Cyclades

If you've ever pictured a Greek island, you've pictured one of the Cyclades. The archipelago is roughly 200 islands scattered across the central Aegean in a loose ring around Delos, the uninhabited rock the ancient Greeks named as Apollo's birthplace, and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1990. The picture they collectively give is a familiar one: white-washed villages, blue-domed churches, windmills on the headlands, and fresh fish off the boat at lunchtime.

Mykonos and Santorini are the headline islands and they earn the headlines, the first for its rooftop bars and beach clubs, the second for the sunset above the caldera, which is one of the most-photographed views in Europe. Beyond them, the chain opens out into smaller and quieter islands, each with its own character. Folegandros holds a dramatic clifftop chora, the small hilltop town typical of Cycladic islands, and a handful of quiet anchorages around it. Sifnos has a serious food culture, with island producers shaping the menus in the harbour tavernas. Paros, Naxos and Antiparos run on a slower clock, with long late dinners and beaches that rarely fill up even in August.

The wind that shapes a Cyclades summer is the meltemi, the strong dry north wind that blows down from the Aegean from June to August. A good captain plans the week around it, sailing roughly north to south so the wind sits at the stern, which is why most charters pick up in Athens (Alimos, Marina Zea or Lavrion) and disembark closer to Santorini. The season runs May to October, with June and September the quieter and most consistent months.