Greece · Aegean
Yacht Charter Cyclades
Bare rock, white villages and the meltemi — the Aegean everyone pictures, and the group that asks most of a crew.
The Cyclades are what people mean when they say Greek islands: bare granite and marble, white cubic villages, and a light that photographs badly because it is too strong. They are also the demanding half of Greece. The meltemi blows from the north through July and August, hard and for days at a time, which is why the route matters more than the anchorage here — you run down with it and work back up choosing your moment.
Which islands, and why
Milos has the white rock formations of Kleftiko and a coast of mining colours. Paros and Naxos have real towns and the shelter to wait weather out. Santorini has the caldera and moorings on buoys because the water is too deep to anchor.
Serifos and Sifnos are the quiet ones, and Sifnos has better food than anywhere else in the group — it produced Nikolaos Tselementes, whose cookbook was so influential that Greeks still call any cookbook a tselementes.
Sailing them
A week here is a route rather than a circuit: from Athens the wind takes you south-east and the return is planned around it. Crews who know the group build the itinerary backwards from the last day.
Delos, the sacred island beside Mykonos, is uninhabited and closes at sunset — nobody may stay the night, which is why arriving by sea and being there at opening is the version worth having.
Practical notes
- The meltemi blows from the north through July and August, and the route is planned around it
- Santorini's caldera is too deep to anchor: mooring is on buoys and wants arranging ahead
- Paros and Naxos have the shelter and the provisioning to wait weather out
- Delos closes at sunset and nobody stays the night — arrive at opening
Reached from: Athens
Where to dine
A table by the water
Omega3
ParosOn the beach at Naoussa, doing raw fish and grilled catch straight off the boats in front.
Tselementes country
SifnosNot a restaurant but an island: chickpea stew in clay, capers and the best cooking in the group.
Kleftiko
MilosNo taverna at all — the reason it is here is that lunch at anchor among the white rocks beats anything ashore.
What to do
Anchorages & excursions
Kleftiko, Milos
White volcanic rock formations rising out of clear water on the south-west coast, reachable only from the sea.
Delos
The sacred island beside Mykonos, uninhabited, with a whole Hellenistic town excavated and a terrace of marble lions.
Santorini's caldera
A flooded volcanic crater with the town on the rim six hundred metres above, moored on buoys because the water is too deep to anchor.
Sifnos
The quiet one with the best food in the Cyclades, and a footpath network across the island that predates the roads.
The fleet
Yachts available for the Cyclades
Vessels that operate here, from flagship motor yachts to smaller crewed boats. Every rate is quoted on enquiry.
Good to know
Questions we are asked about the Cyclades
- Are the Cyclades hard sailing?
- They ask more than the Ionian. The meltemi blows hard from the north for days at a time in July and August, so the week is planned as a route with the wind rather than a circuit against it.
- Which Cycladic island should we start with?
- Paros or Naxos if you want towns and shelter, Milos for the coast, Sifnos for the food and the quiet. Santorini is worth a night and is a mooring rather than an anchorage.
- What does a yacht charter in the Cyclades cost?
- It depends on the yacht, the season and the crew, so we quote on enquiry rather than publish a figure that would be wrong for most weeks.
Destinations
Nearby destinations
Charter here
Enquire about a charter in the Cyclades
Tell us your dates and how many of you there are, and we will come back with the right yacht and a full quotation.