Kea is the closest Cycladic island to Attica. Ιt got its name from the hero Keos from Nafpaktos who conquered the island in ancient times. Τhe paths of the island are built with stairs that traverse the entire island ideal for hiking. In the inland of Kea Island, you’ll find a lush natural paradise. The island houses rare plant species and wild animals, such as birds and reptiles. The capital of the island is Ioulida, a beautiful village which emits a relaxing vibe, thanks to its traditional architecture and car ban! Kea is an oasis of relaxation. Some beautiful villages include Vourkari, Korissia and Otzias.

The beach at Otzias is in a sheltered almost round bay bordered with trees and extends about 700 meters, most of it sandy. In my opinion it is one of the best beaches in Greece for families with small children because it is shallow for the most part and the eastern end is sheltered from the north wind. In one part there is a shelf of rock that is fun if you snorkel. There is a small settlement on the east side of the bay and a couple of excellent tavernas. On the west side of the bay there are a few trees, and a couple benches below a small church, and people who want to get away from the crowds come here, mostly locals but often, you may have the place to yourself even when the east side of the beach is full. During the high season there are wind-surfers and paddle boats can be rented too. The bay itself was a port in classical times and the ruins of some harbor facilities can still be seen. A mile or so beyond are the actual mines in the area called Tripospilies and a few kilometers further is the monastery of Kastriani. The small restaurant called Taverna Otzias is a very nice fish restaurant and has a great selection of vegetable dishes and meat. Anna’s Restaurant is just up the hill and has been very popular with the locals for years.

Gialiskari is the most popular beach on Kea, particularly with the inhabitants of Ioullis and the weekenders who come from Athens. Though the beach is small they pack in here on weekends and in August and the cafe bar is as close as Kea gets to having a ‘beach scene’ like the popular islands of the Cyclades. The cafe, which used to be a little hole-in-the-wall snack bar has developed into a fully stocked beach bar with a very nice menu of salads and pastas. They also serve fruit juices that are like smoothies and of course they have great coffee. For hanging out and people-watching this is your best bet and it is only a 15 minute walk in either direction to the taverna at the sailboat harbor of Voukari or in the main port of Korrissia. There is a small forest here with plenty of shade and for snorkelers it is a safe place to explore the coast. The beach is in a cove within the large bay of Korissia and so unless the weather is extreme the sea is calm. Plenty of kids around and the teenagers make this their prime summer hangout so sometimes the music in the cafe can get on your nerves if you are a child of the sixties like me. But just when you think you can’t stand it they surprise you with an old favorite and your faith in the future of humanity is restored.

The beach at Pisses, despite the name is very clean and is considered the best by many people, including my friends at Lonely Planet but that is only if you have not gone to any of the beaches on the east side of the island. Located about 11 kilometers from Ioulis the trip there is reason enough to go because you pass through some of the most beautiful topography in the Cyclades. The beach itself is in a valley of fruit trees, cypress trees and flowers as well as farms.Pisses was also the location of Ancient Poiessa and the ruins of the ancient city sit on top of a mountain that is the southern boundary of the valley. On the acropolis of ancient Poiessa is the temple to Apollo and the church of the Panagia Sotira which has many fragments of ancient marble sculpture within its walls. When the Meltemi blows the sea can be rough but when it is calm it is smooth and excellent for snorkeling and is full of children in the summer. Probably the best place for a late-afternoon or early-evening swim because of it’s location facing the setting sun.

Koundouros is an area of many small sandy beaches which follow the coast beyond Pisses. During the weekends many yachts from the mainland come here. This is also the location of Kea Beach, an 80 room resort built in the sixties that was popular with Italian tourists but unknown to just about everyone else. The hotel had a bar, restaurant, disco and a swimming pool. Rumor has it that the original hotel was built during the junta and the owner left with the money and the building only half completed. To save the project they built bungalows around the original incomplete hotel, some of which looked like windmills, and at one time when there was a flying dolphin from Pireaus, it actually stopped here.

Further along the coast from Koundouros are the beaches of Kambi with its acorn trees and the Vathirrema Gorge which ends up at the beautiful remote beach of Liparo. Kampi is a small cove with a few houses clustered around it and a bunch of million-dollar villas rising up from the other side where their inhabitants find it easier to take a helicopter into Athens than they do driving to Hora. There is a rocky shelf that is nice for snorkeling and the rest of the beach is sandy and there are some shade trees and umbrellas too. Just above the beach, up some steps is the Kampi Taverna which has lots of salads, appetisers and some oven dishes, and the restaurant has a nice breeze, a nice view of the sea and is run by a very nice family serving some of the most authentic food on Kea. Most people don’t come this far and you will probably pass through a gauntlet of parked cars at the beach in Koundouros where people can lay on beach beds and order drinks. But with each successive cove there are less people and on Kampi even on a Sunday there should not be more than a dozen or so spread out.

The trip to the beach at Mikres Poles and Ancient Karthea is not for the faint hearted. But I am not the most enthusiastic hiker on the planet and I did it so you can too. The journey begins just beyond the village of Agios Nikolaos where you park your car and begin the walk through the ravine that eventually leads you to a small white church and two fantastic beaches. In between are the ruins of the ancient city. But getting there is one thing. Getting back is another because as an student of physics knows what goes down must go up and the walk down which takes an hour and a half is a breeze compared to the journey back. The sea can be pretty rough during the periods when there are northeast winds, so choose your day carefully. Any islander can tell you when any beach will have calm seas. In the ruins of ancient Karthea are the remains of a temple to Athena and another temple that was dedicated to Apollo. You can still see the fortified walls and the ancient gates. There are the ruins of an ancient theater of which 20rows of seats have been exposed.

The second beach you come to is called Megales Poles and it is from here that the ancient road to Ioulis, fragments of which still exist, began. I have snorkeled here and it almost seems like the gigantic stones that lay just beneath the surface are parts of docks or submerged buildings from the ancient city.

The beach at Orkos has no tavernas and because of the length of the terrifying road you have to travel on to reach it, is usually empty of people.