The last time I experienced real, authentic Greece was 16 years ago on a family holiday to Cephalonia. We drove around the island in a Fiat Panda with a hole in the roof, my sister and I shrieking as water leaked on our heads every time the car turned a corner. By day, we zig-zagged our way down pine-covered cliffsides to beaches where the water was so turquoise you would think it was the Caribbean. At night, it was trips to fishing villages and tavernas, where we ate fish not long shaken from nets before heading back to our unconsciously shabby-chic bed and breakfast. It was run by a lovely old couple called Nana and George who would get out a pack of cards and ply my dad with ouzo, so much so that one night he asked them if they had ever thought about giving the place a new lick of paint.
In the years that followed I continued to visit the country but never quite found the same untouched Greece I craved in different islands; Rhodes had too many shops selling fridge magnets and shot glasses, Santorini was more selfie sticks than souvlakis and the tourist-to-resident ratio in Mykonos felt about a thousand to one. Then I found Kea.
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In a country that gets 33 million tourists a year it seems almost implausible that somewhere so beautiful and close to the capital — it’s a 40-minute speedboat ride from Athens — could remain under the radar. But it has: for the past 60 years or so Kea has been the secret weekend getaway island for well-heeled Athenians who come on a Friday evening to hide away in the holiday homes they have built in hills still speckled with shepherd’s huts and separated by crumbling stone boundary lines. It’s always a few degrees cooler than the capital thanks to a near-constant sea breeze that is the island’s natural air conditioning.
The real blessing, though, is that it’s not accessible from the capital’s main ferry port, Piraeus, which is the gateway tourists use to island-hop to the better-known Cycladic isles. Instead, boats leave from a smaller port, Lavrio, a 30-minute drive from Athens airport. It makes complete sense, then, that the first luxury opening on Kea is part of the One&Only collection; a brand known for its ability to find locations that are just as exclusive as the hotels themselves.
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I’ve brought my mum along — I couldn’t risk any more ouzo incidents with my dad — and we arrive at a pier on the island’s west coast, where, camouflaged against a rugged cliff face, are 63 villas that jut out towards the Aegean like giant clay beehives. They have been designed to blend in, using locally sourced stone and built using traditional construction methods. The architect behind them is John Heah, the mastermind behind some of the world’s fanciest hotels including Amanera in the Dominican Republic. Here he has taken the best bits of Greece — the light, the white, and fabrics in every shade of blue — to create minimalist open-plan spaces with vaulted ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows and walls made almost entirely from giant slabs of thickly cut marble.
There are luxurious statements; firepits in the private courtyards planted with pomegranate trees, curved sofas with stacks of carefully curated novels each themed around Greece and, most impressively, eight-metre-long infinity pools that spill towards the ocean. It’s here where I spend hours watching out for dolphins and tracing the occasional distant red hull of a ferry heading to Crete, its passengers blissfully unaware they’re drifting past something much more special. Villas are stocked so well that guests could quite easily stay put for their entire stay with everything from jars of lemons and limes for cocktails to sunhats, yoga mats and thoughtful essentials such as mosquito repellent tucked away into bedside drawers. Those who do wish to explore the rest of the resort can summon a butler with a golf buggy at the tap of a WhatsApp and whizz guests around grounds bursting with trees, plants and herbs; close your eyes and you could be hovering over a pot of pasta because the scent of thyme, rosemary and basil is so strong. At the top of the hill are two jade-green marble infinity pools surrounded by cabanas where staff appear with sun cream, cold towels and a cocktail list.
Equally impressive is the three-floor spa — the biggest out of all One&Only resorts at 1,700 sq m — where therapists use local, natural ingredients plucked from the island such as pomegranate and lavender to soothe and smooth every ache and wrinkle. It’s the first massage I have had where I’m not asked how firm I’d like it to be and that’s because there’s only one setting: extremely. The focus is on relieving pressure points and while at times it’s wince-worthy, on the whole it’s completely worth it; when it finishes I feel like I’m levitating off the bed. I could well be hallucinating, though: the indoor-outdoor infinity pool looks almost ethereal, spilling out towards the resort’s sheltered bay where the cyan water appears green one moment and blue the next.
Of Kea’s 30-plus beaches, the resort has easily bagged one of the best with a small cove that feels like the Mediterranean in capsule form; a string of giant silver-barked eucalyptus trees and a dusting of soft, biscuit-coloured sand. Bond Beach Club, which sits directly behind it, quickly becomes our favourite place to eat. Here, Mediterranean dishes are given an Asian twist and I tear into dishes such as sea bass cooked on a Josper grill, served with grilled pak choi and perfectly tender wagyu beef skewers with a sweet and spicy soy sauce.
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Those who want drama from their beaches can find plenty underwater. Kea is a mecca for technical divers who can swim inside the wreck of Britannic, the sister ship of Titanic, which hit a mine during the First World War. There’s also a German aircraft that ran out of fuel and remains on the seabed, looking almost exactly as it did when it sank to the seafloor in the Second World War. Without Padi certification — or the bottle to dive 60m underwater — I opt for some easy-going snorkelling instead, spotting the black beady eyes of an octopus, eels that shoot between rocks like darts and the holographic shimmers of parrotfish.
Also putting on a show is Karthaia, one of four ancient Greek city-states on the island. A 90-minute hike skirting waterfalls and through pine forests reveals the remains of an amphitheatre between two deserted beaches along with a pair of temples dating from 500BC. Granted, it’s not the Acropolis, but that also means it doesn’t have the crowds of the capital — you would be lucky to spot even a handful of other sweaty tourists who have made the hike here. As for the real, authentic Greece I’ve been craving? I find it at Ioulida, the capital of the island and one of the prettiest places I’ve visited with its cascade of traditional white houses with blue shutters clinging to a cliffside, each linked by winding cobbled alleys with walls painted in a citrus palette of lemon and tangerine.
Rickety tables and chairs spill into the centre, which is lined with rows of pretty shops selling handmade jewellery and bakeries with wood-fired ovens where locals come out with arms laden with bags of spanakopita, a flaky pie stuffed with feta cheese and spinach. The town is car-free and is possibly one of the only places in the country where donkeys are still used to transport supplies to the centre. We peek inside the former house and studio of the renowned Greek painter Alekos Fassianos that has been kept just as he left it — a desk scattered with paint brushes, mugs on worktops — and at dinky 13th-century churches where candles flicker with flames not long lit in prayer. Everything feels paused in time; a slice of Greece that has somehow remained in a time capsule. The only decor at the family-run tavernas are flowers planted in giant chopped tomato tins and I ask Yannis — the owner of one — if he has any spare. He rustles around in the back of his kitchen before presenting one that I decide I’ll fill with kitchen utensils when I’m home; a souvenir that feels just as authentic as the island itself.
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Lucy Perrin was a guest of One&Only Kea Island, which has B&B doubles from £1,257. Fly to Athens (oneandonlyresorts.com)
Five more underrated islands within an hour of Athens
By James Litston
1. Salamina
Also known as Salamis, this Saronic isle is so close to Athens’ main port of Piraeus that it’s essentially a suburb. Such proximity doesn’t necessarily translate into visitor appeal, however — Salamina’s profile is almost nonexistent. But that’s a shame, because what this island has in abundance is history, from tales of an ancient naval battle to monuments and museums. Explore colourful neighbourhoods in Salamina town and Ampelakia, then take a dip at sand-and-shingle Iliakti beach, one of this island’s best. There aren’t stacks of places to stay, but the waterfront Votsalakia Hotel is a handy (and affordable) option.
Details Room-only doubles from £50 (votsalakiahotel.gr)
2. Aegina
Further out in the Saronic Gulf (but still within an hour from Piraeus) is Aegina. Pronounced “EGG-in-a”, this overlooked isle is also packed with history. Its main town has streets and a waterfront lined with attractive neoclassical mansions (one of which was the home of Nikos Kazantzakis, who wrote Zorba the Greek). Beyond its urban appeal, Aegina is known for island-grown pistachios, so expect to taste them in pralines, pasteli (biscuits), liqueurs and ice cream. Bed down at the new LaLiBay Resort & Spa, a five-star beachfront retreat with sunset views in Aiginitissa.
Details B&B doubles from £187 (lalibay.gr)
3. Agistri
Aegina may be chilled, but things get sleepier still on nextdoor Agistri. The relaxed air lends itself to lazy beach days (Megalochori, Skala and pine-backed Dragonera are the nicest options), but there are hiking trails, horse riding and scuba diving too if you’re visiting early or late in the season. Reward any exertions with lunch at a charming seafront taverna such as Yialos Fish Restaurant in Skala, or stick around for cocktails as the sun goes down behind the island. Stay at Skala’s Aktaion Beach Boutique Hotel, which has a decent spa and beachfront views.
Details B&B doubles from £62 (aktaionbeach.com)
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4. Evia
Piraeus is not the only port serving Athens. Over on the Petalioi Gulf, Rafina is a handy jumping-off point for a different set of island adventures. Directly across the water is Evia, the second-largest Greek island, whose southern portion is packed with vineyards, archaeological sites, empty beaches and impressive landmarks such as Dimosari Gorge’s waterfalls. Although there are plenty of beach resorts, this is really a place for striding out. HF Holidays has a week of guided walking in April (based at a beachfront hotel in Karystos) that takes in the local highlights.
Details Seven nights’ half-board from £1,319pp, excluding flights (hfholidays.co.uk)
5. Kythnos
Lavrio, the third port of Athens, offers up further short-range island-hop options. In Kythnos, one of the Cycladic islands, ferries pull into lively Merichas, where fish tavernas line the water’s edge. Graze, then tour the whitewashed villages of Chora (the capital) and Dryopida, pausing also at Vryokastro, part of which was long ago submerged by a rising sea. The real highlights of Kythnos, though, are the mineral hot springs at Loutra, which have been a valued resource since Roman and Byzantine times. Beautifully designed Yfes, overlooking Flambouria Bay, is the go-to hotel.
Details B&B doubles from £124 (yfeskythnos.com)
Have you visited Kea? Share your experience in the comments
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