Mykonos

Delos mornings, beach boats and a day in Ano Mera

Three or four days are plenty for Mykonos. Spend mornings in Chora's empty lanes or on the 30-minute boat to Delos, which closes on Mondays and shuts by 15:00, afternoons at the south-coast beaches by bus and beach boat, and sunsets at the windmills and Little Venice; save a day for Ano Mera and the north.

At sunset everyone gathers at the windmills and Little Venice, and the bars fill well after dinner.

• Delos day: catch an early boat from the pier behind the little church of Agios Nikolaos; the crossing takes about 30 minutes. The site shuts at 15:00 and is closed on Mondays. Spend the evening around Panagia Paraportiani and the sea-wall bars of Little Venice.
• South-coast day: ride the bus to Platys Gialos, then use the converted fishing boats that hop between Paranga, Paradise, Super Paradise, Agrari and Elia every hour.
• Inland and north: Ano Mera, the only inland village, with tavernas on three sides of its square and the monastery of Panagia Tourliani from 1542. Hire a scooter or car afterwards for the north-coast bays.

A fourth day suits a ferry hop to Tinos or Syros, or to Paros and Naxos, if the timetable gives you a same-day return. Around 15 August thousands of pilgrims head for Tinos, and the boats that call there on the way to Mykonos are packed.

Ferries from Piraeus take three and a half hours or more, and the north coast needs a car or scooter.

When Mykonos is cheap, when the meltemi blows and when it closes

July and August double room rates and bring the strongest meltemi, and from November to April most hotels close.

Many restaurants and shops spend March and April under renovation. Most ferries from Piraeus and Rafina stop over winter too. An early spring visit is cheap and peaceful, but the choice is thin and getting about is harder.

Mid-May through June is the best window. Rooms cost far less than in summer while the beach bars are already open.

In July and August buses run full and the clubs are at their loudest. This is also when the meltemi blows hardest. The strong northerly earned Mykonos its nickname, the island of the winds; it keeps highs to about 28°C but can cancel the beach boats and make sea crossings rough.

Pentecost (usually late May or early June) brings a rush of Greek holidaymakers. Delos runs reduced hours in winter and closes on some days, so check before booking a boat.

Kopanisti, louza and what the Little Venice view adds to the bill

Ask for Mykonian dishes by name: kopanisti, the soft, sharp local cheese, louza cured pork, onion pie and almond amygdalota. Harbour and Little Venice tables charge for the view, while places deeper in Chora and gyros shops are cheaper; check posted prices first, and eat on the square at Ano Mera for a village lunch.

Louza is cured pork, a cousin of Cypriot lountza. Look also for kremmydopita, an onion pie, and almond amygdalota for dessert. In season, tavernas that cook Mykonian food serve stamnagathi, a wild green.

Tables on the harbour or in Little Venice charge for the view; restaurants deeper inside Chora are more reasonable, and gyros, souvlaki and crêpe shops feed you for a few euros. For a village lunch, eat on the square at Ano Mera; for fish, Kounelas near the harbour sells the catch of the day in a small garden.

Evenings follow a rhythm. Sunset cocktails come first, at the balconies of Little Venice bars such as Katerina's or Caprice, which hang over the water. Clubs warm up late. Mykonos has long been one of Europe's most popular gay destinations, and the Paraportiani waterfront by the old harbour is the centre of that scene, with Jacky O' and Babylon side by side.