Cyclades · The authentic, tranquil Cyclades
Folegandros
Folegandros is eight miles long and three miles wide, with one main road, one of the best-preserved medieval villages in the Cyclades and sunsets that rival Santorini's. If you are looking for the authentic, unhurried Greece, it is here.
Folegandros has been inhabited for at least 3,000 years, and it wears the whole span lightly. Legend says the first settlers were shepherds from western Greece who worshipped Artemis, and that the island is named for Prince Folegandros, son of King Minos of Crete. The Venetians took it in 1204, and the nobleman Marco Sanudo raised the famous castle that still anchors Chora against the pirate raids of the age. Ottoman rule followed until 1828, when the island joined the new Greece; in the 20th century it served as a place of exile for political prisoners. A long history for a small island, and you can walk most of it in an afternoon.
The unhurried island
There is no hustle here. One main road snakes through the island, the water sparkles, and the evening light does things over the cliff edge that guests compare, favourably, with Santorini. Most Greek islands offer a degree of calm; Folegandros is the island our guests consistently call the most relaxing they have visited, and we agree.
Explore Folegandros
Chora
One of the most enchanting villages in the Cyclades: the medieval Kastro quarter at its heart, squares draped in bougainvillea, tavernas spilling onto the lanes and the sea a long vertical below.
Karavostasis
The port town, still a quiet fishing village with a pebbly beach and seriously good seafood. At Blue Cuisine, the goat souvlaki and the fish carpaccio, with excellent wines, repay the walk down.
Ano Meria
A scatter of old farmhouses and terraced fields along the ridge, where residents still ride donkeys between plots and octopus dries on lines outside the tavernas. The small Ecological and Folklore Museum tells the island’s working life across the centuries.
Pairing Folegandros
If Prince Folegandros’ original home interests you, look at Crete; for more of the quiet Cyclades, Sifnos is its natural companion.
Known first-hand
Our best picks on Folegandros
- Best Bar Wine Bar Merkouri
Five minutes' walk from central Chora: peaceful, romantic and pouring an outstanding selection of wines. Beautiful view, beautiful hour.
- Best Dining Papalagi
Perched like a treehouse on the rocks, open on all sides, with big tables on wooden planks. Order the melopita pie of cheese and honey and the grilled octopus, and join the general murmur of delight.
- Best Local Specialty Matsata
The island's own dish: fresh pasta in red sauce with chicken, rabbit or goat cooked until the meat falls off the bone.
- Best Beach Agali
A sand-and-pebble cove held between rocky cliffs, a few boats at anchor and a couple of tavernas whose owners greet returning guests like old friends. Agali means hug, and the bay earns the name.
- Best Hidden Spot Church of Panagia
A winding fifteen-minute climb above Chora to a whitewashed church at 300 metres, with the island falling away below. Carry something to drink and stay for one of the most glorious sunsets Greece has to offer.
- Best Daytrip Around the island by boat
A slow lap of the coastline with swimming and snorkelling off the stern: the Chrysospilia cave, its walls marked since the 4th century BC, and Katergo, a beach of granite towers and clear water reached only by sea.
No airport and no crowds to match. Ferries connect Folegandros with Milos, Santorini and Piraeus.
Design
Design your experience
Tell us the occasion, the season and who is coming. One of our Epicureans will come back with a first sketch of Folegandros, and will tell you if another island suits your dates better.