistles. As is to be expected, service is finger-clicking quick, and the design crisp and contemporary. The concept of award-winning architects Divercity was to capture the laidback essence of a beach hangout with the textures and colors of sea and sand. Bright light floods in through huge windows and fabric panels in geometric shapes, inspired by the sun’s reflection on the waves, are repeated inside and out on the ceilings and in little seating nooks. Pools at the villas are backed by feathery grasses dancing in Mykonos’s famous wind. And it goes without saying that the views—the silhouette of the windmills and, just behind the low stone wall, the ocean stretching away to the horizon—are terrific. —I.Z.
Andronis Arcadia, Santorini
The best spot for a sundowner
Low-slung whitewashed villas tumbling down to the sea provide bags of space here. On an island that’s usually packed to the brim with honeymooners and sunset seekers, each villa has its own private balcony and pool facing the ocean—which means you can lap up Santorini’s beautiful scenery without another person in sight. There’s a beach club–style pool and bar, and a very clever spa, too.
Courtesy Bill & CooBill & Coo Coast, Mykonos
Athens-based architect firm K-Studio were behind this beachy Agios Ioannis hangout, the sister spot to long-standing favorite Bill & Coo about two miles away in Mykonos Town. There are 15 bedrooms made out of rugged stone, bleached wood and cast iron, all with private terraces and a calm color palette. The main pool has views of Agios Ioannis' Greek orthodox church, and there's a seafront taverna serving plates of sardines on bread and slow-cooked rooster pasticada. For a more elevated supper, flag down the five-minute transfer to the original Bill & Coo for tasting menus with a Greek influence.
Verina Astra, Sifnos
An affordable boutique hotel with incredible views
With 235 churches across the island, Sifnos has a blue dome or white bell tower at practically every turn. And at Verina Astra, there’s a sleek terrace with a stone-lined swimming pool, from which windmills also dot the view, and on a clear day, Amorgos defines the horizon. In the bedrooms, whitewashed rock walls and bamboo ceilings are strung with rattan lampshades and there are ceramic vases and piles of gray-and-white striped cushions—everything is stylish and smart without a wildflower out of place. And in the restaurant, you’ll see waiters scurrying past the tables to pick rosemary, thyme, and oregano to add flavor to plates moments before they are served. Burnt aubergine comes with walnut vinegar and smoked octopus—there’s a smoking hut on-site—while fresh, homemade spaghetti is simple, with parsley and bottarga.
Less than a mile away is Artemenos, which looks like a typical Greek island postcard with yet more churches and cafes churning out fried shrimp, sesame-coated cheese, and chickpea balls. And about 30 minutes along the coastal path is Kastro and its legendary rum-toting Kavos Sunrise bar—the winding alleys with tumbling bougainvillea and the Mamma Mia–famed Church of the Seven Martyrs are the stuff of fairy tales. —Tabitha Joyce
Courtesy Beach HouseBeach House, Antiparos
A barefoot side to the Cyclades
For those seeking a slow pace on holiday, this simple barefoot offering in the harder-to-reach parts of the Aegean scratches an adventurous itch. Antiparos is barely more than a dusty islet, half an hour by ferry from Paros. It’s the antithesis of Crete’s package trips, Mykonos’s party-hard beach clubs, or the teenage rite-of-passage scene in Corfu’s Kassiopi.
Beach House is a Cycladic villa right on a sheltered bay on the south-east coast—a rustic set-up where good vibes rule. The nine rooms are simple, with blue shutters and bougainvillea-framed terraces, and the three family suites are the ones to book. Mornings on the beach are especially lovely. Lunches and suppers showcase authentic food with a deft hand: catch of the day, octopus risotto, seafood spaghetti, plus a marginally less fishy children’s menu. Yoga sessions and boat rides are available; the clear sea is great for swimming and snorkeling (there’s no pool). It feels like a mini Formentera.
Ammos Hotel, Chania, Crete
A laid-back family hideout
This is a feel-good hotel without any formality; most of the staff have been around for years and many guests are regulars, which comes as no surprise as the place is astonishingly good value. Owner Nikos Tsepetis, a self-confessed design junkie, has a black book packed with insider information about the region's stunning beaches and remote mountain villages, plus details on where to go in the lively Venetian harbor of Chania.
Tables at the laid-back restaurant spill out past the swimming pool and down to a shallow, sandy beach, where the hotel has its own sunbeds and umbrellas. Bedrooms in the low-rise, sugar cube-shaped building are perky, with bright, colorblocked walls, Marimekko cushions of clashing patterns and African-print Moroso stools adding a grown-up touch. The best are the deluxe sea-view studios where you can watch the sunset from your balcony and nod off to the sound of the waves. —Lauren Burvill
Courtesy ParīliohotelParīlio
$$ | Hot List 2020The affordable secret
Away from the buzz of better-known Greek Islands, Paros sits further out in the Cyclades—a neighbor to thrumming Santorini and party-happy Mykonos. Parīlio, which opened in 2019 on the northeast coast, has guestrooms set around a pool, with abstract art above the beds. There’s a clever restaurant, Mr E, on site, which puts an international spin on Greek favorites such as bream baked in lemon leaves with chickpea stew. It feels like a steal for the price (about $215 for a double room), and we named it one of the best new hotels in the world in our Hot List 2020.
Courtesy IstoriahotelIstoria
Readers' Choice Awards 2019, 2020The designer digs
Istoria means ‘story’ in Greek. And when Antonis and Kalia Eliopoulos drove down a narrow track to Perivolos beach to explore socialite Christina Tassou’s abandoned mansion and stables, they saw the chance to tell a very different one; not of Santorini’s hotel-clogged western caldera but of human obsession and the wild, black sands of the remote southeast. At the age of 15, Tassou caught the attentions of a Saudi sovereign, 35 years her senior, at the Greek royal court where her father was equerry. The king doggedly pursued her across Europe but to no avail. To trim a very long tale, she eventually escaped here and seems to have preferred horses: her home was hung with oil paintings of her five steeds.
Captivated by her epic life, the maverick hoteliers behind Mystique and hilltop Vedema engaged Athens-based Interior Design Laboratorium to create a barefoot retreat, a homage less to Tassou than to organic storytelling by design. The departure from the whitewashed hotels and Jet Skis of Oia, and the physical isolation here, are reinforced by a stripped-down ethos which allows the original stone structure—and wilderness itself—to dominate. Its translucent waters are arch-framed from 12 suites, six of which are converted from the original stables, where nature’s palette is repainted in blush plaster, polished cement floors and clay-toned linens. On a taverna-less part of the coast, quantity is replaced with an impressive strike of quality at Mr E, the invention of Noma alum Alexandros Tsiotinis. Ingredients for his retellings of classics are sourced from Tassou’s former gardens. Her spirit remains in little reminders: water troughs and bridles are the hotel’s art. But the showpiece here is the 98-foot slate pool, with the caldera-rivaling drama of monolithic Mesa Vouno range rising behind. It’s said to be the largest pool on the island—or perhaps that’s just a fable. Either way, Istoria opens a new chapter in Santorini’s story. —Roxy Kavousi-Walker
Christos DrazoshotelCanaves Oia Epitome
The family favorite
Space is rare in Oia; a commodity on the brink of consumption. Every square inch of cliffside here on the caldera, a giant’s bite into coastline, has been gobbled up by immaculately iced cake-like hotels jostling for a ringside seat. Yes, when it comes to Corbusier-lauded Cycladic minimalism, it’s poster-framed perfection. Yes, it’s all very pretty in a chaotic sweet shop kind of way—but a little claustrophobic. Canaves Oia Epitome turns its back on all of that. The fourth property from the Chaidemenos family opened in May 2018, a mile north at Ammoudi Bay, facing away from the caldera in a brazen flouting of conventional hotel wisdom.
In 1985, Yiannis and Anna were among the first to lure travelers to the Santorini fishing village with views that captured the very curve and expanse of the planet. The two cliffside caves they converted into minimalist dens for neo-troglodytes became Canaves Oia, and then the all-white Cycladic hotel brand which set the tone of the island’s smart scene for the next three decades. Now in charge, their sons Markos and Alexandros bring a stylistic gear change. For Epitome, the group’s first family-friendly hotel, they called in K-Studio, the hip home-grown designers behind Mykonos’s Bill & Coo Coast and ultra-cool Scorpios. The open layout is liberating: almost all sky, sea, and pool with 24 quasi-neolithic, low volcanic stone cubes camouflaged into the rock face. These are brain-coolingly expansive villas. The huge Aqua Retreat has an aquarium-like window in the lower bedroom casting an ethereal blue light from the depths of the pool. There are plenty of places for families to escape one another; the black sands of Katharos beach are just a stroll away. Swirls of tangerine in the sky signal the time to regather. The lesser-spotted sunsets here are somehow better than the ones at Oia. The ones over the caldera no longer seem worth the price. —R.K.W.
Christos Drazos/Courtesy Katikies MykonoshotelKatikies Mykonos
Readers' Choice Awards 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022The after-party pad
Few consider Mykonos their Aegean go-to for social reclusion. But among the island’s more wholesome secrets are its covert refuge—even Dionysus needed a break from the fun. Most discreet yet on point is the new Katikies Mykonos, ensconced on a misshapen beanbag of land on the south-west coast, just east of the island of Delos, where the god’s toga-clad cult engaged in rituals of ecstasy. It opened in June 2018 as the equally shy, 30-year-younger sister to the adored Santorini original—a local design pioneer in its day—and was an instant classic, recalling the go-slow, get-lost spirit of pre-1950s Cyclades that second-wave bohemians fell in love with. It’s even hard to find: just a hamlet-like stack of pristine sugar cubes above Agios Ioannis’s quiet smile of sand. In fact, owner Nikolaos Pagonis’s amphitheatrical layout conceals 35 rooms with private terraces and plunge pools within a labyrinth of alleyways, creating illusions of space, solitude—and that little thrill of discovery.
There is a surprise at every turn: a spa, a boutique (with a judicious edit of Vitamin A bikinis), and two infinity pools extending an unmarred cyan sightline to Delos, angled just so, to be sheltered from the relentless Meltemi winds. Rooms are retina-calming white cocoons, accented with cobalt and shades of ink; free of art and jarring design fads. Still, even Aegean-gazing hermits will be lured out at dinnertime by the citrus-infused aromas created by young chef Angelos Bakopoulos at both Asian-fusion restaurant Seltz and poolside Mikrasia. The sandy beach-bar vibe belies the star-standard of his Anatolian and Byzantine twists on dishes such as cod on risotto in a spinach-and-dill emulsion. The shenanigans at Nammos and Scorpios are within 15 minutes toe-dipping and fleeing distance. Unlike the island’s bigger, brasher retreats, Santa Marina et al, Katikies is a place to hole up, not be seen in—by Mykonian standards at least. —R.K.W.
Olea All Suite Hotel, Zakynthos
The zen master
This opening marks something of a sea change for Zakynthos: a calm, smart design hotel, masterminded by slick Athens-Stockholm studio Block 722, heralds a new grown-up era for the roaring beach-party island. In some ways, it’s also a symbol of the resurgence of Greece. Plans for its creation, on a hillside above the north-coast town of Tsilivi, go back 20 years—to the decade before the global financial crisis curled its fingers around the throat of Europe. When its grip was finally released in 2018, the hotel was built within a staggering six months; the arrival coincided more or less with the completion of Greece’s final financial bailout.
For owner Venia Xenou, part of the powerful local family behind 12 island hotels including Zante Maris Suites, the vision of what Olea would become didn’t dim during the intervening period. Perhaps because the vision was so strong. At first look, it could be a classical Hellenic city with whitewashed temples which appear to float on a terraced 4,000-square-meter lake. But the real art here is in the landscaping which allows water, and a certain energy, to flow seamlessly through tranquil rooms and subtly interconnected plunge pools. Inside, hard-lined concrete minimalism is softened with dark wood, lending a little dash of the Japanese while hanging egg-chairs and rattan inject the tropical. It’s all about flow here: indoor-outdoor flow; go-with-the-flow jumpsuits in the boutique; and yoga flow for morning asanas in the spa. This is the new Zen Zakynthos, an island upwardly reincarnated. And even if at night the faint sounds of karaoke bars can be heard from Tsilivi, the party on this island seems to be changing its tune. —Becky Lucas
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This article was originally published on Condé Nast Traveller UK.