Milos

Milos is the most geologically extraordinary island in the Cyclades, and its coastline looks like nowhere else in Greece. The first stop is Sarakiniko, the island's most famous spot: a bay of wind-sculpted white volcanic rock, smooth as marble, with pools of turquoise water between the pale cliffs. It feels like walking on the moon. Beyond that lies the rest of the island's long, indented coast — the pastel fishing houses of Klima, painted like a row of boats; the catacombs and the ancient theatre at the entrance to the bay; the lonely beaches of the south, reachable only by boat or rough track. Swims are taken at Tsigrado, a cove reached down a rope and a ladder in the cliff, and at Firiplaka, a beach of red and white cliffs. Milos is a place of pure shapes and colours — white rock, red rock, turquoise sea — and it has the atmosphere of a secret, even in summer. The Venus de Milo was found here, and the reason is plain: this island makes things of impossible beauty.

Milos has been inhabited since the Bronze Age, and its volcanic obsidian — a hard, glassy black stone — made it a centre of trade in the prehistoric Aegean, when obsidian blades from Milos were traded across the Mediterranean. Milos alone among the Cyclades stayed outside the Athenian alliance, and paid for it: in 416 BC the Athenians killed the men and sold the women into slavery. The island was famous for Melian earth, pumice and marble, and the famous Venus de Milo, the statue that now holds pride of place in the Louvre, was found here in 1820. It later came under Roman rule, and much of what is called Milos is archaeology on a volcanic island that has been reshaped by eruption; at the entrance to the harbour there is a small rock-cut Christian necropolis of the 4th to 6th centuries AD, unusual for being cut into the living rock. In the Middle Ages the island was part of the Duchy of the Aegean, and its castles — at Plaka and elsewhere — survive from that period. Under the Ottomans Milos was an important trading island, and in the 19th and early 20th centuries its mines — for sulphur, manganese, and baryte — made it one of the wealthier islands of the Cyclades. Today the mining has ended, and Milos is prized for its astonishing coastline, its quiet villages, and its extraordinary natural beauty.

The name is recorded by Stephanus of Byzantium in the sixth century AD. His Ethnica is not a book of stories but a dictionary of Greek place-names, and for this one it says: "The first settlers were Phoenicians, and so it was called Byblis from the Phoenician Byblos". (Ethnica, s.v. Μῆλος).

That is the whole of what an ancient source has to say about how the place got its name. It is a shorter answer than the guidebooks give, and it is the only one with a source behind it.

Milos has more than seventy beaches, and they are among the most varied in Greece. Sarakiniko is the icon: a bay of white volcanic rock, not really a beach at all, where you swim in deep turquoise pools between the pale cliffs. Tsigrado is a hidden cove reached by a rope and a ladder, with soft sand and clear water. Firiplaka has red and white striped cliffs, and Provatas, nearby, is a long organised beach. Papafragas is a dramatic cove carved into the rock. And the south and east coasts hide dozens of wild, empty coves, reachable only by boat or rough tracks. The volcanic rock warms the water, and the swimming on Milos is among the most memorable in the Cyclades — bring water shoes and a sense of adventure.

Milos food is simple, honest island cooking, based on the sea and the island's volcanic soil. The island is famous for its capers, which grow wild on the cliffs and are pickled and served with everything; its olives and olive oil; and its fish, caught daily from the deep waters of the bay. The tavernas of Adamas and Plaka serve the classic Cycladic table — grilled fish, octopus, and the local cheeses — with the island's white wine. The local speciality is a dish of stuffed vine leaves and the island's version of the tomato fritters. For a taste of Milos, order the capers, the fish of the day, and a plate of the island's cheeses, and sit by the harbour at Adamas as the evening settles.

May, June, and September are the ideal months on Milos: warm, quiet, and beautiful, with the beaches calm and the island's colours at their most vivid. July and August are busy — Milos has become rightly popular — but the island's long coastline means you can always find an empty cove. Spring is lovely, with wildflowers, and autumn lingers warm into October. The light on Milos is extraordinary all year, but the golden hours of early morning and late afternoon are when the volcanic rock glows and the sea turns to silk.

Milos is reached by ferry from Piraeus, a crossing of about four and a half hours, or from the other Cyclades, and by air from Athens at the island's airport. Ferries arrive at the port of Adamas.

The port is at Adamas; a car or scooter is essential to explore the long, indented coast. Do not miss Sarakiniko — go early in the morning for the light and the peace. For the south-coast beaches, take a boat trip from Adamas or Polonia, or drive the rough tracks. Visit the catacombs and the theatre, walk the lanes of Plaka at dusk, and have dinner by the harbour at Adamas. The island's museums are small but excellent, and the Venus story is worth knowing before you see the statue in Paris. Buy a jar of Milos capers to take home.