During our six weeks’ journey through the Cycladic Islands in Greece in September 2016, we stayed one week on the island of Amorgos.
We had heard of the island as it is well known from the French cult-movie “The Deep Blue” of Luc Besson. Part of the movie was shot there.
Amorgos has a very rough scenery yet beautiful landscape. The island is crossed by only one main road, from north to south and the highest point is at slightly over 800 meters so the roads and paths are sometimes steep.
The island has no airport and most of the ships come to land in the main village of Katapola. This is an advantage as it keeps the mass tourism away. Katapola is the busiest village, however offers a stunning sunset and numerous seaside restaurants and bars. We stayed at Aigiali, in the north of the island. This area is quieter and more relaxed with cool and simple eateries and bars, some on the shores of the few sandy beaches of the island. The “capital” village is called Chora and is located on one of the highest points of the island. This village is more appropriate for late afternoon walks, early morning hikes and cosy dinners because the centre of the village can only be reached by foot.
In Aigiali, we stayed in a small guest house located on the right-hand side hill facing the bay. Aelia Studios is well kept and the rooms have a great view on the bay. We think this is the place where we had the best sleep in the whole Cyclades. The bed was of good quality, the hotel was quiet and the rooms are fairly large.
In Amorgos, you need to rent a car, or maybe a scooter if you are courageous. We rented ours at Yiannis, just a few steps from our hotel. The roads are good in some parts, not well maintained in other parts.
Beaches in Amorgos are mainly pebble beaches. Do not miss the beach of Kambi, definitely our favourite.
This island is one of our favourites in the Cyclades. Maybe due to the laid back post-hippie ambiance with a slight French touch (many French come here due to the film), maybe because you can still hear the goats when driving through the island; some even gather on the road for impromptu meetings and block the drive way.
The highlight though was the visit of the Chozoviotissa Monastery (Panagia Chozoviotissa).
See our visit at this major site in Greece here
See more of our Cycladic Tour here
