We’ve just got back from an idyllic two weeks on the tiny Greek island of Folegandros in the Cyclades. It has everything I dream of when I think of the perfect Greek island – pretty little harbours, beautiful beaches and great local tavernas. It was delightfully laid-back and despite the fact that we were there during the peak summer season, it wasn’t heaving with tourists.
I’ll be writing more about Folegandros over the next couple of weeks but in the meantime I thought I’d share some of the photos of our trip.
Folegandros has the unspoiled, old-fashioned feel that I love about Greece. We watched local fishermen untangling their nets at the harbour. We passed farmers using donkeys to get around and saw octopus hanging out to dry in the sun outside local tavernas.
We stayed in Chora, the main town on the island, perched on the cliffside, 200 metres up from the sea. Chora is considered to be one of the prettiest towns in the whole of the Cyclades, with its gorgeous white and blue buildings, picturesque squares and bougainvillea-draped houses.
The Castro, the medieval centre of the town has remained the same for hundreds of years. We walked down its narrow streets and covered passageways.
We took a boat to beaches virtually inaccessible by road and swam in the translucent aquamarine waters of the Aegean Sea.
There are churches everywhere you look on the island. We hiked to churches standing alone on top of steep hills. A zigzag path leads up to the main church in Chora, a regular evening pilgrimage for anyone wanting the best sunset view on the whole island.
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Folegandros looks like the *perfect* Greek island, uterly beautiful in every way. I want to go there NOW!
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It really is, Phoebe. Just utterly perfect. We’ve never visited the same Greek island twice but I might just be tempted with this one…
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What a gorgeous place! Greece has been on my to travel to list for the longest time, but so far my husband and I haven’t made a trip there (yet!). I love the idea of visiting the different island and seeing the daily life.
Gorgeous photos, there’s just so much blue-ness and such a summer feel to them all!
~ K
http://www.lifeasunusuals.com
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I really hope you get to Greece one day. It’s such a special place particularly when you find such a great island as this one. Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting.
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Clare, I’ve loved following your Greek travels on Instagram, and can NOT wait to read the detailed posts. This holiday seemed truly amazing. It looked as though you had stepped back into a simpler time and place, and quite possibly were able to switch off and truly relax. Beautiful photography!
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Thank you so much, Ali. I’m so happy you’ve enjoyed the Instagram pix – I’ve loved taking them although I’m in serious danger of needing to rename my account ‘Shades of Blue’! I do just love finding old-fashioned, relaxing places to travel and Folegandros turned out to be exactly what we were hoping for. Trouble is, I’m struggling to adjust back to normal life – nearly had to lie down after an hour in the supermarket with two fractious kids yesterday! Thanks so much for sharing.
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What a beautiful place! It looks like it has so much character. Greece is one place I would love to go. #MondayEscapes
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I just love Greece – not so much the big, brash, touristy places but the quieter islands where life goes on at a slow pace and you can really relax. Hope you get to go one day.
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I’m speechless! what a stunning place!:)
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It was amazing, Tanja. The perfect Greek idyll!
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Fabulous pictures Clare, every one is just gorgeous. I especially love the octopus hanging out to dry though!!
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Thank you so much, Joy. We were really excited about the octopus. It was one of our favourite things to eat in the tavernas!
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Oh Clare, must have been difficult getting back on that plane! What a paradise. The water looks so clear and sparkling and shallow for little ones too. Brilliant photos. Cant wait to hear more about Folegandros
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It was utterly divine, Katy, and I really wasn’t ready to leave!
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Your photos are beautiful, Clare, And I cannot wait to read more! Visiting Greek islands has always been a huge dream of mine, and you totally ignite my wanderlust. 🙂
xoxo, nano | http://www.travelwithnanob.com
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Thanks so much, Nano. The Greek islands are some of my favourite places to travel. I love searching for the smaller, more unsophisticated islands where you can really relax. This was just about perfect.
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Your photos are gorgeous! I would like to spend some time in the Greek islands. I went many years ago to Mykonos, Rhodes and Patmos. However, I would love to go back and explore more islands. Would love to learn more about Folegandros.
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Thanks so much, Ruth. I just love Greece. There are always so many more islands to discover – one reason why we tend to go to different islands whenever we visit. Might have to make an exception for this one though! Thanks so much for commenting and sharing.
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Absolutely gorgeous Claire! Looks idyllic. Never had heard of this island – thank you for sharing! Cheers from Copenhagen, Erin #MondayEscapes
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It really was idyllic!
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What a slice of paradise! I’m super keen on visiting one of the Greek islands but have never quite figured out the logistics of it.
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I’d really recommend it, Mandy. The Greek islands are such a special part of the world and quite easy to get to from the UK.
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Loved your photo tour of Folegandros, Clare. Especially loved that photo of the little donkey peeping out at your camera.
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Thanks so much, Ahila!
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I’d love love love to visit Greece! Every year I put in on the list but I never get to it – next year 😀 And this is exactly the side of Greece I’d like to see, the non-touristy and traditional one! Thanks for sharing 🙂
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That’s always the way with travel wish lists – sometimes you do end up having to wait far too long to visit some of the places on your list. This is the side of Greece I adore – the traditional, the not-too-touristy. It’s definitely worth the trip!
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This is so beautiful! I would love to visit Greece someday.
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Thanks so much! Hope you get to go someday.
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Fantastic photos, I’d definitely send lots of those as postcards! I need to book a trip to Greece soon it looks wonderful. #wanderfulwednesday
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Thank you, perhaps I should do a sideline! This part of Greece is beyond wonderful.
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Wow – this makes me want to go to the Greek islands immediately. I spent a lot of my early 20s there, and it is a place that really captured my heart. It’s been 10 years since my last visit though, which is so sad. I have never been to this island, so I’ve put it on my to do list ASAP!! Your pictures show the classic Greece that I really love, and remind me why I just couldn’t leave when I was younger! Thanks as always for sharing 🙂
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Thanks so much, especially for your lovely tweet! I just love Greece. I love finding those special, slightly out of the way islands that are still a bit old-fashioned and traditional.
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Ohhh my, this island is amazing!! How nice to know that it wasn’t packed with tourists during summer. I miss Greece, and I can’t wait to go back there someday… I’m certainly going to add Folegandros to my list (right away) 😀
Glad that you enjoyed your trip!
Happy to have you on #MondayEscapes 😉
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It was wonderful, Allane. So glad you got to go yourself this year. I was really happy to have discovered this island over the summer.
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This little island looks so beautiful and so much less crowded than the islands I visited, Mykonos and Santorini. It almost looks like you have the whole place to yourself! So lovely! 😀
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It’s a wonderful place, Lauren. We stopped off in Santorini on our way and it was so much more crowded. I much prefer the quieter islands.
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Stunning photos Clare! I’ve seen some of them on IG, and to see so many of them in your wonderful collages – it truly looks like a magical place. Love the photo of the hanging octopi:).
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Thank you so much, Corey. It really was magical! I was so delighted to see the octopi – it took a while to work out what it was!
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These are just beautiful, wow! I love the blue shades everywhere – both natural and painted too! What a gorgeous selection of photos.
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Thanks so much! I’m a big fan of blue. I’ve been in danger of needing to rename my instagram account, ‘Shades of Blue’ because of the way it’s been looking lately! Thanks so much for commenting.
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Wow, this really does seem like the Greek island of dreams. What a stunning place. I love your shots of the little boats and the octopus drying.
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Thank you so much, Jessi. Yes, it’s a wonderful little island. We felt so lucky to have found it.
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It looks quite hot, but I would love to be relaxing by that beach right now!
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It was hot – but wonderfully not too hot – there’s usually a breeze blowing over the summer months. The beaches were properly idyllic.
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It’s been a few years since our last visit to Greece and I think I need to return for those blue skies and white-washed buildings. Glorious.
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Such a great place to spend a couple of weeks. Now we’re back in rainy England we feel lucky to have spent some of our summer there.
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You captured it beautifully Clare! This bit of beauty & sunshine is exactly what I need on a cold, overcast day in Scotland right now! Brings back lovely memories of our time on the Greek Islands exactly this time last year. #wanderfulwednesday
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Thanks so much, Lillian! It’s grey and rainy here in England too today so I’m just so happy I had those gloriously colourful two weeks in Folegandros.
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Wow, “idyllic” is the perfect word! It looks so relaxed there. I love the look of houses on the greek islands with the white and blue. I’ll add this to my list of islands to one day visit, cheers!
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It’s a beautiful place. The white and blue is such a stunning look and so quintessentially Greek to me.
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It looks soooo beautiful, achingly. I loved following your travels on Instagram too, it was making my heart ache for Greece. #TheWeeklyPostcard
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Thank you so very much, Alex! It was the perfect Greek escape. I’m so happy to have found Folegandros.
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I hadn’t heard of Folegandros before – friends who’ve been to Greece tell me to go to Santorini and Mykonos. Folegandros looks amazing though, and the blue and white buildings look like the pictures of Santorini I’ve seen 🙂 With the Greek economy being in the shambles that it’s in, did you have any concerns about personal safety etc.?
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The blue and white of Folegandros is typical of the Cyclades Islands (of which Santorini and Mykonos are also part of). What I loved about this island was that it was a lot less touristy than either Santorini and Mykonos which are a lot better known. I had absolutely no concerns at all about personal safety. Everybody we met was absolutely delightful and the whole family felt really safe and relaxed. Thanks so much for commenting and sharing.
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These are some great photos! I absolutly love Greece and can’t wait to go back there. I used to work in Kalithea during my summer vaccation and travelled around the area, also in Thesaloniki and Athens but never managed to go to the islands. I know just by looking at your photos, I’ve been missing out. Thanks for sharing! #TheWeeklyPostcard
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Thank you so much. The Greek islands are some of my favourite places to travel. I’ve been to Athens a few times but not to other parts of the mainland so I should probably explore more of that.
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You got some great shots! Thanks for sharing. Your post definitely makes me want to prioritize a trip to Greece in 2017! #TheWeeklyPostcard
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Thank you so much. I do hope you get to visit Greece soon – it’s such a special place.
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I’ve never heard of this place. It looks idyllic and very traditional.
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It’s exactly that, Nicola. We found it utterly perfect.
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Beautiful pictures Clare! I had not heard of this island, nice to know there is one that isn’t so crowded and still has everything you would want in a Greek Island. Thanks for linking up with #theWeeklyPostcard.
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Thanks so much, Anisa. It was the perfect Greek island for us.
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Folegandros seems like my kind of island. I will have to make time visit the Greek Islands. They are so beautiful and your photos surely make them look great. Thanks for joining us for #TheWeeklyPostcard.
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The Greek islands really are as beautiful as they look in the photos, Anda. I hope you get to visit them some day.
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Take me back to Greece now. So relaxed and chilled.
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It really is perfection, Sally-Ann, and just wonderful with children.
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Your blog is stunning Clare I’m just browsing it now. I love the pics and the way it’s laid out. Folegandros looks so quintessentially Greek – beautiful.
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Thanks so very much! I just loved Folegandros – my Greek island ideal. I absolutely adored your photos of the Lofoten Islands – you really inspired me to travel there.
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Gorgeous pictures! Greek destinations really have that distinctive vibe — you can tell right away that it’s in Greece. And it’s really so beautiful!
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Thank you so much. I love that essential Greek look too – so peaceful, traditional and beautiful.
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How have I never even heard of this island? As you say it looks exactly like all those images of Greece I have in my head! So stunning, those whites and blues and I love the octopus shots.
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Folegandros is really tiny but perfect in so many ways. It really was a dream of a discovery. I’m really looking forward to writing more about it.
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Gorgeous impressions!
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