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Our first day in Milos was HARD. I felt a pit in my stomach when we arrived to the port of Adamas and even apologized to my boyfriend for making Milos such a priority destination for me.
I felt like I arrived to hotspot, tourist central. Every restaurant had "traditional" written somewhere on it, and there was barely a boat docked along the port without a phone number on it promoting a "day tour to Kleftiko" (all these spots will be better explained soon).
A few years ago, Milos was just starting to pop up on the tourist radar, and since then I've had it on my list of top islands to visit in Greece. And it seems a whole lot can happen in just a few years! Tourism is booooming. But after spending 4 days in Milos, I can confidently recommend visiting Milos and I can tell you just how to do it to feel like you're getting a real experience of the island rather than the touristic version.
First of all, the most popular towns (Adamas, Pollonia, and Plaka) are all within a 15 minute drive (tops). So don't be too stressed about picking where you want to stay or if you will have enough time to visit each spot, because you will..
Milos has one port where you arrive to, which is in Adamas. Adamas has a large port, several restaurants and lots of places you can rent cars/ATVs from. We picked an apartment off of Booking called Boho Sapiens and is in Adamas. In fact, it is so close to the arrival port of the ferry that it was a one minute walk across the street. I would recommend this spot because it is a good central location and the place itself is very clean, updated and new. (Tip if you choose to stay here: The breakfast is served at the cafe downstairs and doesn't consist of much, we learned we could add 3 euro per person and get eggs and ham included.)
Milos Essential Tip #1
Rent an ATV. It costs the same as renting a car and is totally essential for getting the best experience of the island. Milos has a lot of beautiful places to stop at and explore, sometimes found right off the road which makes having an ATV very convenient. I highly, highly, HIGHLY recommend spending an entire day exploring the island, with no plans. Just a full tank of gas. We did this and it ended up being... One of the best days of my life. No exaggeration.
How is it that I showed up to Milos with a pit in my stomach that we made a HUGE mistake, and two days later, while spending 7 hours exploring the island on the back of an ATV, I felt I was finally experiencing the true Greece I've always dreamed about??
After hours of riding between the mountains on the non-populated side of the island, under the sun, with expansive views of the sea, we made it to Taberna Ebourios.
Out of the numerous restaurants we ate at while on the Island, Taberna Ebourios, was my favorite. Hands down. The restaurant is situated literally on the water. It is SO "on-the-water" that when boats drive by (even from far off in the distance), water splashes up and engulfs your feet in sea water.
Aside from the unique experience of being right on the water, this restaurant actually felt "traditionally Greek", and it wasn't even written on the sign when you walk in, how about that? ;). There was Greek music playing softly in the background, an older gentlemen with no English serving dishes with a big smile and an "ooppaaahh", and food that was clearly made from the home. It honestly was so delicious, and such an authentic experience that I didn't even take my camera out once. This is what a 5 STAR recommendation sounds like.
Milos Essential Tip #2
Listen to the travel blog hotspots but don't depend on them. If this isn't the first blog you've reached while researching Milos, then you've already heard about the sunsets at the Plaka Castle, the beaches of Sarankiniko, the colorful houses at Klimo and the "access-by-boat-only" Kleftiko.
These spots are popular for a reason, and we visited all of them, but just like you, these are the spots everyone has read about. So at every single one of them, we met just about every other tourist of the island. Milos is small, what can you do? I do think that all of these spots are worth the visit. Especially the sunset at Plaka Castle and the beaches of Sarankiniko, but I recommend not building your trip around only these spots. Otherwise you will feel like you missed out on an authentic experience and wandering how many backgrounds you made it into for everyone's instagram 😉.
On that point:
Our favorite restaurant ended up being one that wasn't on any travel blog, the one I mentioned before, Taberna Ebourios, and our favorite beach was one that we found while wandering in the ATV off the side of the road.
My recommendation is to spend time visiting these popular spots but to also spend time wandering (getting lost 😉) and finding views, food and experiences. You'll feel like you're really getting to visit the authentic side of Greece. And it is oh, so beautiful!
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