July 20, 2026•5 min read•By Maurits Dierick, Charter Broker & Former Yacht Captain
Cyclades Yacht Charter: 8-Day Mykonos to Milos Route (2026)
Eight days across the Cyclades from Mykonos to Milos: Paros, Naxos, Ios and Santorini, then Milos and its volcanic coast to close.
The most famous island in the Cyclades isn't on this route.
Santorini has no safe anchorage for a yacht. The caldera is a drowned volcano, the water is too deep to anchor in and there's nowhere sheltered to lie. You can take the ferry across from Ios for the day and we'll arrange it, but the boat stays where it is.
What the route gives you instead is Milos, at the far end, and we give it two days.
The week runs 184 nautical miles from Mykonos and back, 19.5 hours under way.
Before we dive in, it's worth noting the route below is also available as an interactive map on our Greece charter page.
Eight days, 184 nautical miles, 19.5 hours under way. Round trip from Mykonos.
Two days have no passage: day one, which is a lunch at Rhenia, and day seven, which is Milos.
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Day 1: Mykonos
Board, then leave. You'll be back at the end of the week.
A short cruise to Rhenia, uninhabited, where the crew puts lunch on the sand. Then back for Little Venice at sunset, dinner at ZUMA, and as much of the night as the group wants.
Mooring: Mykonos New Port (Tourlos), Ornos Bay or Rhenia. Beach: Rhenia. Dining: ZUMA.
Day 2: Delos and Tinos
An hour, eight miles. The shortest leg of the week.
Delos was the religious and commercial centre of the ancient Aegean and the birthplace of Apollo. It's an uninhabited archaeological site you tender into: the Terrace of the Lions, the Temple of Apollo.
Then Tinos, where marble carvers have worked the same stone for generations. The inland villages, Pyrgos and Volakas, are the reason to go, along with the Giannoulis Chalepas Museum. Dinner at Svoura.
Passage: 1 hour, 8 nm. Mooring: Tinos Port, Panormos Bay or Agios Ioannis. Beach: Agali. Dining: Svoura.
Day 3: Paros
Three hours through the archipelago.
Naoussa wraps around a small harbour on the north coast, with tavernas out on the stone quay. Time the arrival for golden hour.
Dinner at Olvo, with the sea.
Passage: 3 hours, 30 nm. Mooring: Naoussa harbour, Parikia Port or Santa Maria Bay. Beach: Kolymbithres. Dining: Olvo.
Day 4: Naxos
Eleven miles. The greenest island in the Cyclades and the largest.
The Temple of Demeter is 6th century BC. The Kouros is an unfinished statue left lying in its quarry. Chalki is a village of narrow alleys. Kalantos is a cove that stays quiet.
Twenty-five miles. Olive-covered mountains into the water, blue-domed chapels on the hills.
Anchor off Mylopotas. Chora is the hilltop town, old at the bottom and busy at the top. Homer's tomb is up there as an archaeological site. Dinner at Grandma's.
This is where the Santorini ferry runs from, if the group wants the day trip.
Passage: 2.5 hours, 25 nm. Mooring: Ios Port (Gialos), Mylopotas Bay or Manganari. Beach: Mylopotas. Dining: Grandma's.
Day 6: Milos
Four and a half hours, 45 miles, and an early start.
Milos is volcanic and it doesn't look like the rest of Greece. Kleftiko on the south coast is white rock stacks out of green water, and it was a pirate refuge. Klima is a fishing village where the boat garages are painted every colour. Sarakiniko is white pumice.
Dinner at OKTO.
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Passage: 4.5 hours, 45 nm. Mooring: Adamas Port, Kleftiko Bay or Sarakiniko. Beach: Kleftiko. Dining: OKTO.
Day 7: Milos again
The yacht stays at anchor.
This is the only scheduled stay-put day in our Greek routes. Take a car and go inland. Klima, Mandrakia where the boats are hauled into cave garages, Firopotamos. Sarakiniko is the one people photograph.
Lunch at Medusa in Mandraki. A cooking class with a local family, a winery, or the tender north to the caves. Dinner at Enalion.
No passage. Mooring: Adamas Port or Kleftiko Bay. Beach: Sarakiniko. Dining: Enalion.
Day 8: Mykonos
Leave before dawn. Sixty-five miles, six and a half hours, back across the archipelago.
Anchored at Mykonos by noon. Final lunch at Scorpios.
Passage: 6.5 hours, 65 nm. Mooring: Mykonos New Port (Tourlos) or Paralia Platis. Beach: Paralia Platis Gialos. Dining: Scorpios.
What the week costs you
Time. This is 184 miles with a 45-mile day and a 65-mile day in it, and the 65 is a pre-dawn start. Two of the days have no alarm and two need an early one.
What you get for it is range. Delos and Milos are on the same week and they have almost nothing in common.
The two Milos days are the part of this itinerary I'd defend hardest. Versions of this route that squeeze Milos into an overnight come back worse.
Practical notes
Round trip from Mykonos, so one airport and easily accessible.
Restaurants in Mykonos and Naoussa in July and August are booked before you land. That's the broker’s job. We usually advice against taking the yacht to Santorini; difficult and unprotected anchorages, and especially in high season the logistics are nearly impossible. The easiest way is to take the ferry from Ios.
