Kythnos
3.5/5Thermal springs, empty beaches, and the magical Kolona
Thermal springs, empty beaches, and the magical Kolona
Why 3.5: very good beaches and hot springs, and nothing that actively lets it down.
Kythnos is the first Cycladic island out of Athens and one of the least visited. It has no airport, one port at Merichas two and a half to three hours from Piraeus or Lavrio, and a population of 1,500. The draw: 92 beaches, thermal springs at Loutra that have run at 52°C since antiquity and now sit inside a 19th-century spa hotel, and Kolona, a white sandbar joining the island to the islet of Agios Loukas where you swim on two sides at once. It looks photoshopped. Inland the island is plain in a good way — Chora's lanes are too narrow for cars, Dryopida has red-tiled roofs you see nowhere else in the Cyclades, and Katafyki is an old iron mine you can walk into. Eat sfougato, the herb-and-cheese pie made with local touloumotyri. Skip it if you want nightlife and beach bars, because Kythnos is deliberately quiet, and skip it if you won't rent a car or scooter, because the best beaches need wheels. Go in September, the best month here for warm sea and space; avoid August, when the Athenian boats peak.
Good for
- Travellers who want the Cyclades without the crowds — Kythnos is a short hop from Athens yet barely visited
- Anyone drawn to natural thermal springs and a genuinely uncommercialised beach scene
- Walkers and quiet-beach hunters happy to drive to find an empty cove
Maybe skip if
- If you want nightlife, beach bars and a buzzing scene — Kythnos is deliberately quiet
- If you won't rent a car or scooter; the best beaches need wheels to reach
Getting there
No airport. Ferries from both Piraeus and Lavrio dock at Merichas (the main port). Conventional ferry ~2.5–3h, daily.
Tip: Lavrio is closer to the airport than Piraeus is — save 30 minutes if you fly in.
Best time to visit Kythnos
Kythnos has hot springs (Loutra), the Katafyki cave, and strong Athenian-weekender traffic. Less spectacular than Serifos or Sifnos but cheap and accessible. Best in May, June and September.
Top beaches of Kythnos
Kolona
Kythnos' icon beach. A narrow white sandbar connecting the island to a small rocky islet — you can swim simultaneously on two different sides.
- Type
- Fine white sand
- Length
- 150 m sandbar
- Depth
- Shallow on both sides
- Wind
- Double-sided
- Facilities
- One canteen in summer, no umbrellas
Apokrousi
Longer sandy beach right next to Kolona. More space, still very blue water.
- Type
- Fine sand
- Length
- 400 m
- Depth
- Gradual
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the west to north at over 4 Bft. Northwest-facing — exposed to the meltemi (the dominant summer N/NE wind); often windy on meltemi days
- Facilities
- Beach bar, umbrellas
Episkopi
Long sandy south coast beach. Local favorite, calm water, great for children.
- Type
- Sand
- Length
- 300 m
- Depth
- Shallow
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the southeast to southwest at over 5 Bft. South-facing — sheltered from the meltemi (the summer N/NE wind); calm in summer, exposed only to rare southern winds
- Facilities
- Taverna, rooms
Loutra
The village beach at Loutra, and the only place on Kythnos where you swim next to the thermal water the island is known for — the 52°C spring runs down into a walled pool at the southern end, where you sit until the heat drives you into the sea. The sand is coarse and grey rather than white, and the beach is really the village's front garden: fishing boats, yachts on the moorings, tavernas a few steps behind. It works best as a late-afternoon stop after Chora rather than a full beach day. Athenian weekend traffic fills it through August.
- Type
- Coarse sand and small pebbles
- Length
- Two linked stretches, about 200 m in all
- Depth
- Shallow and sandy for the first 15 m, then gently deeper
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the northeast to southeast at over 4 Bft. East-facing — mostly sheltered from the meltemi (the summer N/NE wind); can be choppy on the strongest NE days
- Facilities
- Fixed umbrellas under the tamarisks, tavernas, cafés, a bakery, a supermarket and a diving centre in the village. Parking along the road. The 52°C spring water of Kakavos runs into a walled pool at the southern end.
Agios Sostis
Two coves under a whitewashed chapel at the top of the island, 2 km of dirt road north of Loutra. Pebbles and coarse sand rather than the fine stuff at Kolona, and water that goes deep and clear fast — which is why divers come here. The left-hand cove past the rock spur is the quieter of the two. Take water and something for shade; there is nothing at all here, and the last stretch of track needs care in a low hire car.
- Type
- Pebble with coarse sand
- Length
- About 200 m, split in two by a low rock spur
- Depth
- Drops away quickly — clear water, good with a mask
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the east to south at over 4 Bft. Faces south-east despite sitting at the island's northern tip — the hill behind takes the meltemi
- Facilities
- None. A dirt road from Loutra ends above the beach; leave the car there and walk down. Little shade beyond a few trees at the back.
Agios Stefanos
A closed east-coast bay in front of a small settlement, with big tamarisks growing almost to the water and a whitewashed chapel on the rocks at the western end. Behind the sand sits a reed-fringed pond with ducks on it, which you don't often see in the Cyclades. Shallow, calm and shaded, so it suits families and anyone who wants lunch two steps from the towel. It is 12 km of winding road from Merichas, about half an hour — come for the day rather than dropping in.
- Type
- Sand with pebbles at the waterline
- Length
- About 150 m
- Depth
- Shallow and even — you walk a long way out
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the northeast to southeast at over 5 Bft. East-facing in a closed bay — sheltered from the meltemi, swimmable through August
- Facilities
- Two tavernas at the back, rooms in the settlement, tamarisk shade, roadside parking. No sunbeds.
Megali Ammos (Kanala)
The busiest beach on Kythnos and the one families head for: a wide arc of golden sand below the pine-covered headland of Panagia Kanala. The water stays shallow well out, and the pines give the only real shade — the sand itself has almost none, so take an umbrella or pay for a sunbed. The best swimming is at the inlet under the monastery. It fills up on August weekends when the Athenians arrive; before mid-July it is quiet.
- Type
- Golden sand
- Length
- About 250 m
- Depth
- Shallow and sandy a long way out
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the northeast to southeast at over 5 Bft. East-facing, with the pine-covered Kanala headland blocking the north wind
- Facilities
- Beach bar with sunbeds, tavernas and a bakery in Kanala, asphalt road to the beach and parking behind it.
Gaidouromantra
Long, wide and empty, on the south coast where almost nobody drives. The Andrianos stream comes out at the western end, there are trees at the eastern end for shade, and the chapel of Agia Sotira on the hill above gives you the view of the whole bay. Getting there is both the point and the problem — turn off past Kampitses south of Dryopida, follow 1.5 km of dirt road with unsigned forks, then walk down the concrete steps. Plenty of people arrive by boat instead, and on a weekday you may have it to yourself.
- Type
- Sand with white pebbles
- Length
- About 300 m
- Depth
- Gradual, sandy bottom
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the southeast to southwest at over 4 Bft. South-facing — sheltered from the meltemi (the summer N/NE wind); calm in summer, exposed only to rare southern winds
- Facilities
- None — no canteen, no taverna, no water. Dirt track, then concrete steps down. Bring everything.
Agios Dimitrios
The southernmost beach on the island, in front of a village of about thirty people, and the easiest of the far beaches to reach — asphalt all the way, 17 km and forty minutes from Merichas. Wide sand shelving gently, tamarisks along the back for shade, rock at both ends. The two tavernas serve sfougato and strapatsada, which is half the reason to stay all day. At the end of the afternoon walk the 300 m path up the hillside behind the village for the sunset over the bay.
- Type
- Wide sand with rock at each end
- Length
- About 250 m
- Depth
- Shallow and gradual
- Wind
- Avoid visiting when the wind blows from the south to west at over 5 Bft. South-west facing — protected from the meltemi, but a southerly makes it choppy
- Facilities
- Two tavernas and rooms in the settlement, a shop for cold drinks, tamarisk shade. Asphalt the whole way and parking at the back.
2-day itinerary for Kythnos
Read the day-by-day plan on its own page →
Day 1: Chora & Thermal Springs
- 10:00 · Merichas (port)
Small ferry port with a horseshoe sandy beach and tavernas on the waterfront. Most arrivals dock here mid-morning, rent a car or scooter on the spot, and head out the same hour — there's almost nothing to keep you in Merichas itself.
- 11:30 · Chora (Messaria)
Main inland village — maze of narrow whitewashed lanes with the marble church of Agia Triada at the centre. Walk the main artery end-to-end, then get lost in the side streets; the lanes are too narrow for cars, which is why the Chora has stayed exactly as it was.
- 13:00 · Katafyki Cave
Old iron mine turned geological attraction in the island's interior. Short guided tours in summer take you through chambers carved into the rock — bring a light layer, it's cool inside. The mine fed Kythnos' economy for decades and the entry chambers still have rusted tools where the workers left them.
- 17:00 · Loutra Thermal Baths
Ancient thermal springs (52°C) — bathed in since antiquity, housed in a 19th-century spa hotel. Day passes available. - 🍴 Stop for dinner · Loutra & Chora — see Eat & Drink below
Day 2: Kolona & Beaches
- 10:00 · Kolona Beach
The famous double beach — a sand spit connecting the main island to the tiny Agios Loukas islet. Swim in two sides at once. Arrive early to beat the crowds. - 13:00 · Apokrousi Beach
Larger sandy bay adjacent to Kolona, separated by just the famous sandbar. Usually less crowded than Kolona itself but with the same crystal-clear water and a small canteen for shade and coffee. The walk between the two beaches takes under five minutes. - 16:00 · Dryopida
Red-tiled roofs (unusual in the Cyclades) and a tiny folk museum. Lunch at one of the two village tavernas.