Mykonos
Paradise and Super Paradise beaches wrote the blueprint — daytime sessions that escalate from champagne lunch to full dance floor by golden hour.
- Best forNightlife · Groups of friends · Luxury seekers
- In March14°C · 8 rainy days
- Ideal stay3–5 nights
- Approx. flying time~14h from Los Angeles
- CurrencyEUREuro
- LanguageGreek
- Local time13:152h ahead of the UK
- PlugsType C / FBring an adapter
- Drive on theRightOpposite to the UK
- Dialling code+30
Why go
Behind the beach clubs sits a genuinely beautiful Cycladic town: a deliberately confusing maze of whitewashed lanes, blue shutters and chapels, with windmills on the ridge and a row of houses standing straight out of the water at Little Venice. The island itself is low, brown and windswept, ringed by sandy coves. Money is extremely visible, and the summer soundtrack rarely stops before dawn.
Three to five nights is plenty, ideally as part of a Cycladic run with Paros or Naxos, since ferry links are frequent. July and August are the loudest and the priciest; June and September give the same sea with a fraction of the strain on your wallet. Anyone hoping for a quiet, cheap Greek island holiday should point at almost any other island in the group.
- Ideal stay
- 3–5 nights
- The vibe
- Glossy, loud, expensively bronzed
From our guides
Mykonos is glossy, expensive and completely aware of it, but the setting is unarguable: Aegean blue, whitewashed cubes, DJs as headline acts. Scandi-style beach club Scorpios does the bohemian-luxe sunset better than anywhere on earth.
Featured in Ten beach party destinations that go from sunset to sunrise
Things to do
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Chora's lanes
The main town is car-free and pleasantly disorientating, with bougainvillea over white walls and small chapels tucked between shops. Best walked in the early evening.
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Little Venice
A row of eighteenth-century merchants' houses with balconies overhanging the sea, and the classic spot for sunset with the windmills in frame.
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Kato Mili windmills
Seven thatched windmills on the low hill above town, built to grind grain in the island's relentless wind and now the island's defining silhouette.
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Delos
A half-hour boat ride to an uninhabited island that was once one of the great sanctuaries of the ancient Greek world, with mosaics, a theatre and the terrace of lions.
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Quieter northern beaches
Agios Sostis and Fokos on the north coast have no sunbeds, no music and, on a calm day, the clearest water on the island.
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Ano Mera
The inland village, built around a fortified monastery with a carved marble bell tower, where tavernas serve at village prices rather than coastal ones.
Getting there
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Fly to
Mykonos (JMK)
The airport is on the doorstep.
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Then
To Mykonos Town
Mykonos airport (JMK) is about 10 minutes by taxi from the town; ferries from Piraeus, Rafina and neighbouring islands dock at the New Port just north.
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On the ground
Getting around
Mykonos Town is a pedestrian maze, so cars are left outside it; buses, taxis and sea taxis run down to Paradise, Super Paradise and Platis Gialos through the day and late in summer.
Public transport: Good in season: frequent buses to the main beaches plus caiques along the south coast, though taxis are scarce and expensive.
Flights
Los Angeles Mykonos, Greece
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Roughly 14h in the air from Los Angeles (LAX), estimated from the distance — check for a direct route. Pick a month to see every available flight with live prices.
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Flight times are estimates; prices open on Google Flights.
When to go
Daytime highs run from about 14°C in January to 26°C in August. Driest May to September; wettest in January, with rain on about 12 days.
The year at a glance — pick a month for detail
March14° · rain 8 daysCool with rain most weeks.
Monthly figures averaged from daily records for 2020–2024 at this location (ERA5 reanalysis). Highlighted months are warm and mostly dry — June to October. Live conditions from MET Norway, CC BY 4.0.
Where to stay
Designer boutique hotels and beach clubs with rooms, villa rentals with pools, and a shrinking supply of simple studios. Value is not a Mykonos concept in high season.
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Best base overall
Mykonos Town, Chora
The whitewashed lanes, the best restaurants and the bus terminals for the beaches. No car access to most of it, so expect to wheel luggage, and the bars run late beneath the windows.
Find stays in Mykonos Town, Chora -
Best for nightlife
Paradise and Super Paradise
Staying above the beach clubs means no taxi problem at four in the morning. Bass carries across the whole bay, and there is nothing else to do here in daylight.
Find stays in Paradise and Super Paradise -
Best with children
Ornos and Platis Gialos
Sheltered south-coast bays with shallow water, hotels on the sand and boat taxis along the coast. Both are busy and expensive, and neither is quiet in August.
Find stays in Ornos and Platis Gialos -
Best value
Ano Mera
The inland village halfway across the island, with a real square, tavernas and rooms at a fraction of coastal rates. You need a car or the bus for every beach.
Find stays in Ano Mera
Worth knowing before you book: July and August rates can be several times those of June and September, with minimum stays and non-refundable deposits standard across the island.
Search everything else in Mykonos Town by budget. These are indicative budget bands in GBP per night for two people, not live quotes or guarantees of hotel type. Check your dates, guests, taxes and final price on Booking.com.
Good to know
- Costs
- Beach club sunbeds, taxi boats and dinner all run well above Greek averages in high season. Check minimum spends before you sit down.
- Wind
- The meltemi blows hard from July to September, which can shut southern or northern beaches on any given day. Choose your side of the island by the forecast.
- Book ahead
- Accommodation, ferries and popular tables sell out months in advance for August. Nothing is left to chance here.
- Getting there
- The airport takes seasonal flights from across Europe, and fast ferries connect to Athens, Rafina and neighbouring islands several times a day.
- Timing
- The season runs roughly May to October. Out of it, much of the island closes and the ferries thin out considerably.
Similar places
Nearby destinations
Little Venice
Mykonos, Greece · 6km away →
Naousa
Paros, Greece · 39km away →
Antiparos
Greece · 59km away →
Folegandros
Greece · 101km away →
Oia
Santorini, Greece · 110km away →
Milos
Greece · 114km away →Elsewhere in Greece
Related articles
Quick answers
When is the best time to visit Mykonos?
For warm, mostly dry days, June to October. That means highs of 20–34°C with rain on six days a month or fewer. Daytime highs run from about 14°C in January to 26°C in August. Driest May to September; wettest in January, with rain on about 12 days.
How long should I spend in Mykonos?
Our suggestion: 3–5 nights.
How do I get to Mykonos?
Mykonos airport (JMK) is about 10 minutes by taxi from the town; ferries from Piraeus, Rafina and neighbouring islands dock at the New Port just north.
Do I need a car in Mykonos?
No. Good in season: frequent buses to the main beaches plus caiques along the south coast, though taxis are scarce and expensive.
What currency and language are used in Mykonos?
Currency: Euro (EUR). Language: Greek. Plugs: type C and F.
Who is Mykonos best for?
Best for nightlife, groups of friends and luxury seekers. In a phrase: glossy, loud, expensively bronzed.